Fallout 4 and Witcher 3.

A stellar post-apocalyptic fantasy world with incredible writing. Notions of black-and-white morality are dead, and there's an enormous level of gray in the politics and ethical quandaries of the world; like New Vegas but on steroids.

You play as a wanderer in search of a loved-one, all the way utilizing and developing character and combat skills as you fight, romance, and coerce your way through the wasteland. Monsters and humans of every type populate the wastes and are there to stop and kill you by any means necessary. But while the wasteland is full of death, so to is it full of life as at times you can help settle and build new communities across the countryside to provide refuge to not only poor wasters who ally to you, but yourself included.

But, while the core plot is the main character's search for a lost loved one, the story has multiple heads. Like a hydra, the politics of the wasteland are tightly interwoven with the character's search and he/she must battle the political forces of a motley coalition of local communities, a secretive society of scientists and militant androids-enslaving-other-androids that wishes to subjugate the wasteland for their scientific pursuits, and foreign invaders aplenty. The MC may go about his days uninvolved in the politics to the best of his ability, or to pick a side in the hopes of bringing peace and stability.

Combat is also smooth and responsive, with ranging possibilities in both the use of guns and melee weapons such as swords and clubs. To break-up the humdrum too is a rich diversity in mini-game activities including card-playing, gambling, pugilism, gladiatorial combat, and racing.

In the DLCs, you travel far beyond the core wasteland to experience newer, more terrifying and beautiful worlds in the pursuit of vampires, escaped androids, and heinous fuckery.

The sound-track is also superb and original; managing to have at its moments the typical SUMMER BLOCK BUSTER BIG SOUND, but contrasts beautifully with quieter, or simpler tracks with appropriate thematic elements.


Basically: it becomes the Fallout 4 we should have had.