Fallout 4 VR Review - Far from perfect vr

A common complaint about virtual reality games is that they are quite fun, but can not be fascinated for long. Bethesda replies the complainants with a vr version of Fallout 4, which allows you to experience the enormous Boston Commonwealth in a whole new way. Translating a 'flat' game to virtual reality, however, brings many challenges and Fallout 4 VR does not overpower them all equally well.

West of the Rotten Landfill, under a high highway, is a small hut . The building looks innocent, with the exception of those mannequins at the front door and plastic heads on the cupboards, perhaps. But as long as the compass does not show red blocks, do not you have to worry about anything? In 2015 I uttered a shriek that was two octaves higher than my speaking voice when seeing the Radscorpion that suddenly rose from the ground. When the same happened to Fallout 4 VR, I took three octaves. It is a special experience to wander through the Wasteland in virtual reality, with Dogmeat at your side.

Impressive clumsiness

At times it is also a very clumsy experience. Fallout 4 is not the most immersive game ever made. The animations of your companions are so stiff that you can hardly distinguish a Synth from a human being of flesh and blood, the objects in the game do themselves whether they follow the laws of nature and it would not be a Bethesda game if there were no bugs in to sit. In vr you are extra aware of that. For example, in some buildings surfaces have a tendency to quickly switch between being or not being exposed. The stroboscopic effect is no fun for the eyes when you are a meter away from your screen, with the Vive on your nose it is a very painful experience.

Fallout 4 VR leaves opportunities when it comes to interaction. It is quite disappointing to see the faithful four-legged Dogmeat again at the Red Rocket Truck Stop, to discover that you can not pet him. Each interaction is done through a menu that materializes with your controller. You do not pick up weapons to empty them immediately, you scroll through a list of loot. You do not open drawers in your search for bottle caps, you press the upper quadrant of the controller for 'Take All'. The recharging of weapons takes place at the push of a button and you shoot the heaviest Miniguns and the most clumsy plasma weapons with a single hand. As far as the latter is concerned, Bethesda was best off with the game Pavlov VR, in which the handling of weapons is more intuitive, realistic and above all more fun.

Dare to believe

And yet Fallout 4 VR more often than not convincing. The people, machines and monsters of the Wasteland may be a bit weird about their axis when they walk around, as soon as a Feral Ghoul throws itself against you, you still shrink. The limited resolution of the Vive makes the use of targeting devices a lot trickier, but if you are throttled by VATS - which slows down time and gives you the opportunity to quietly aim at limbs - sees a bandit's head explode in slow-motion, almost everything is forgiven.

Where Bethesda at least hits the nail on the head, the large number of options you get to play comfortably. For example, it makes a lot of difference for immersion that in addition to the well-functioning teleporting, you can also use the thumb on the trackpad to walk through the landscape. Fallout 4 VR is packed with possibilities to make your stay in the irradiated future as pleasant as possible. For example, you can bring the Pipboy very intuitively to your face by lifting your arm, but after the first quarter of an hour it is fun. That is why you can choose to do that with a push on the trackpad. The Pipboy menu itself remains very awkward to use, but that is more to the original than to the vr-translation. Free walking around can give your equilibrium a big boost,

The most important consideration when asking whether you want to get Fallout 4 VR is mainly whether you've played the game before. Fallout 4 VR is the complete game - unfortunately without dlc's and mod-possibilities - with which you can be sweet for hours. The experience is more intense, but the same. The greatest achievement of Fallout 4 VR is therefore that Bethesda proves that it is possible: VR games can be more than a good experience for a few hours.

Fallout 4 VR is now available for the HTC Vive. Officially, the Oculus Rift is not supported, but as long as you have the Touch controllers, the game - with a fair amount of craft work - should work.

Conclusion

Fallout 4 VR is far from perfect vr, but the many flaws ultimately do not outweigh the feeling that you are really browsing through the radioactive ruins of Boston and disintegrating Super Mutants with your Laser Musket. Bethesda has clearly not leaned back lazily when implementing virtual reality and has provided the game with all kinds of options to ensure your comfort, even if you do not have your vr-legs yet. It is a pity that a lot of interaction remains abstract and some bugs put the game fun at risk, but Bethesda has nevertheless put down a good performance with Fallout 4 VR.

Pros

➕ The Boston Commonwealth has never been so real
➕ To vr-standards a lot of playing time
➕ Excellent control options

Cons

➖ Interaction is often limited to menus
➖ Bugs are extra distracting in Fri
➖ You can not pet Dogmeat

My Latest Posts:

• Far from Noise Review - This often ends with a cliffhanger
• Mario Party The Top 100 Review - Plus for Quality and quantity of the mini-game selection
• DOOM VFR Review - Harsh practices on Mars
• The Bradwell Conspiracy Gameplay Preview - Puzzle game to keep an eye on!
• Life is Strange: Before the Storm Episode 3 Review - Hell Is Empty