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Well howdy, Dakkanauts.

I've been thinking of re-replaying FONV because I never played any of the DLC. But I don't know if the DLC would make the game worth re-replaying. I also don't want to dig through the forum finding where folks discussed this long ago.

So -- would those of you who played the FONV DLC be so kind as to post your thoughts on any or all of them here?

Much obliged.

The DLC for New Vegas is exceptionally strong. Where the DLC for FO3 was more episodic, standalone things, the NV DLC tends to tie in with similar elements and creates a very better flow over 'Bam! You're in space!' that FO3's DLC had.

All of the parts are worth getting, but they are good in different aspects, I'll go into quick detail here:

Dead Money: This is, in my opinion, the best and hardest challenge you will get in the game. The DLC strips your gear (you get it back at the return) and puts you in a very hostile and trap-heavy situation where a lot of movement happens. It's challenging and a bit scary, but rewarding. The story hook here is that you learn what happened to Elijah.

Honest Hearts: This is the most open world of the DLCs. It's somewhat like the swamp DLC for FO3 where you have a bigger, wider area to play in, though it is fairly predictable as it all happens in a national park, so there's more nature running than ruins-scrounging. Here, the story arc follows what happened to the Burned Man.

Old World Blues: The mad science and humor DLC. This DLC is absolutely hilarious. I mean, its central plot is you having to get your original heart, brain and spine back into your body from a group of scientist bots. It, too, is fairly open like Honest Hearts, but it is a little 'smaller' as the buildings tend to be very compact. But lots of sciency loot and upgrades.

Lonsome Road: This is the final DLC (unlike FO3, the NV DLCs have a rough order) and this one is a pretty challenging, but linear run through ruins and caves. But in this instance, you have your gear, so I feel the challenge is slightly less than Dead Money. The story (and the hints from all the other DLCs) is you finally meeting and discovering why the original Courier hired to take the chip skipped out and made you take the job.


I reccomend all of them. Very worth it.

gak, kinda hard. I like them all, as they are all linked and work their way towards the final DLC piece with subtle references and hints.

Dead Money is a nice heist themed DLC that sets up the framework for Lonesome Road with a few references here and there, while also picking up on some loose ends from the main game. It has fun characters, a great back story and well, in my eyes an interesting setting.




Honest Hearts is a bit meh, but one of the characters more than makes up for this, plus some good loot to be had.




Old World Blues is pure fething insane fun. No other way to describe it. Well, what if Doctor Venture was in Fallout? This one is part comedy, part cruel history of pre-war science.




Lonesome Road is all about consequences of your actions. Plus you get to detonate a lot of nukes.




Also, the DLC raises the level cap quite a bit and gives you new kit, perks and whatnot.

Cheers lads. Dunno if I'm won over just yet. Might just wait it out for Wasteland 2.

I personally thought Lonesome Road jumped the shark a little. Honest Hearts was dull, although the Burning Man back story was fairly interesting and I found a certain degree of pathos in the story of the old ranger/survivalist.

I liked Dead Money although it is quite hard. Old World Blues I just couldn't warm to for some reason.

In order of preferance

1) Dead Money - Excellent survival horror atmosphere, interesting story about obsession.

2) Old World Blues - Funny writing, has a Sci-Fi B movie feel that I greatly enjoyed.

3) Lonesome Road - A tad too linear for my taste, but it does give some interesting back ground information.

4) Honest Hearts - The Weakest of the 4 story DLCs, tbh. It does introduce .45 ammo and it does have a great landscape, but overall it doesn't feel as interesting as the other 3.

------------------------

Gun Runner's Arsenal -

The reason why this is separate is because it is not a story DLC, it just adds weapons to the game. That said, the weapons are pretty awesome. I would pick this up anyway, just for the extra variety in the arsenal.

Dead Money was easily my favourite of the DLCs. On Hardcore it becomes a great challenge and really sucks you in, and its rewarding to complete.

You can also pseudo glitch the ending for an even greater reward, but I won't spoil it.

Old World Blues is my next favourite, and not far behind. Nice world filled with interesting spots; its very concentrated and filled with cool NPCs to battle. Adds some great background to the world as well.

Then there's a bit of a gap, and I can't decide which one I like more (or dislike less). Honest Hearts felt a little tedious to me, but I wasn't too fond of the new land, and the plot felt bland to me. Lonesome Road was too linear for me, though I guess both of the expansions together added some nice weapons and gear.

If I had to recommend one to skip, I'd probably go with Honest Hearts, as the ending of Lonesome Road was satisfying. They're all pretty decent by DLC standards these days.

I have finished Old World Blues and mostly finished Dead Money and Honest Hearts.

