3. "The Graphics Have To Get Better"
Fallout 4's graphics are incredible. Just look at them; beautifully polished, nice full, rounded character models and a world with just the right sensation of individuality. You actively want to explore not just because you can, but because it all feels more inviting. In a recent interview with
Gamespot, director Todd Howard laid it out pretty well, a couple of choice quotes I'll highlight here. It's very important to note how directly he addressed the common complaint about Fallout 3 that the game's environment didn't have much variation, mentioning "if you're playing the game for an eight-hour stretch, a little depressing." "Depressing" isn't the word I'd use, but you can tell what he's getting at - especially when you look at how immediately more vibrant everything about 4 looks. He also states,
"Memory is important to us. [...] If we make a world that has, not just more details, but more dynamic details that we can keep track of and stream in and load quicker, all of that suspends your disbelief that this is a real world."
It's a great point to focus on, because although having your breath taken away by a setting sun or a particularly spark-filled explosion is one thing, wrapping a whole game up in a tighter, more consistent package is a better way to go. The Witcher 3 is absolutely stunning, but its frame-rate and occasional hitches are not. It's not all about pure visual fidelity. Instead, providing the most instantly enjoyable and reliably impressive game (factoring in that gargantuan world size) should be just as impressive.