issue 11// volume 42

Fresh faces and familiar functions

in new ‘Fallout’ game

» ‘Fallout 4’ video game review

Jennifer Stefan
Contrioutor

OOOO

Bans? Softworks’ highly
anticipated Fallout 4 is
finally out in the wild! I, like
many others, could hardly
contain my excitement, and
stepped into the wasteland the
night it was released. Bethesda’s
Fallout games have never
failed to impress, so there were
a great deal of expectations
surrounding this title.

Unlike other titles in the
franchise, Fallout 4 begins on
a day we've only heard about:
October 23, 2077, the very day
the nuclear holocaust occured
and created the wasteland

environments of the other games.

The player begins at home in
Boston, Massachusetts, ina
19208-style neighbourhood with
their spouse and child. There’s
also Codsworth, their robot
butler. They spend some time
with the family before everything
goes wrong, causing a mad rush
for the shelter of nearby Vault
11. The next time the player sees
the surface is 200 years later.

The graphics in this game
are excellent. I run a mid-range
PC, so I was a bit concerned

: about how that would affect the

: game, but the graphics were still
: smooth and detailed. This shows
: a lot in the characters, most

: notably in the character creation,
: which is far more intuitive than

: Fallout games of the past. Every

: bit of your character's face, from

: the forehead to the jawline, is

: available to sculpt, which involves :
: the use of yourcursorto mould — :
: the shape you desire. The familiar :
: slider-controlled presets of the

: past are nowhere to be seen,

: though you can still choose

: premade characters and sculpt

: from there. Both the husband’s

: and wife’s appearance can be

: managed by the player, and these
: decisions affect what their baby

: looks like as well. Fallout 4 looks
: its best with the highest settings

: possible, but is still playable and

: beautiful on lower settings.

Another major change is

: the ability to directly affect

: the world around you. For the

: first time, Fallout 4 allows the

: player to build and customize

: their own settlements. The

: areas you can settle appear to

: be predetermined, but what

: you do with the space provided
: is completely up to you. I have
: spent hours with this feature

: already. You can build houses,

: manage food and water sources,
: and invite settlers to come and

: live in the town you make. They
: will work, live, and defend

: it, so be sure to put up some

: defences so that no raiders

: can catch you unaware. This is

: still the wasteland, after all.

Shiny new things aside,

: Fallout 4 feels very familiar.

: The hacking, combat, and lock-
: picking systems are the same as
: other titles in the series, which
: makes it very easy for veteran

: players to get back into it. It’s

: almost like returning to a place
: you grew up in. There’s no secret
: about what to do in this game,

: or where to go. The map system
: is the same, complete with the

: fast travel we all rely on. Your

 

: quests and inventory are all in

: the same place you'd expect

: them to be. If you were looking
: for an entirely new system, this
: is probably not the place for

: you. But if you were looking

: for more Fallout, here you go.

If you're new to this, don’t

: be afraid. It isn’t necessary to

: have even touched the other

: Fallout games to get a good sense
: of the world, and it promises

: hours upon hours of fun and

: exploration. The story is a brand
? new one, and youre not pushed
: out into the world without

: a little guidance. While the

: wasteland isn’t always friendly,

: it’s certainly forgiving, and there

arts // no. 9

Image via gamespot.com

: are several companions you can
: choose from to bring along if
: you'd rather not go it alone.

Overall, Bethesda Softworks

: delivered another successful

: open-world game, complete

: with new and returning features.
: If youre a fan of huge games

: with incredible environments,
: interesting characters, and the
: occasional morally ambivalent
: decision to make, I would

: definitely recommend Fallout
: 4. If you're like me and have

: been in the wasteland before,

: I'm just going to say what all

: the advertisements have been
: saying: Welcome home.

 

Chairman of the Board: Darkest Europe

» ‘Bruges’ game review

Ed Appleby
Illustrator

Furs: games require a lot
of strategy and not a lot of

player interaction. You may be
playing against other players,
but they don't really affect how
you play the game. Bruges takes
this style of play and adds a
healthy dose of backstabbing.

Bruges is a European style
city-building game combining
both dice rolling and hand
management for 2-4 players
designed by Stefan Feld and
published by Z-Man games in
2013. Players use a combination
of workers and money to move
up in rank; build canals and
houses; and house various
artisans, city officials, and artists.
As in many euro-style games,
the majority of points are added
up at the end depending on
how you played and where you
focused all of your resources.

There are several factors
that make Bruges unique.

: Florins, threats, and rank are

: all distributed by the roll of five

: multi-coloured dice. Workers are
: also divided into five different

: colours, with only certain colours
: able to activate certain cards.

The cards have the most

: control when it comes to

: gameplay. Players pick between
: the two decks, knowing the

: colour of the card when drawn

: but not who the card represents.
: Cards can be traded in for

: florins, workers, houses, canals;
: discarded to reduce threats;

: or used to hire the individual

: on the card, who modifies the

: rules to the benefit of their

: owner or adds new ways to score
: points at the end of the game.

Some characters can be

: used to burn down other players’
: buildings or increase threat

: levels. Once a threat is activated,
: the damage is extensive to the

: player, who can lose all florins

: accrued have their people,
buildings, or canals destroyed.

The joy of this commerce

: game is that it is so dense

 

: that you literally cannot do

: everything you intend to. You

: find yourself selling off extremely
: valuable cards to gain quick

: cash or mitigate threats. This

: isa great game for lovers of

: hardcore games with a complex
: and robust system. Setup and

 

Illustration by Ed Appleby

/ i

: scoring can be tedious, but the
: gameplay is quick, intuitive, and
: deliciously stressful