To the Shelter!

[Jonathan Meer]

Pros: The story is solid, and the atmosphere created by the game is quality. The characters present in the game are from a wide range; many comedic, many crazy, most of them convincing and deep. VATS is a fantastic addition to traditional FPS gameplay. The landscape is gorgeous (though not beautiful).

Cons: The gun gameplay, minus VATS, is weak, clunky, and ineffective. There are a number of technical issues that still haven't been solved: Fallout will randomly crash often enough to be a nuisance (roughly once every few days for me), some quests can become broken if a particular situation arises (for example, it can become impossible to take the GOAT if you choose to attack the Tunnel Snakes prior to the test, and take a seat before the others), and various physics quirks, like items vibrating on the ground that shouldn't be. Frame rates (at least on the PS3) can be problematic in areas with a large number of enemies. Another big letdown for the PS3 is a lack of DLC (which will be present for PC and 360).

It's a good game. I'd recommend owning it, but I wouldn't mark it as Game of the Year, which some places are. MGS4, LBP, and Left 4 Dead deserve contention for that spot.