MACinations July 03 - Club Mac's magazine

Fallout 2 by Macplay is a force to be reckoned with. Outstanding graphics, dialogue, and game play are only a few of the things that make this game great. When I first saw this game I thought it would be just another Role Playing Game that would end up on the bottom of a CD pile. I have never been so wrong in my life.

The installation was among the simplest I have seen in a long time. All you do is drag the application from the CD and drop it on your hard drive. Once you launch the game, you will are taken through a short movie that shows you what key components such as Vaults and GECK are. You are also given the history of the story line.

When you start a new game you are given three customizable character choices. The three characters are pre made, but when you give them a complete makeover. The game is based on what your Character Statistics (stats) are (Charisma, Intelligence, Strength, etc.). The more or fewer stats you have in a specific category will decide the outcome of events, how townspeople react to you, and the list goes on. On top of having to make very careful choices in character stats you have to pick attributes as well! These attributes will benefit you in some situations while making the game incredibly hard in others. You will have to create new games several times to find the perfect character for you.

Now the story begins. The game takes place in a post apocalyptic world set in California. You are a tribesman (or woman) thought to be the "Chosen One". The tribe elder sends you through a trial at the very beginning to prove your worthiness. Once completed, you learn that your tribe is dying and are sent off to find a Garden of Eden Creation Kit (aka GECK). This kit will supposedly save your tribe, if it even exists. You will come across many towns on your journey, as well as make several allies and enemies. Aside from the long main quest, you are greeted with several side quests. Most of these side quests are optional, and all of them have multiple outcomes. The outcomes of the quests will have an impact on your main quest, increasing or decreasing the difficulty.

The only serious downside to the game is learning the combat system, which pits your character against various enemies. The combat system is turn based, so it will take some time to understand the various controls and tricks. You will need a lot of patience and time to come up with battle tactics and plans, as well as level your character up. Once you have gotten the hang of the various control and the combat system, the game will become quite addictive.

Altogether, the detailed graphics, game play, and the story line make this RPG rather unique and addictive. The customizability of the game is absolutely amazing and the game's NCPs (neutral computer players, aka the people) each have their own personality, creating a very realistic effect. Personally I think Fallout 2 is one of the best RPGs for Mac OSX. WARNING: This game is rated Mature for a very good reason. The game is full of swearing, insults, and violence. There is no lock on the violence settings, so this game is NOT for younger audiences.

RATING (Out of 10) Fun Factor: 9.0 Graphics: 9.5 Story: 7.5 Controls: 8.5 Overall Rating: 8.6 (Very Good)

Questions or Comments? E-Mail me at danielroche@mac.com