Old World Blues was annoying at first because the humour of the Think Tank didn't gel for me, but I was able to put up with it as being in-universe insanity. I like this one best for its integration with the core gameplay:

If you buy this DLC, download the Transportalponder with Companions mod.

I haven't finished Honest Hearts or Dead Money yet because I want mods to better integrate them with the core game. They were written with the intent that you go there once, complete the quests and leave, never to return.

I thought Honest Hearts and Old World Blues were both excellent; Lonesome Road was cool, but I hated Dead Money, it was just like a slightly less open world version of the Pitt from FO3, which I also strongly disliked.

 Shredsmore wrote:
I thought Honest Hearts and Old World Blues were both excellent; Lonesome Road was cool, but I hated Dead Money, it was just like a slightly less open world version of the Pitt from FO3, which I also strongly disliked.

To me, The Pitt was unenjoyably good. It succeeded in making me feel like an awful person for

I loved all of the DLC, personally. My only complaint is that none of it effected the end battle, and some of it was way too linear. Like in Honest Hearts, you could be all about Caesars Legion and you are forced to work against their interests in that DLC. I would've loved the option to work against the Burned Man and brought the evil tribe from that DLC to Caesar. Or supplemented Mr. Houses robot forces with tech from Old World Blues etc etc.

The DLC is definitely worth it, my only complaint on them at all is the one that takes place in Utah was WAY short. Other than that pretty solid.

 KingCracker wrote:
The DLC is definitely worth it, my only complaint on them at all is the one that takes place in Utah was WAY short. Other than that pretty solid.

Yeah, I agree with that. I was expecting a map closer to the size of the Mojave but narrower, with the caravan starting at one end and Zion at the other, where the trip to Zion was part of the gameplay. Instead they cut straight to you arriving.

I had expected Honest Hearts to include New Canaan, but rather it turns out that the whole place was ransacked. Whilst that was one of the location's potential endings in Van Buren, it would have been nice to have visited such a prosperour community (plus it had a nice story arc). Honest Hearts was way too linear yes (not that I play Legion characters), though I enjoyed its ending, along with the other DLCs ones. Daniel needed a slap though, and it was a pity there wasn't a post end game conversation with him where you justify your actions (and call him a complete tool).

Overall they were much better than the Fallout 3 DLC (though I think that New Vegas as a whole was miles better in terms of writing). Yes, it would have been nice to have the events tie into the base game, but I think the devs cited budget issues over this (they couldn't get back the guy who voiced Caesar for one). Preferably with Obsidian's future collaborations with the licence Bethesda will give them more developement time (New Vegas had something like a year to be made). Least then we can have two games, one aimed towards Bethesda's style of RPG (to quote one of the DayZ devs, "an ocean that's as deep as a puddle), and another made in Obsidian's more mature writing style (if they, subjectively, as good on the actual gameplay front).

@AlexHolker

I replayed the Pitt a while ago. In retrospect the ending, whilst as muddy as Bethesda intented it, was a bit clean cut for me. The slaves seemed way too idealistic with their goals (Werner for one came across as being a man who just wanted power and was blinded by his wish to "free" the slaves), without considering the practicality of their situation. Ridding the city of its protection and infrastucture, I doubt that the Pitt would last long as the community it once was (not to say that it would crumble, just not be the industrial power house it was). Ashur for one didn't seem like an entirely horrible guy. He was harsh, but one must be a tad blind towards how horrible the Fallout world is to think you can be a nice guy and survive. The writing wasn't the best sure, but I found Werner and Amada to be generally really annoying characters that needed a slap and to be told to be more realistic (instead of pandering to the slaves who were looking for a hero, and players who think the world works based on happy thoughts). Still, Bethesda's games are a bit black and white, so invetably should the player choose the "good karmic" ending that would lead to the Pitt having a positive ending. So whilst the game may be telling you that you did good, I don't really agree with the message that Bethesda tries to put behind its moral situations like this (I liked to be a good person, but do bad things for the greater good, not a starry eyed boyscout that thinks that killing some bad people's going to make the world a better place - which for one I'dve liked a grey ending where you could have talked either side down, or at least attempted some communication between the two, if it would only result in one side's betrayal).

Bleh. =P

Hm, the story leading up to and including Meeting of the Minds from Point Lookout is the best written video game story I've ever played ... can't say anything I played in NV came even close.

I liked the the whole spy subquest an awful lot myself in Point Lookout. There was something about looking up dead drops and following 200 year old instructions.

The Pitt was a great piece of DLC, loved the moral choice you were forced to make, but as Wyrmalla says, the ending is a bit too black or white for my tastes, then again the whole of Fallout 3 can be seen as such, with good getting the better options and rewards for the most part.

