For the unintiated, things you can do in FO2 has that would not be allowed today:
child killing
pornography producing
gravedigging
slavery
I'm pretty sure you can do all of those things, including selling children into slavery in fallout 4 and new Vegas
Bethesda's version is toned down
Cannot kill children in Bethesda games (without modding)
Fallout 2 dealt with some realities of porn, learnt about terms like being a fluffer if are not fit for porn and if you had the skills it provided a pretty salicious perk image and a stage name among a couple of other changes. Sex referencing was used quite a lot in game - sometimes disturbingly so at times.
Gravedigging fair enough, there is a perk one gets in fallout 2 that hits you with karma penalty when you do it but otherwise point taken
Joining the slavers in Fallout 2, you get branded with a facial brand telling the waste "Look at me, I am a Slaver" which had the effect to lock a character out of quests and be automatically branded an enemy of the NCR - which is a choice that can be made in the second town.
I don't see the need to murder kids even in games so I never even tried killing a kid in fallout. The porn thing just sounds like a specific quest, and fallout 3 and 4 had equally adult quests I think. Anyways, I think people view fallout 1 and 2 with rose tinted glasses, I tried playing them after I became a fan of 3 and nv. And it was a slog playing the old ones, I didn't get far.
Anyways, I think people view fallout 1 and 2 with rose tinted glasses, I tried playing them after I became a fan of 3 and nv. And it was a slog playing the old ones, I didn’t get far.
I also got into the series via FO3, and had a similar experience when I tried to play the first one shortly after completing 3. I couldn't get past the dated gameplay and thought the hype must just be nostalgia. But the recent TV show inspired me to take another swing at the originals (being the only Fallout's I didn't play to death), and I actually am now of the opposite opinion.
Make no mistake, the game play feels clunky and dated even for '98 standards. And as such playing it can be a bit of a slog, especially the first couple hours. But the world building and quest design are honestly still better than 90% of modern games. I love Bethesda's games, but the stark difference in quality regarding these two aspects can't be overstated.
After running through both 1 and 2, I can fully see why fans of the originals seem to often feel like Bethesda's entries failed to deliver on what long time fans came to know and love the series for. I will always love the Bethesda games, but it really isn't just rose tinted glasses, there was some magic in the originals.
Thank you for more eloquently writing what I couldn't really properly get out
There are things in Fallout 2 that stick with me since the first time I played it more than a decade ago because their are moments that feel impactful - it made me feel guilt for my actions, it made me laugh at something totally ridiculous and it has charm and subtlety that I feel Bethesda games struggle with.
::: spoiler spoiler
I am playing it now, fallout 2 with restoration mod, it is totally different to the modern takes but I can still appreciate it because I can remember a lot of it and therefore know that I am going to suffer through some early game difficulty but I can still gleefully remember building a character that could pop eye balls from ten paces with a BOZAR, remembering Cassidy has a medical condition, remembering to leave farm girl alone unless I can bs, don't bother with the Wanamingo's until I am stronger, Marcus is a bro, a mother with a her child in refugee tents outside a city, refusing people coming in without them being able to provide something, and her asking to find out about her husband, intelligent deathclaws, hubologists, Vault City Entrance exam, gecko power plant and be sure to antagonise the Enclave over the monitor, the hooded man on the bridge asking riddles, the dogmeat dimension, the unlucky dog, super mutants don't mess with until endgame, reno, vault tec and I can go on and on.
:::
I played and finished fallout 3 and new vegas, played a bit of 4 and besides New Vegas giving me some of that old fallout charm, it does not have as nearly as memorable moments that live rent free in my head
Fair enough, Fallout 2 at least did deal with a lot of dark themes that I don't see Bethesda retreading.
In regards to the kids thing, there were ways around it, it was more an annoyance having to buy back stuff that got stolen if one didn't take those precautions and on an evil playthrough could cut the pretense and do it without much consequence besides the perk reputation as the place was a craphole anyway.
The older fallouts needed one to get into the setting to start the ball rolling, it is not a pretty game and would not be above throwing the playable character in difficult situation if they didn't prepare for it but it had a way with its writing that helped one to roleplay once one got to a point where one got established which is an older game paradigm that isn't popular nowadays - building a reputation, and once you have one can start to interact with the world proper.
New Vegas scratches that itch, but isn't completely the same
I suppose it is like playing a interactive book and then falling in love with the writing and systems that represented uncomfortable realities in an interesting way.
