Preview: Fallout 4

Press Start may receive a commission when you buy from links on our site at no extra cost to you.

Set to come out next month, Fallout 4 is the latest in the series of open-world RPGs. As with earlier games, players are able to explore a post-apocalyptic world and forge their own way through it.I was excited to hear that the game would make an appearance at EB Expo, despite the fact it was not playable. During the 10-15 minute presentation, a representative from Bethesda discussed what improvements and features we should expect to see. Between the quests, side-quests and everything in between, it was estimated that the game would take a minimum of 400 hours to complete.

For those familiar with earlier games in the series, there was quite an abundance of loot and junk to be found throughout the game world. With Fallout 4, they all may prove to be quite useful as players can now upgrade weaponry, craft new items or build structures with what was once just pure junk.Beyond the crafting system, players will now have the ability to construct buildings and even small towns to their own liking. As the game does take place in a wasteland, it is up to the player to gather build defences to protect their settlement, and even obtain electricity to maintain it. As the Bethesda representative informed us, players can even choose to establish their own monopoly over electricity, selling it to other settlements only if they choose to.

I will admit that while I’m a latecomer to the series, I quickly grew to love it. Fallout 3 and New Vegas easily became favourites of mine, though they weren’t without their faults. Beyond some oversights, the more I progressed into the games, the slower it became. In particular, New Vegas’ DLCs meant for some extremely long loading times. With that in mind, I’m curious to see if the current generation consoles are capable of running this game properly.While Fallout 4 certainly shows a lot of promise with a number of new features, it was slightly disappointing to not be able to try them out. As such, it remains to be seen if these elements will overcomplicate gameplay or not.

Fallout 4 will be released on November 10 on Xbox One, PlayStation 4, and PC.