When Fallout 4 was first shown via trailer, a number of angry people on the internet moaned about how graphically underwhelming it all was. “It looks just like Fallout 3, only with some colour!” some angry person inevitably pounded on his keyboard. “That looks like a load of rubbish and should get in the sea,” probably said another.
Here’s the thing though: while it would be possible to turn Fallout 4 in to the bestest looking game evar, it would come at the sacrifice of the game’s real goal: Ultimate freedom. I rather liked the more colourful hue in Fallout 4, and I thought the visuals were quite nice. That’s not what it’s about though, says Bethesda’s Pete Hines, speaking to Gamesradar.
“We push it visually as much as we can, while realising that we are not making a game just for the sake of having it be the best looking game out there,” Bethesda’s Pete Hines said.
Citing the much-beloved Skyrim as an example: “…it’s not meant to be the most stunning RPG ever. That’s not the stated goal,” he explains. “We want this massive interactive world, where you can talk to people, choose your own path and everything in the world has meaning and is an actual object”.
In Elder Scrolls and Fallout games, the things you see in the world physically exist, and it’s all about balancing those things, and their physics calculations, with shiny graphics until you have a great balance.
“We know what it is that we’re trying to do and it’s not just one thing,” says Pete. “It is all of these parts that make a much bigger whole. It’s the interactivity, it is the visuals but the visuals without sacrificing all this other stuff”.
“Everything in the world [is] something tangible – you don’t walk into a room and see lots of stuff and it’s all fake. All the items are actual items,” he says. “You set off a grenade in a room? It’s going to blow shit around and knock it all over the place. You have to spend cycles and stuff tracking where all of that went, and how it’s going to bounce around”.
It creates a bit of interactive freedom, and it’s this freedom that makes it difficult to compare the game with better looking ones, that offer none of the interactivity.
“It does allow for chaos but it also allows somebody to roll a thousand wheels of cheese down a hill in Skyrim. And you laugh, it’s fun,” says Hines. “You have that freedom and you also have a much better sense of place, because everything that you’re touching and picking up is real. These are real books and that’s a real apple. It’s not a picture of an apple that disappears from the world. You can pick it up from here and set it down over here”.
“If you’re going to hold us up to any other game and compare us side by side then it had better be a game that does all the same things,” he says. “If you can deconstruct and reconstruct the world in real time, in the game, and you can pick up every single item and it’s not just a texture then we can talk. Otherwise, well then it’s a bit apples and oranges”.
Fallout 4 is coming to new consoles and PC in November this year. I plan on playing it until 2018 at least. Here’s the most recent bit of footage, showing a bit of exploration.
Last Updated: July 21, 2015
Alien Emperor Trevor
July 21, 2015 at 13:05
I’ll play it in 2018 with the inevitable ENB mod – that way I don’t have to choose between freedom & graphics.
Pariah
July 21, 2015 at 13:09
Winner.
RinceThis
July 21, 2015 at 13:14
You mean the 2018 Steam sale is on surely? *Giggle
Alien Emperor Trevor
July 21, 2015 at 13:16
Well of course. You can just wait until it’s free on PSN+.
RinceThis
July 21, 2015 at 13:17
Why would I wait till 2028?
Alien Emperor Trevor
July 21, 2015 at 13:18
Because OVG won’t be able to give you his copy until he’s finished with it. ;P
RinceThis
July 21, 2015 at 13:19
Please, he’ll be in some ward by 2021 😉 Bwahahahah
Admiral Chief in Skellige
July 21, 2015 at 13:06
http://rs2img.memecdn.com/freeeeeedom_fb_3546883.jpg
Admiral Chief in Skellige
July 21, 2015 at 13:06
https://greatescape2013.files.wordpress.com/2014/12/braveheart-freedom.jpg
Pariah
July 21, 2015 at 13:09
And Mad Max was post apocalyptic too! How convenient!
house_hero
July 21, 2015 at 13:10
But I want freedom & fancy graphics.
Umar
July 21, 2015 at 13:10
Wither 3 was about both freedom and fancy graphics.
Admiral Chief in Skellige
July 21, 2015 at 13:10
^This
Admiral Chief in Skellige
July 21, 2015 at 13:10
I thought it was about ploughing?
