Ranking All Games Published By Bethesda Softworks From Worst To Best

This fourth main entry for Fallout was always going to be a big deal: the graphics and world are truly next level, the combat is slick and improved, and the RPG elements are nicely streamlined for a more user-friendly experience.

Strangely though, the accessible polish works against the game, as it feels pushed in a more mainstream action-focused direction with not as much depth.

The decision to open up the character interactions into a Bioware-style dialogue tree echoes this. There's no character building, you just go through the motions, with most choices boiling down to making the same decision: either with enthusiasm or with a snarky disinterest.

It doesn't help that the campaign isn't that interesting either, plus a plot twist thrown into the third act makes very little sense. That's all before things evolve into that old Bethesda chestnut of either support Group A, or Group B, then shoot each other = The End.

It's still modern Fallout, with great exploration, a cast of colorful supporting characters (Nick Valentine!), and some standout sidequests.

It's just a shame that the mainstream approach, with many unnecessary tacked-on elements (e.g. house-building!), is there to distract from all the goodness... making it the least interesting of the recent main installments.