Released in 2010 by Bethesda, Fallout New Vegas is a large, open world role playing video game for the Xbox and PC. Set in a post-apocalyptic future, this game was named, “the most anticipated game of 2010” by IGN game reviews. What made the game so enticing was its already well-established legacy, unique style of gameplay and enthusiastic community involvement.

Fallout: New Vegas is the 4th installment in the Fallout video game franchise. The first Fallout, released in 1997, created a futuristic world in which a great nuclear war has ended all civilization. Each new game revolves around different types of people trying to reestablish civilization. The whole concept of nuclear fallout reflects the paranoia of the American people in the 1950s and 1960s. In fact, much of the game’s atmosphere and style is similar to 1950s propaganda common in the U.S at the time. This in combination with a futuristic twist creates a unique and original environment for a video game.

In Fallout’s gameplay style, the player is free to explore the world as they see fit. Without a linear path to follow, the player feels free to do whatever they want. Due to the sheer vastness of the wasteland in which the story takes place, the option of fast travel is offered to the player. With this option, the player has the option to spawn at several key locations throughout the world allowing easy access to all areas of the map. One major downside to this game is that the only methods of travel available are fast travel and walking. Many times walking can become very tedious and can often suck the fun right out of the game.

The fallout franchise is famous for their community involvement. Because the game is also available for the computer, countless independent game designers and programmers have made hundreds of modifications to the game, or mods for short. All mods add a new and unique feature to the original game. Designers create mods that can help enhance the graphics to a game, or add new items, people and even new stories and locations. The possibilities are limitless for these programmers. Bethesda, the original creators of Fallout New Vegas look on game forums where these independent designers have posted their mods and search for unique and creative works. When Bethesda has found an exceptionally creative mod, they recommend it to the rest of the gaming community.

Over all, the game has a creative and intuitive world that is very interactive with the player. The atmosphere and the vibe as a whole makes one feel like they’ve gone back in time and travelled to the future at the same time. The game controls are different from classic RPG and shooter games, making the jump from one game to another a bit difficult at times. The game’s multiplayer features are only available for the PC version and not the Xbox version. Fallout New Vegas is a wonderful addition to the Fallout Series but for one who is not already familiar with the Fallout world; the whole experience might seem a bit underwhelming