Pariah
July 21, 2015 at 13:11
Farm Simulator 2015.
Pariah
July 21, 2015 at 13:12
Wait wait. So TW3 is about Ploughing. Farm Simulator is about ploughing. Therefore, The Witcher 3 IS Farm Simulator. OMG!!!!
Admiral Chief in Skellige
July 21, 2015 at 13:16
W3 has better looking NPCs
VampyreSquirrel
July 21, 2015 at 13:22
That’s not what the Aussies said…
Pariah
July 21, 2015 at 13:24
LOOOOOOL!
Hammersteyn
July 21, 2015 at 13:25
Oh SNAP
Umar
July 21, 2015 at 13:11
It’s also about sex on a Unicorn.
Pariah
July 21, 2015 at 13:12
The horn had to be used for something, amirite?
Umar
July 21, 2015 at 13:13
Hahaha…wait, that sounds awfully painful.
Pariah
July 21, 2015 at 13:14
http://www.vaseline.us/Resources/Images/US-VSL-0p25oz-Original_tcm2858-777559.png
Umar
July 21, 2015 at 13:15
For smooth lips??? DAMN, talk about violating a horn!
Alien Emperor Trevor
July 21, 2015 at 13:13
“Geralt, look!”
“…oh no.”
“Oh yes!”
the lulz.
Jonah Cash
July 21, 2015 at 16:56
Now you get it!!
torquemada
July 21, 2015 at 14:24
My thoughts exactly.
Aaron Lucas
July 21, 2015 at 14:42
Sort of, yeah. For me, the map/waypoint/fast travel systems don’t really facilitate or encourage exploration. Plus it’s not very free if you can’t run around slaughtering civilians. Also, try going up to a merchant’s stand and casting Aard. If it were Bethesda, all the fruit and whatever would go flying and the merchant would get all pissed, but because it’s just textures you just see dust. Like that quote from Todd about a grenade blowing shit all over the place, that stuff and the ability to do anything anywhere (and first person) are things I miss when I play TW3. Don’t get me wrong, I love Witcher, but it’s just not the same for me.
Gareth L (That eXCheez Guy)
July 21, 2015 at 21:39
I want CDPR to just go ahead and make a post-apocalyptic RPG so that we can forget Bethesda and their PR spinning.
Hammersteyn
July 21, 2015 at 13:14
The laser musket reminds me of this XD
RinceThis
July 21, 2015 at 13:15
So excited about this game. Loved the third so much. Also agree, would gladly take a dip in graphics for a ‘real’ world.
The Sten
July 21, 2015 at 13:30
There is a certain standard i expect to see in the game though. It just has to look like 2015, doesnt have to go beyond that. No half arsing
Skittle
July 21, 2015 at 13:32
I’ll wait for the modders to do what they do best
Captain JJ Eyebrows
July 21, 2015 at 13:33
This is exactly what Fallout has always been about. Freedom.
Admiral Chief in Skellige
July 21, 2015 at 13:34
There you are
Dutch Matrix
July 21, 2015 at 14:03
For FREEEEEDDOOOOOOOMMMMMMMM!!!!!
Nikola
July 21, 2015 at 13:41
Never was a fan of fallout bit since the lack of games that interest me at the end of the year like all those bullcrap yearly releases like COD and AC series I will most likely pick this up looks intresting enough:)
Ir0nseraph
July 21, 2015 at 14:21
Not a massive fan myself of fallout, just can’t shake the feeling that I should give it chance.
Fnuik
July 21, 2015 at 13:49
Quick question. I hated Skyrim, hate having to craft/learn how to make or do something. Never played any of the fallout games but this looks very cool. How much would I hate it considering I hated Skryrim?
Except for the fact that you almost never get anything good in Destiny, I like how I don’t have to learn new skills etc. to be able to wear a piece of armor or use a gun.
JHN
July 21, 2015 at 14:09
you would fucking hate it, if your not a fan of rpg elements dont touch it.
Fnuik
July 21, 2015 at 14:17
hahah Thought so. You see, I love the idea of RPG’s. I like having a character that levels the more I play. I liked the crafting from Dead Island. I just didn’t like the amount of time I had to do boring things in order to level in Skyrim. You could say I like RPG Lite games.
