This is my entry that caused WTF's, and had judges confused as to whether it actually counted as a review or not (I'm guessing). Meh, it's probably not a 'review' but it does get to the heart of the game's subject matter while slyly exploring features such as the VATS system, scarcity of ammo adding to the challenge of the gameplay and the moral ambiguities presented in the choices the player has to make.

Enjoy....or tear your eyeballs out.

==============================================================================================

We can't stop here, this is Radscorpion country.

We'd taken everything. Uppers, downers, jet and med-x. We ventured into the wastes as the husks of the American dream dotted the landscape. Maybe some ammo's inside; maybe even some jet.

I venture into the mom and pop gas store, and I see some god damned uglies. I'm out of stims and they're out of humanity. Time slows down as I creep up on them, pistol in hand and I aim for their heads. Damn effective. It better be, as I'm out of ammo, hell, I'm out of everything.

Their heads explode in an orgy of blood as it sprays the walls of the friendly neighbourhood gas store. Oh yeah, this is the American dream alright.

Maybe some shit in here I can trade. I need the caps. You get pushed out from the safe haven of a country's best intentions and into the fire of its arrogance. If you can stay alive, you may just do some good in this world.

Does it really matter? Does anything?

I just need my next hit, my next cache of ammo, my next stim.

I need my father.

Looted the corpse of the 50's, moving onto the wasteland now. It's bleak as shit, but I don't care. That burned out book depository becomes my next move, my next move toward the chasm.

Who knows what's in there? Could be a god damned behemoth, that's going to take up a lot of ammo.

"It is I, Three Dog!"

Who's this joker on my radio preaching about morality? Treat the ghouls with respect? What does he know? He's not out here, he's in his little bunker protected by the Brotherhood.

People ain't going to do you no favours out here, oh sure, they're gonna ask for some. No mistake, they'll gouge you every chance they get, ungrateful fuckers.

Who knows? Perhaps this is some sort of test of my morality an' shit. Perhaps the almighty is lookin' to see whether we're worth all the trouble. Perhaps he's a god damned sadist, who the fuck would want to live here?

Does he exist? Fucked if I know. For every breathtaking vista in this hellhole there's another day of struggle. Is the struggle for existence what makes us human? We just refuse to die amongst all of the radiation, the raiders, the uglies.

Perhaps this 'good fight' Three Dog is always on about is just the fight to make existence bearable. The question is, do you want to make it bearable for just you or do you want to make life easier for another in the wastes.

I don't want t set the world on fire, I just want to start a flame in your heart.

This land is your land, this land is my land.

Fuck, what keeps me going? Perhaps finding out why this shit happened...that's the good fight. It's one that I'll fight well into the future...if we have one.

==============================================================================================

So.....<twiddles thumbs> why post it here? This is more of a story to me. I have to admit i've become confused. it was quite compelling but i wonder if it belongs in here.

Not trying to sound harsh, i enjoyed reading it to be happily honest. =)

Kudos for it being so different. I enjoyed reading it. But I can understand why it might have been excluded from the arena by the judges.

Well, it's not a review. It's New Games Journalism taken too far to help anyone who's curious about what the game is actually like. Not a bad read though.

Actually, this is about as Gonzo as journalism gets. The problem is this isn't really the right setting for Gonzo, at least, one as personal as this. It sells a great narrative, and is a wonderful read for anyone whose played the game. But as a review, a tool to hinge someone's opinion, it looks like a simple diary page in a fairy-land.

I like it, a very excellent piece. But just because it's a good read doesn't make it a great review. Shame to see it snuffed, glad I got to see it anyway. Better luck next time, then, Hey Joe?

Ah, the Gonzo angle. I agree that it shouldn't have been included in the finals, and I mainly wrote it to experiemnt with a new style.

The way I see it, Gonzo can be suited to games journalism because of the interactive nature of the medium in question. Games are a highly personal experience for each person because they engage wth it like no other medium.

So a highly personal account can be suited. The question is how much is too much? That was part of the reason I wrote it (Can you dig the Thompson angle?), the other reason is me just trying to have fun with my writing (most of my day is taken up by stock market analysis).

Mods- Please move to OT if you feel the discussion is better suited there

Hey Joe:
The question is how much is too much?

Depends on the audience. The reason Gonzo got it's kick is because it was relatable. If I write an article titled, "I was lost and confused," it would be easily related to because being lost and confused at some point in time isn't an uncommon thing. The problem here compared with other very personal-level writing is that the Capital Wastes aren't a relatable thing. Take a look at HSIMetalKing's review, specifically how he related his trip to D.C. as a place he wouldn't mind dropping a bomb on.

It's easy to relate to this kind of thing as we've all been to places that bore or annoy us. Being in raiding parties, seeing things that make us question everything, radiation, sickness, raider attacks, constant fear and panic. It can be related to in small scales, but as a whole really separates the narrative from the emotions behind it. Having played Fallout 3, I understand it better than others might, but it still seems so detracted from me.

Otherwise, like I said, it is an enjoyable piece to read, but as a review, seems much too alien to really be effective. As such, this much is not too much for just about any medium but this one. As a review, though, I couldn't normally draw a bead on something I can relate to, so I get lost on the connection to the product.

This is a topic I could blather on about at some length though, perhaps through PMs as to not derail the thread too badly.

So, what, Fallout 3 done in the style of Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas?

...BRILLIANT!

Well, maybe not that much, but I found it entertaining, but lacking in the cohesive madness that only Thompson could provide. It's a nice homage,but the writing is too...weak, I guess, for the full effect to go through.

Tell ya what though, it did make me wanna play through the game again, even though I just beat it.

I think it would be more inline with Gonzo to write about playing the game and becoming immersed. This is borderline fan fiction. Interesting though.

I find this review is much improved if you imagine an overly husky hard-as-nails man reading it out, ala Dirty Harry. Wunderbar.

Saskwach:
I find this review is much improved if you imagine an overly husky hard-as-nails man reading it out, ala Dirty Harry. Wunderbar.

Really? Because I heard Julia Gillard's voice in my head as I was writing it. Now that's a laugh.