Fallout 2

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Fallout 2
Developer(s)	Black Isle Studios
Publisher(s)	Interplay
Designer(s)	Feargus Urquhart
Series	Fallout series
Engine	Fallout engine
Latest version	Win: 1.02d (1999-01-29) Mac: 1.02a (2002-10-07)
Release date(s)	September 30, 1998
Genre(s)	Post-apocalyptic RPG
Mode(s)	Single player
Rating(s)	ESRB: M (Mature) USK: 16+ ELSPA: 15+ OFLC: M15+
Platform(s)	Microsoft Windows, Macintosh
Media	1 CD-ROM
System requirements	Win[1]: Pentium 90 MHz, 16 MB RAM, 30 MB available hard disk space, DirectX compatible SVGA card, 4X CD-ROM drive, Windows-compatible mouse, Windows 95 Mac[2]: PowerPC G3 233 MHz, 128 MB RAM, 600 MB available hard disk space, Mac OS X v10.1.4
Input	Keyboard, mouse

Fallout 2 is a critically-acclaimed computer role-playing game published by Interplay in 1998. The second game takes place 80 years after the first Fallout, in 2241^[3]. It tells the story of the original hero's descendant and his or her quest to save their primitive tribe from starvation by finding an ancient environmental restoration machine known as the "Garden of Eden Creation Kit," or GECK^[4]. Although featuring a completely new game world, stories, and adventures that are several times larger than its predecessor, the game mechanics are almost identical to Fallout, with a few new features, adhering to the adage frequently spoken by the crew, "If it ain't broke, don't fix it."

Contents 1 Gameplay 1.1 Character Attributes 1.1.1 Attributes 1.1.2 Skills 1.1.3 Traits and Perks 2 Plot 2.1 Setting 2.2 Story 2.3 Characteristics 3 Recruitable Characters 4 Cultural References 4.1 Places 4.2 People and Culture 4.3 Items 5 Trivia 6 References 7 External links 7.1 Official 7.2 Others

Gameplay

Character Attributes

Further information: SPECIAL System

Attributes

Fallout 2, like its predecessor, uses a character creation system called SPECIAL. SPECIAL represents Strength, Perception, Endurance, Charisma, Intelligence, Agility, and Luck. These are the seven basic attributes of every character in the game. They are used to determine the skills and perks of the given character.

Skills

There are 18 different skills in the game. They are ranked from 0% to 300%. The starting values for those skills at Level 1 are determined by the player's 7 basic attributes, but most of those skill would fall between 0% and 50%. Every time the player gains a level, he will be awarded skill points to be used to improve his skills. The player may choose to specialize in 3 of the 18 skills. A specialized skill will improve at twice the normal rate.

• 6 combat skills: Small Guns, Big Guns, Energy Weapons, Unarmed, Melee Weapons, Throwing.
• 8 active skills: First Aid, Doctor, Sneak, Lockpick, Steal, Traps, Science, Repair.
• 4 passive skills: Speech, Barter, Gambling, Outdoorsman.

Books found throughout the gameworld can also improve some of those skills permanently; although books are scarce early in the game. Some skills can be also be improved while having certain items equipped. (E.g. equipping a lock pick would improve lock picking skills.) Stimulants can also temporarily boost player's skills; however, they often have adverse effects such as addiction and withdrawal.

Traits and Perks

At character creation, the player may choose 2 optional traits for his character. Traits are special character background. Most traits have profound effects on gameplay. A trait normally contains one beneficial effect and one detrimental effect. They are listed under perks in the character sheet.

Perks in the game are special elements of the level up system. Every 3 levels, the player is granted a perk of his choosing. Perks grant special effects, most of which are not obtainable via normal level up in the game, such as letting the player have more actions per round. Unlike traits, perks are purely beneficial.

Plot

Setting

At the end of original Fallout, the hero Vault Dweller was exiled by the Vault Overseer for his prolonged exposure to the outside world. Unable to return home, the Vault Dweller with a group of willing companions traveled far north. Eventually they started their own tribal village called Arroyo in what is modern day Oregon.^[5] Decades have passed since the original Fallout, and the Vault Dweller has died.

