14 DAY TRIAL // Fallout 4 developer Bethesda confirms that it's taken great care to ensure that the post-apocalyptic role-playing game delivers satisfying first-person shooter mechanics, and that players who use the VATS system will have a slight advantage, as opposed to those that rely just on skill.
Fallout 3 and Fallout: New Vegas have taken the isometric RPG experience seen in the original series and transformed it into a modern RPG that can be played using a first or third-person perspective.
Unfortunately, at least with Fallout 3, trying to play the title as a first-person shooter wasn't all that great, as the actual mechanics were slightly erratic and forced players to rely on the VATS (Vault-Tec Assisted Targeting System) which stopped time, locked onto nearby enemies, and allowed players to shoot into different parts of their bodies.
Fallout 4 will have better first-person shooting
With Fallout 4, developer Bethesda promises much better first-person shooter mechanics, as it's worked hard to ensure that, while the title is a role-playing game, it can be played quite well as a shooter. However, Game Director Todd Howard tells GameSpot that players who use the VATS mechanic will have a slight advantage.
"We started out with Fallout 4 knowing that, look, we can't apologize for being a role-playing game. We have to build a first-person shooter, and it needs to be a really, really good one. We spent a lot of time on that. We want players to have the edge if they use the VATS system. If you're building your character for VATS, it's really powerful," he explains.
As seen in the E3 2015 gameplay videos, the VATS mechanic of Fallout 4 offers a slightly tweaked experience, as it no longer stops time, instead just slowing things down in order to not feel so over-powered.
You can expect to see and hear more about the Fallout 4 VATS feature in the following months, as we get closer to the game's debut on PC, PS4, and Xbox One on November 10.