Where?
There's a quest where you find a ghoul child locked in a refrigerator on the side of the road (it's implied he's been in there since the war). You have the option of selling him to a named member of the gunners.
I remember that, but is there anything like that in FO4? I'm genuinely curious because I haven't played all the dlcs.
That's from FO4. I don't think it appeared in any other game.
For the unintiated, things you can do in FO2 has that would not be allowed today:
I'm pretty sure you can do all of those things, including selling children into slavery in fallout 4 and new Vegas
Bethesda's version is toned down
I don't see the need to murder kids even in games so I never even tried killing a kid in fallout. The porn thing just sounds like a specific quest, and fallout 3 and 4 had equally adult quests I think. Anyways, I think people view fallout 1 and 2 with rose tinted glasses, I tried playing them after I became a fan of 3 and nv. And it was a slog playing the old ones, I didn't get far.
I also got into the series via FO3, and had a similar experience when I tried to play the first one shortly after completing 3. I couldn't get past the dated gameplay and thought the hype must just be nostalgia. But the recent TV show inspired me to take another swing at the originals (being the only Fallout's I didn't play to death), and I actually am now of the opposite opinion.
Make no mistake, the game play feels clunky and dated even for '98 standards. And as such playing it can be a bit of a slog, especially the first couple hours. But the world building and quest design are honestly still better than 90% of modern games. I love Bethesda's games, but the stark difference in quality regarding these two aspects can't be overstated.
After running through both 1 and 2, I can fully see why fans of the originals seem to often feel like Bethesda's entries failed to deliver on what long time fans came to know and love the series for. I will always love the Bethesda games, but it really isn't just rose tinted glasses, there was some magic in the originals.
Thank you for more eloquently writing what I couldn't really properly get out
There are things in Fallout 2 that stick with me since the first time I played it more than a decade ago because their are moments that feel impactful - it made me feel guilt for my actions, it made me laugh at something totally ridiculous and it has charm and subtlety that I feel Bethesda games struggle with.
::: spoiler spoiler I am playing it now, fallout 2 with restoration mod, it is totally different to the modern takes but I can still appreciate it because I can remember a lot of it and therefore know that I am going to suffer through some early game difficulty but I can still gleefully remember building a character that could pop eye balls from ten paces with a BOZAR, remembering Cassidy has a medical condition, remembering to leave farm girl alone unless I can bs, don't bother with the Wanamingo's until I am stronger, Marcus is a bro, a mother with a her child in refugee tents outside a city, refusing people coming in without them being able to provide something, and her asking to find out about her husband, intelligent deathclaws, hubologists, Vault City Entrance exam, gecko power plant and be sure to antagonise the Enclave over the monitor, the hooded man on the bridge asking riddles, the dogmeat dimension, the unlucky dog, super mutants don't mess with until endgame, reno, vault tec and I can go on and on. :::
I played and finished fallout 3 and new vegas, played a bit of 4 and besides New Vegas giving me some of that old fallout charm, it does not have as nearly as memorable moments that live rent free in my head
Fair enough, Fallout 2 at least did deal with a lot of dark themes that I don't see Bethesda retreading.
In regards to the kids thing, there were ways around it, it was more an annoyance having to buy back stuff that got stolen if one didn't take those precautions and on an evil playthrough could cut the pretense and do it without much consequence besides the perk reputation as the place was a craphole anyway.
The older fallouts needed one to get into the setting to start the ball rolling, it is not a pretty game and would not be above throwing the playable character in difficult situation if they didn't prepare for it but it had a way with its writing that helped one to roleplay once one got to a point where one got established which is an older game paradigm that isn't popular nowadays - building a reputation, and once you have one can start to interact with the world proper.
New Vegas scratches that itch, but isn't completely the same
I suppose it is like playing a interactive book and then falling in love with the writing and systems that represented uncomfortable realities in an interesting way.
Where?
There's a quest where you find a ghoul child locked in a refrigerator on the side of the road (it's implied he's been in there since the war). You have the option of selling him to a named member of the gunners.
I remember that, but is there anything like that in FO4? I'm genuinely curious because I haven't played all the dlcs.
That's from FO4. I don't think it appeared in any other game.
https://fallout.fandom.com/wiki/Kid_in_a_Fridge
Huh. My memory must be going, I swore it was one of the previous ones, well, thanks for enlightening me.