Story

During 2241, Arroyo suffered the worst drought on record. Faced with the difficulty, the village elders asked the direct descendant of the Vault Dweller, referred to as the Chosen One, to perform the quest of retrieving a Garden of Eden Creation Kit (GECK) for Arroyo. The GECK is a device that can create thriving communities out of the post-apocalyptic wasteland.^[4]

The player, assuming the role of the Chosen One, is given nothing more than the Vault Dweller's jumpsuit, RobCo PIPBoy 2000 handheld device, a Vault 13 water flask, and some cash to start on his mission.

The player eventually acquires a GECK by finding Vault 13. Vault 13 was devoid of the majority of its former human inhabitants. He returns to find his village captured by the remnants of the United States government known as "The Enclave". The player, through variety of means, activates an ancient oil tanker. Steering this oil tanker, the player is able to reach Enclave's main base on an offshore oilrig.

It is revealed that the dwellers of Vault 13 were captured as well, to be used as test subjects for FEV (Forced Evolutionary Virus). Vault 13 was supposed to be closed for 200 years as part of an Enclave experiment^[3], this makes them perfect test subjects. The Enclave modified the Forced Evolutionary Virus into an airborne disease, designed to attack any living creatures with mutated DNA. With all genetic impurities removed, the Enclave (who remain protected from radiation) could take over. The player frees both his village (Arroyo) and the Vault 13 dwellers from Enclave control, and destroys the Enclave's oilrig. In the ending, the inhabitants of Vault 13 and Arroyo villagers create a new prosperous community with the help of the GECK.

Characteristics

The fact that in both Fallout and Fallout 2 player characters are raised in an isolated community works with the plot structure, allowing the character to be as ignorant about the game world as the player would be and explaining why the map the character starts with is almost completely unexplored.

Recruitable Characters

Like the original Fallout, there are numerous NPC in Fallout 2 that the player can recruit to assist in his or her quest. Unlike the original Fallout, these characters are more customizable in combat AI and equipment. These characters can level up as the player gains more experience. Additionally, these NPCs have skills, such as repair and doctoring, which would come into play if the player is lacking in such skills. The appearance of the recruitable NPCs (except for their weapons) are at their default in-game visuals despite being issued different suits of armor and instructed to wear them.

The number of party members the player can recruit is based on the player character's charisma statistics. Most recruits also have personal preferences or qualifications for the player. The majority of the recruits require the player to have good karma standing and to have not committed atrocious acts such as becoming a slaver.

Name	Race	Location	Skills	Notes
Vic	Human	The Den	Repair, energy weapons, small guns (pistols and rifles)	A trader whom the village elder instructed the player to find at the beginning of the game and is a vital link in the discovery of the GECK. He can join the player's group as soon as his radio is fixed and his debts repaid, of if the player eliminates Metzger, his captor.
Sulik	Human	Klamath	Melee weapons, small guns (SMGs)	A tribal human who will be willing to join player's party if the player repays his debt. He is the first NPC the player may recruit.
Cassidy	Human	Vault City	Small guns (pistols and rifles), unarmed, energy weapons, and melee weapons	A bartender, who is sick of Vault City, but lives there because they have the best healthcare in the area. This can be further attested to the fact that in certain random dialogues, he hopes that his 'heart will not act up' while travelling, and using any stimulating drugs will cause his heart to collapse.
Myron	Human	New Reno	Science	A scientist who is employed by the Mordino family for chemical research but feels they are not treating him properly.
Lenny	Ghoul	Gecko	Doctor	The doctor of ghoul town Gecko who jumps at the opportunity to travel with a descendant of the Vault Dweller.
Marcus	Mutant	Broken Hills	Big guns, (large) energy weapons	The sheriff of Broken Hills. The player has to solve some quests in Broken Hills before Marcus consents to join the party.
Goris	Deathclaw	Vault 13	Unarmed	A deathclaw and a scholar from Vault 13 who wants to experience and learn more about the world by travelling with the player
Robobrain	Robot	Sierra Army Depot	Depends on brain	Player would install a brain of his choice into the robot. Different brains have different functionalities. In addition, player can kill off one of his party members and use their brain. The most desirable choice would be installing a cybernetic brain containing Skynet's consciousness, which is only attainable with extremely high science skill.
K-9	Robot dog	Navarro	Unarmed	A broken robot dog with a missing K-9 motor.
Cyberdog	Robot dog	New California Republic	Unarmed	A gift from a scientist in NCR after completing his quest
Dogmeat	Dog	Cafe of Broken Dreams	Unarmed	Removing armor and wearing the vault 13 jumpsuit will cause Dogmeat to follow the player, a reference to Fallout

Cultural References

Places

Fallout 2 takes place in what is modern day Northern California, Southern Oregon, and Nevada. Several locations in Fallout 2 are based on modern day cities. They include Klamath Falls, Modoc, Redding, Reno, and San Francisco.

