Top Secret Magazine

Unlike the majority of role playing games you've played (especially the ones on the home consoles), there is nothing cute or cuddly in Fallout 2. Centuries after the A-bombs were dropped, the world is inhabited by grotesque plants and animals mutated by radiation and roving gangs of thugs. Large areas of the map are devoid of any vegetation, potable water or law enforcement.

The character you play as has been given the task of venturing into this wasteland in search of a GECK. It's an acronym for Garden of Eden Creation Kit and this device is all that can save your tribe.

You and your fellow tribesmen are descendants of those who were lucky enough to survive World War 3 by taking refuge in a massive bomb shelter called a Vault. Your home village has been plagued by some form of pestilence that is killing the children and animals and only the GECK can cure it.

This is the backstory to Fallout 2 and once you've got a handle on it, you're on your own. Other RPGs give you a character to play as, limit your character's possible behaviour and guide you through the game. Fallout 2, on the other hand, is closer to its "Dungeons and Dragons" roots and leaves everything up to you.

The first thing you do is decide what kind of character you want to be. You choose your strength, your endurance, your level of perception and several other primary statistics. The choices you make will affect what kind of events befall you later on. You also choose your character's level of ability at certain tasks like first-aid and lockpicking.

In the course of the game, as your character gains more experience, you're allowed to learn more particular abilities called perks. These perks augment the skills you already possess or may grant you entirely new skills. One perk is called Kama-Sutra Master and it gives you great stamina and skill when doing the deed with the opposite sex.

A major concept in this game is the battle between Good and Evil and the role that you play in it. There are numerous side quests that you may follow if you so choose and they either help people out or cause misery.

This guy's a friend. Don't shoot him.

Your first challenge: The Temple of Trials.

The Karmic value of your actions are all accounted for and the Karma, good or bad, that you accumulate, will eventually come back to you. It doesn't matter if nobody saw you gun down those defenseless innocents, you'll still get bad Karma for it. And if people do see you commit atrocities or otherwise unpleasant acts, you'll get a bad reputation amongst the denizens of the wasteland.

Fallout 2 is one of the more violent games you've ever played. At times it's almost like being in the middle of Martin Scorcese film. It starts off relatively tame; you may thwack the occasional rodent over the head with a pointy stick; but it doesn't take long before you're perforating gang leaders with H&K assault shotguns and torching prostitutes with flame throwers.

Did I say prostitutes? Oh yeah, this game gets the award for having more hookers in it than any other game in recent memory. You can hardly visit any town without some skanky ho sidling up to you and offering her/his services. And if you've acquired the Kama-Sutra Master perk, well, it gets interesting.

Prostitution, drug-dealing, drug abusing, cannibalism, necrophilia and a host of other unpleasant forms of behaviour are how the citizens of Fallout 2 pass the time. Not everyone is a degenerate, but a good solid proportion of them are. You can partake in some of these nasty acts; the game leaves it up to your discretion.

As disturbing as Fallout 2 can get at times, it is fun to play. It's quite the challenging game and unlike Final Fantasy 7 and other RPGs, this is is not a cakewalk. I've had this game for almost two weeks and I've already died and had to restart several times.

Graphically, its not too special and the audio isn't terribly thrilling either. The game excels by presenting a complex world with daunting problems to solve.

I wouldn't recommend Fallout 2 to everyone. Turn-based RPGs are a niche product at best, and this is a particularly bizarre one. It's the kind of game you either love or don't even understand.

Company:
Interplay
www.interplay.com

Category:
Role-Playing Game

NOTES:

Interest: 90%
Control : 85%
Graphics: 75%
Sound : 75%
Originality : 100%

TOTAL : 85%

Requirements:

Operating System:
Windows 95/98

Processor:
Pentium 90MHz or better

Memory:
32 MB of RAM recommended

Hard Drive:
30 MB

Sound Card:
Direct X certified sound card

Video:
Direct X certified SVGA video card

Stefan Lister