You won't be able to explore after the credits roll.
Obsidian Entertainment is setting itself up to hear more than a few wails and moans about the conclusion of Fallout: New Vegas, if the storm Bethesda weathered with Fallout 3 can be considered a good indicator. The October-bound New Vegas, according to recent previews, will have a definitive ending. Owners will not be able to jump back into the scorched plains to access unfinished side quests after the credits roll.
Bethesda tried to wrap the story of Fallout 3 up in a pretty little package with a big bow, but eventually backpedaled in the face of fan desire for the game to continue after its conclusion. Bethesda gave them that option with post-release content dubbed Broken Steel.
But New Vegas' lack of exploratory, post-game content isn't a case of Obsidian failing to learn a lesson. Rather, to hear the designers explain it, the absolute ending is a result of how much of an impact player choice and action will have on the game's world.
Better punch this dude now, you might not have time to come back later. "… we talked about trying to support post-game play, but because the changes that can happen at the end of the game are pretty major, this is what it basically came down to: either have the changes feel really major in the end slides and then have them not be very major after the end of the game, or make them really minor and not that impactful," New Vegas project director Josh Sawyer told 1UP.
In a Destructoid interview (via Eurogamer), senior producer Jason Bergman said that the ending slides are set to tell the story of every "companion" characters lives, apparently all the way to their death. That makes it difficult to plow on, no?
Bergman also revealed that the game's UI is going to warn owners that there's a point of no return. That makes this easier to deal with, right?