Other town names are often derived from real-world references.

• Arroyo, player-character’s home village, could be named for any number of different locations ranging from parts of Arizona, to different areas of Mexico.
• Broken Hills, a uranium mining town in the game is a reference to the town of Broken Hill in Australia where Mad Max 2: The Road Warrior was filmed, though the photograph that appears when the character arrives there resembles the ghost town of Broken Hills, Nevada^{[citations needed]}.
• New California Republic is the new name of the original Fallout town, Shady Sands. It is named after California Republic.

People and Culture

There are other cultural references, typically in the form of dialogue which occur throughout the game. Some examples are more overt than others.

• The Hubologists that the player encounters in Fallout 2 resemble the modern Scientologists in many respects, including the presence of "celebrities" named Juan Cruz and Vikki Goldman, likely meant as references to real life scientologist Tom Cruise and Nicole Kidman. Also, in a datadisk given to the player at one point in the game, it outlines the hubologists view of the afterlife, which is almost exactly the same as Scientology^[6]. the name 'Hubologists' itself could be a reference to L. Ron Hubbard, the founder of Scientology.

• A NPC found in the town of Gecko named "Gordon of Gecko", reference to Gordon Gekko. The player can undertake a quest from him, and the dialogue leading up to this paraphrases Gordon Gekko’s "Greed is Good" speech from the film Wall Street.

• In the mining town of Redding, one of the Mines is run by a character named "Dangerous Dan McGrew" - the victim in Robert Service's well-known poem "The Shooting of Dan McGrew". The name also was Rimmer's alias in the Western AI game featured in the Red Dwarf episode "Gunmen Of The Apocalypse."

• The other, competing mine in Redding is run by a character named "Marge LeBarge"; a reference to another Robert Service poem, The Cremation of Sam McGee, which is set primarily on the marge of Lake Lebarge.

• The Skynet computer in the abandoned Sierra Army Depot is an obvious reference to Skynet from the Terminator movies.

• There are recurring posters of Maynard James Keenan of the band Tool. They were taken from the liner notes of their album, Undertow, and appear in almost every town/city in the game.

• In New Reno on poster on the wall of the Shark Club (the first right from the entrance) is from the Japanese BDSM themed movie "Tokyo Decadence".

• Other notable references include a type of the random encounters known as special encounter. While many of these include parties of yakuza, bounty hunters, mutated scorpions, etc.; others include references to Star Trek, Monty Python and the Holy Grail, and The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy.^[7] Special encounters are only jokes and not considered canon.

• The reason why Vault 13's water chip malfunctioned is "explained" in a special encounter, in which the player discovers a portal similar to the Guardian of Forever. If the player enters it, he is transported to a small section of Vault 13, devoid of any NPCs. When he accesses the only computer he can, he breaks the Water Chip, ensuring the events of the player's past continue as they should in a predestination paradox.^[8]

• Vault 8 received several thousand water chips from an accidentally mixed-up shipment that sent Vault 13 the secondary GECK.

• When entering the town of Redding, one of the musical selections that play whenever a town is entered is drawn from the TV miniseries The Stand--specifically, a track titled "Project Blue."

• The NPC Vic is probably named after the restaurant owner Victor Jules Bergeron, Jr who was nicknamed Trader Vic.

• There are two extremely mutated mice in Fallout 2. One of them is named "Brain". Brain hides in the city of Gecko and is planing a world domination. This is a reference to the Pinky and the Brain cartoon series.

• In a random dialogue initiated by the NPC Cassidy, he mentions that his father named him after a character from a comic book. His name alludes to Proinsias Cassidy, the Irish vampire from the comic book Preacher. It may also allude to the character "Carnage" from Marvel Comics, whose real name is Cletus Cassidy.