In order of how much I enjoyed them.

Dead Money: A very solid DLC with excellent atmosphere and survival horror elements. The Sierra Madre villa is one of my favorite settings in gaming and can get creepy at times. I won't spoil too much but there is one section where you must go to a bell tower and you can hear the bell tolling throughout the entire area. It's very eerie. My favorite character by far is Dean Domino. He's a twisted jerk that is out for himself and I love that. I was also oddly moved by Vera's story. I am not easily moved by stories in video games.

Pros: Great atmosphere, game play and ambiance. The back story behind the Sierra Madre is quite interesting if you pay attention to it. The characters are nice as well. If you are looking for a survival horror game in the fallout universe look no further.

Cons: Those. fething. Bear Traps. They blend into the scenery so well they can grab an even observant player. When I found bear traps in Skyrim my first reaction was "Oh god, it's like the Sierra Madre all over again!". The characters are also... how should we say... overly sensitive. I made one snide remark to Christie (if I got her name wrong... ah, well) and was nice to her from then on. At the end of the story she said I was a big meanie. Dean Domino is even worse in that regard. If you want him to live do what he says to the letter. The radios can be a little annoying too. You'll know what I mean when you play.

Overall score: 8.3/10. My favorite DLC by far.

Old World Blues: Another great DLC for New Vegas. I loved the interactions between the scientists and the b-movie sci-fi feel. Dr. Mobius is a favorite for me.

Pros: Again, great atmosphere and ambiance. The sci-fi feel is present all throughout and you will get a feel for how the old US was like in terms of its views on science and ethics. The weapons are creative as well. The characters are perhaps the best in the expansion pack.

Cons: Certain segments (*Cough* High School *Cough) outstay their welcome and are required to get the best upgrades. Navigating Big MT can also be a chore at times with the constantly respawning enemies though they do spice up the travel I suppose. The lack of actual interaction with characters is also a downside as you are alone for the most part. I wish you could talk to the Stealth Suit... I felt sympathy for it.

Overall Score: 8.0/10

Honest Hearts: What can be said about Honest Hearts? It's way too short, lacks a lot of side quests and very, very, very linear. At least with Dead Money the ending changes significantly depending on what you do. The ending is pretty much the same no matter what in Honest Hearts. But damn if Zion Park isn't beautiful! If you got sick of the constant browns and greys from the main game, Dead Money and Old World Blues you'll love this one. I seriously wish there would be an expansion to this expansion to let you do more.

Pros: It's beautiful and that makes up for some of it's faults. It also introduces the Tommy gun and M1911 into the game. Though I did like the weapons Dead Money have to offer a bit more. These weapons are iconic for the time period Fallout is going for. I also enjoyed interacting with tribals and it also uses the Sneering Imperialist trait in a new way.

Cons: It's biggest one is how damned short it is. It's over before you know it and it leaves you wanting more in the bad sense of the word. I never wanted Old World blues to end but I was satisfied with the ending. Honest Hearts left me feeling empty. That's another thing, Zion park is very empty. Most of the place has not much of note and is just there as decor. The new stuff it introduces isn't nearly as extensive as the previous two.

Overall Score: 7.4/10

Lonesome Road: I like the scenery as it makes me feel like I'm in a bombed out nuclear wastleland more so than the other games. However, it can get a little old after awhile. The Divide reminds me a lot of Crisis City stage from Sonic 06' though that was my favorite part of the game. Make of that what you will.

Pros: Enjoyable city, some nice information about pre-war America, lots of action and lot's of explosions. Sort of like the Micheal Bay of Fallout DLCs.

Cons: Hoo boy... it's very linear. It manages to be even worse than Honest Hearts in that regard in that you are forced to fight a lot of the fights in one way. I mostly played as a hidey-campy sniper throughout the game but most fights it forced me to be up close and personal no matter what I tried. This can be especially grating later on when you fight those Tunnelers. Those tunnelers are easily the worst part of the DLC and I wish they were left out of it. They are incredibly annoying to fight and are quite durable. Using the Flashbang grenades against them is impractical since a lot of the fights are in close quarters. If they had expanded the Marked Men a little more and added new unique robot types it would've been better. I wish you could explore more of the Divide rather than be railroaded straight to Ulysses. The weapons they introduce are more of the same for the fallout universe so.. blah. Going back to Ulysses, I sort of like what he says but dear god does he talk too fething slow. The diologue options for him are very lengthy and this is exacerbated by how very slow and strange way of speaking. He has interesting things to say which makes it all the worse.

Also, I didn't like Eddie. He's useless and a little annoying. I had no qualms about sacrificing the twerp at the end of the DLC... though, this is my opinion..

Score: 5.0/10