SargonTheBatpandaOfTI5
July 21, 2015 at 14:52
Cause. You know. That’s where rubbish belongs. In the sea. That’s EXACTLY the sort of Internet Troll thinking you see ALL THE TIME. You understand them so well. 😛
torquemada
July 21, 2015 at 15:15
The thing about Ultimate Freedom™ is that it patently isn’t. Can I build a vehicle? Can I fall in love? Can I have a child? Can my dog fall in love and have puppies? Can I go into space? Can I mine into the earth with an army of bots, harvest the copper, silver and gold, and buy an island off the coast? Can I swim underwater? Can I double jump? Can I smoke? Can I play pong, or Tetris? Can I have a shower, or go to the loo, or brush my teeth? Can I finish the storyline without killing a single thing? Can I be a travelling salesman and sell ammo to the rival gangs? Can I play as an alien race? Can my character change their hair style mid game? Can I brush my Nvidia hair? Will enemies that survive my attacks remember me and hold a grudge? Are the dialogue choices free text or voice responsive, or do I have to follow prescribed multiple choices provided to me by the game’s writers? (Just so much choice there… usually 2, but sometimes 3!!!! It’s so ultimate /sarc). Are there attack combos when wielding a mêlée weapon? Is there a narrative that has bespoke acts, and a final conclusion that I’m prompted to follow to get the most content out of the game? Can every sentient enemy be talked out of combat? Can I play co-operatively with 3 other mates? Can I order a double whiskey on the rocks, a plate of steamed radioactive crab and watch the world burn from my ivory tower of awesome? And can I have a zebra to ride…?
No… then it’s not Ultimate Freedom™, but then again Ultimate-freedom-in-the-context-of-a-post-apocalyptic-open-world-survival-build-your-base-tower-defense-angry-birds-fps/tps-sandbox-set-in-the-environs-of-Boston-USA-roleplaying-shooter-game-with-a-6-year-build-cycle-in-an-updated-engine-that-we-used-to-make-FallOut-3™ doesn’t quite have the same ring, does it? 😉 But this is why Bethesda still can’t do naturalistic human animation or human faces or lip sync.
Ultimate Freedom™, there is nothing after it. It’s ULTIMATE. There is no Ultimate +1. 😉 Oh the hype language. *rolls eyes* Remember that awesome sword combat from Skyrim. Yeah, me too. Good thing Fallout has guns.
Brady miaau
July 21, 2015 at 17:11
Yeah, ok.
I missed the point, I think. I got lost at glowing whiskey crab.
torquemada
July 21, 2015 at 21:27
Too bad, cos the point was just after that crunchy morsel.
Lisa
July 22, 2015 at 08:30
Torquemada makes a good point. Until a game is perfect in every single way I want it I will refuse to play it.
torquemada
July 22, 2015 at 11:15
Lol. That wasn’t my point, but that’s okay… I did bury it in there under a 873 tweets worth of text – entirely my fault. Point is, I call bullshit on Bethesda’s reason for janky faces, animations and last gen quality graphics. Their argument is, for a game with this much freedom (let’s peg it at ‘ultimate’ on the red, white and blue hype freedom dial) concessions were made to graphic fidelity.
I think its more likely their poor graphics (when compared to 2015’s new gen titles), are because they started work on this game 6 years ago… because mid-game engine changes are very dangerous…. and because arguably their core engine is lagging behind other company’s tech (rockstar, cdprojekt, ubisoft, naughty dog). And as for the animation, I believe that has something to do with efficiently integrating mocap into the development pipeline – which by judging the little gameplay I have seen, human movement still seems a little odd.
It doesn’t mean it’s going to be a bad game, or even an imperfect game. It just has the whiff of marketing bull, and that Lisa… if you made it this far, was my point.
Klipkop1980
July 21, 2015 at 15:41
Looks pretty sweet to me.
Lord Chaos
July 21, 2015 at 15:45
Cannot wait.
I’m glad it’s not a good looking Cod that only lasts 2 hours. Hell I still play Fallout 3.