Quoting UPSLynx

I'm not condoning the murdering of children, or even suggesting it's a crucial piece of Fallout gameplay. It wasn't about you killing the kids. It was about the fact that you could. That was what made Fallout so groundbreaking. you could do anything you wanted to, no matter how twisted your mind was.

But the game also doesn't hinge on the ability to do so, either. I'm not disappointed with that removal. I'm more worried that it just feels like Fallout. Some of those controversial things in the first two games are exactly the kind of things that defined it to me.

Fallout 3 is a touchy subject for me because I hold the first two games in VERY high regard. Fallout 2 is within my top 10 favorite games of all time.

I hear you Lynx. I played the first and second one a lot but never completed them (I always ended up starting over). So far, I can't decide if this is fallout in fps mode or oblivion with guns. It seems I am reminded of both in a lot of situations.

On balance I would say the fallout universe has been justly represented. The gun models, character models, types of quests, character development all give gracious nods to the fallout series. As far as the gross violence or the ability to rape, kill, murder at your own discretion it isn't quite as what it was in the originals. Unfortunately the climate for these actions in games has noticeably gotten colder these days than when fallout made its debut.

But, every time I pull out the Chinese sword or struggle to climb around rocks I am reminded of Oblivion. Not terrible in itself but maybe not what everyone is looking for? I dunno, as I play it now I have few gripes. I wish there were turns for when you activate V.A.T.S. so that you don't have to wait in real time for your AP to regenerate or making the local map look less like green vomit and more recognizable. However I have yet to feel like the fallout series has been dealt an injustice or that major aspects of fallout have been forgotten.

I still like it quite a bit despite my insanely lofty standards not quite being met. Then again I don't think any game has done that...