Home Gaming Fallout 4 doesn’t tell me which quests are important, and that’s fantastic

Fallout 4 doesn’t tell me which quests are important, and that’s fantastic

3 min read
32

Don't prioritise main quests in open world games

We’ve been rather spoiled for choice when it comes to Role-Paying games this year, and I personally couldn’t be happier. Recently I’ve been spending a lot of time (as so many others have) in Fallout 4 and Bethesda’s meticulously designed post-apocalyptic wastelands. For the most part it’s a truly phenomenal game – with lots to explore, engage quests and lots of them. But one thing I really like about Fallout 4 is in some of the finer details.

Fallout 4 has a ton of quests. Walking into a new settlement and conversing with the only NPC not hurrying to put a bullet in your brain is usually the easiest way to get more, and before you know it your Pip-Boy’s Data section will be inundated with quest descriptions from all over the Commonwealth. But there’s something different about it here. Fallout 4 doesn’t like marking which quests are main, and which simply fall under side-activities. And it’s rather powerful.

Fallout 4 never makes you feel like you're going in the wrong direction

But not explicitly telling me what is important, Fallout 4 weighs all of its actions equally. There’s no reason for me to feel guilty about helping out the Brotherhood of Steel instead of heading to Diamond City, because the game isn’t telling me that I’m not doing it’s most important quests. To its understanding, whatever quest I’m currently one is the most important one – because I, as a role-player, chose it. It’s important because I’m carving out my own path, and it’s great that Fallout 4 respects that.

It’s not something unique to Fallout either. Many other RPGs implement systems identical or at least similar, with Bloodborne (and the whole Souls franchise) coming to mind as a more extreme example. There aren’t even “quests” of any kind here, and in return it makes your exploration all feel equally important. There’s no right or wrong path – only the path that you choose to take, and who you choose to take it with.

This is what happens when you take too many side-quests

Of course that doesn’t mean all quests in Fallout 4 resemble each other in mechanical importance. It’s very easy to tell which are there to act as filler and which are there to progress the overall narrative, but it’s just a neat touch that it’s the actual interaction that telling me this, and not some colour-coded text in my quest log making that decision for me. Going to a location and just shooting things up certainly falls on the side-quest side of the fence, but not being badgered about not doing the important stuff let’s me take Fallout 4 at its own pace.

It’s in direct contrast to a game like The Witcher 3, which makes it very clear when you engaging in a quest that won’t progress the main narrative significantly. Having this type of information does have its place though – and with a game as immense as The Witcher 3 it could definitely be argued that some direction is needed at times. But it also doesn’t help in making me feel like I’m exploring its world in a way that feels organic to may character. Rather I’m just wasting time, avoid the next big “Main Quest” blip on the map for as long as I can. And it wants me to know that.

Don't want to get beaten up by bullies? Should've stuck to thos main quests

It’s a tricky thing to decide on because, as I’ve previously written, we shouldn’t always be in charge of how games are paced. There is a reason games wrestle control from us at times, trying to keep us on the straight and narrow path in order to keep the experience’s highest beats sounding on queue. There’s reasoning for massive open-world RPGs to mark quests in the manner that they do, but it’s a small part of the game that certainly needs to be scrutinised while in development.

Fallout 4 wants its players to explore and build the character they want through the equal choices that they make. And they’ve really hit the nail on the head here.

Last Updated: November 16, 2015

32 Comments

  1. Is the Brotherhood of Steal Fallout’s version of Skyrim’s Thieves Guild?

    Reply

  2. Jac7

    November 16, 2015 at 15:40

    For the love of the Pope could you stop talking about this game! I can’t afford it now and it’s driving me insane :'( Damn these First-World problems of mine.

    Reply

    • Grand Admiral Chief SpaceNinja

      November 16, 2015 at 15:41

      I just stick my fingers in my ears and eye and play my spaceninja game

      Reply

  3. RinceThis

    November 16, 2015 at 15:40

    Sweet game.

    Reply

  4. konfab

    November 16, 2015 at 15:42

    I will laugh if they count how many quests you do before each part of the main story, then use them in a conversation at the end to show how good a [redacted spoilers] you have been.

    Reply

    • Grand Admiral Chief SpaceNinja

      November 16, 2015 at 15:43

      A ROBOT?
      AN ALIEN?
      A CLONE?

      DAMMIT MAN!

      Reply

      • konfab

        November 16, 2015 at 15:43

        Or all of the above *__*

        Reply

        • Grand Admiral Chief SpaceNinja

          November 16, 2015 at 15:47

          Such a derp!

          Reply

      • Alien Emperor Trevor

        November 16, 2015 at 15:44

        MATT DAMON.

        Reply

        • Hammersteyn

          November 16, 2015 at 15:44

          AREC BARDWIN

          Reply

          • Dutch Matrix

            November 16, 2015 at 16:00

            SHARON STONE

  5. Kromas untamed

    November 16, 2015 at 15:51

    Go to Salem …. and bring Power Armour for both you and your companion.

    You will figure out what I mean relatively fast. 🙂

    Reply

  6. Lardus-For the Emperor!

    November 16, 2015 at 15:56

    “to may character” – what is wrong with april character, or even december character? 😛

    Reply

  7. Milesh Bhana

    November 17, 2015 at 07:26

    i always find the “lack of urgency” for the character to follow the main quest to be a little weird. In some cases it works, others less so. Like in Fallout 4, they give your character a VERY strong motivation to follow the main story. Most people in that situation wouldn’t stop to do everyone a little favour.

    Reply

  8. Nikola

    November 17, 2015 at 09:42

    I got the game sitting on my shelf looking at me everyday but if I start Fallout 4 now I rate my backlog will never get done so 4 more games left to go then Fallout hahah:)

    Reply

  9. George Colson

    November 18, 2015 at 03:34

    I agree. I am certain it has people doing stuff they wouldn’t normally do and that’s great. The main stories are always excellent but its all the little gems buried in the wasteland that really make fallout what it is. Jus go digging, you’ll find something that blows your mind.

    Reply

  10. Defected

    May 9, 2016 at 05:41

    I’m getting bored of this game and I have no clue where to go! Walking around with missions and no GPS showing a location to start the next one. I have less time to play video games these days and shit like this is getting on my nerves. Analyze the courser chip? Okay I would love to, but I have no clue where to go! Found the DR and that is far as I could get.

    Reply

    • Geoffrey Tim

      May 9, 2016 at 06:47

      Invest in the V.A.N.S. perk; when you go in to VATS, it’ll show you where you neeed to go.

      Reply

      • Defected

        May 15, 2016 at 22:59

        I got that, but its showing nothing.

        Reply

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