Items

Many of the in-game items and weapons and other entities that the player encounters are based on real-life objects.

• "Nuka Cola" is a blue cola in a coke bottle in the game, obviously a reference to Coca Cola^[9].

• "Mentats", a drug in the series that temporary raises your intelligence, is named after the human computers Mentat in the Dune universe.

• The Red Ryder BB Gun makes an appearance in both series of Fallout^[10]. This reference is inherited from the classic computer game Wasteland, on which the Fallout series is loosely based. In turn, Wasteland was referencing the movie A Christmas Story In the movie, the main character wants nothing more for Christmas than a Red Ryder BB gun.

• In the ghoul town of Gecko, the barkeeper at the pub teaches the player a collectable card game called Tragic: The Garnering, a parody of Magic: The Gathering. Several of the cards he mentions have parallels.^[11]

• The Chrysalis highwayman is modelled after a gas turbine engine series of cars that Chrysler produced starting in the 1950's.

• After beating the game, if the player visits the priest in New Reno, the priest will give the player the Fallout 2 Hintbook^[12]. This item permanently boosts all of player's stats and skills to max. The book is ironically labelled with the text "Well, THIS would have been good to have at the beginning of the goddamn game." This item is obviously a reference to the official Fallout 2 strategy guide^[13]

• You can find several Cheesy Poofs boxes throughout the game which is a reference to Eric Cartman of the cartoon South Park.

Trivia

• The song that plays during the intro sequence is Louis Armstrong's "A Kiss to Build a Dream On". The Fallout intro song "Maybe" reappears in the sequel, being sung by a minor character as floating text.

• Holding Shift and clicking the Credits button in the beginning game menu brings up a series of humorous/lewd comments by members of the Interplay team that developed the Fallout games.

• "War. War never changes" is the famous phrase uttered in the intro by Ron Perlman. The phrase is one of the foremost iconic catch-phrases of the game.

• Richard D. James, aka Aphex Twin, secretly included one of his tracks from his album Selected Ambient Works Vol. 2. Untitled Disc 2 Track 6 "Windowsill" can be heard clearly in some parts of the game. The sound from about 5:14 in Windowsill is almost identical to one from about 1:10 in the track 05raider.acm (the one, which is played in Raiders in Fallout and Den in Fallout 2). He may have done this under the pseudonym EFX which appears in the game credits. It is unknown why he chose to do this, and what relationship he had with Black Isle, or even if such a relationship existed. Some speculation runs that James did not choose to include the song on the soundtrack, but rather it was chosen for him by Black Isle.
• Winnipeg breakcore composer Venetian Snares used a dialogue sample from the game Fallout 2 on his album Doll Doll Doll, specifically the track "Befriend a Child Killer".

• The music playing when you enter the town of Redding changes, but one track you will hear comes from the soundtrack to the TV miniseries The Stand from the book by Stephen King, which was about a world devastated not by nuclear war, but by a supercharged version of the flu. The name of the track is titled, "Project Blue," and it played at the beginning of the miniseries. The artist's name is W.G. Snuffy Walden.

• Serbian alternative rock band Jewy Sabatay recorded their album "Nihilist" in their home studio called Vault 013, naming it after the game and their hometown dial number.

• In the online webcomic, Ctrl+Alt+Del, one of the main characters, Ethan, had to be taken to a psychologist to remove all traces of Fallout 2 from his mind, because he wouldn't ever stop playing it. Whenever he is reminded of Fallout 2, he goes on a rampage to find a copy of the game and play it, because he is obsessed with it. He has also, at numerous times, tried to acquire a beta copy of Fallout 3.

• On several buildings in towns, you can see posters depicting an angry man's face with his mouth open. This is an image of Maynard James Keenan of the band Tool from the liner notes of their 1994 album, "Undertow". For example, look on the side of Smitty's shack at the Den.

References

External links

Official

• Fallout 2 Product Help - Interplay Self Help
  • Fallout 2 Hints and Cheats - Interplay Self Help
• Mirrors of the original Fallout 2 website: NMA Internet Archive

Others

• The Vault, A Fallout wiki
• Fallout 2 at MobyGames

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