Development Info Fallout fans ask - <i>Who's your daddy?</i>. Bethesda Answers.

[Joe Krow]

We knew there would be voice acting right? Now they've hired someone to do it. So what? It is a famous person. So what? Go hug your dad.

 

[Jim Kata]

Why is it dumbfucks never go away?

It's liek a "No homers" club. As soon as they find a place you either ben them or are stuck with them forever. It's even more aparent with the actual labels....

 

[Elwro]

JK, so if you had 10 million Euros to build a football team, you'd have no qualms with the idea of buying a left defender for 9 million? Someone has to play there, right?

 

[Grandpa Gamer]

Hmm...
I find this news rather depressing. Celebrity voice acting was pretty much inevitable, and Liam Neeson is a good actor. What troubles me is that the player character is supposed to have a father that will appear prominently throughout the game.

In the spirit of my "Fallout 3 - Best Case Scenario" thread, here goes: The father is a tribal chief or community leader, and the player is kicked out into the wasteland over a serious political issue concerning the future of the tribe/community: "No child of mine". Throughout the game the player can choose to work to redeem himself/herself in the eyes of the father, or to work against the father, trying to thwart his plans. This could make for some very interesting choices/consequenses and different endings. Well, who am I kidding - probability 0,02 percent.

 

[DarkUnderlord]

What concerns me about this isn't the Liam Neeson part. It's:

1. The fact Bethesda are hyping it. Again. Seriously, tell us something interesting rather than this shit. Maybe Ron Perlman was hyped when FO2 came out though? I dunno.
   
2. "Neeson will play the role of the player’s father..." In both the Fallouts, you were a lone individual. Your background and who you were was left up to you. I liked that aspect of just being a nameless, unknown adventurer. Here, it looks like we have a whole family that we're supposed to care about.
   
3. "[your father] will appear prominently throughout the game." In Fallout, I can kill anyone. I'm betting you right now that I won't be able to kill dad in Fallout 3.
   
4. "This role was written with Liam in mind". As Section8 said, it's someone's projection of what Liam is. Rather than desiging a good character and finding someone appropriate for that, they've gone "Liam is teh cool! Let's haev Liam, write roel for Liam LOLZ?". It's an approach which screams "I am a retard who doesn't know how to write a decent story". These are the sort of people who write movies like "so Tom Cruise comes in as a fighter pilot and then Liam Neeson does this Jedi thing but it's not a Jedi thing because in this movie we're calling that 'the love power' and then... What do you mean you've never wanted to see Liam and Tom have naked man butt sex? "
   
5. "provides the dramatic tone for the entire game". We have to care about dad. I dunno. Maybe I got used to saving my entire village. Now I'm dealing with just a dad? Mind you, dad is probably the Vault Overseer or something important...

 

[Elwro]

"Featuring prominently throughout the game" might also mean "appearing in cut-scened dreams between the chapters", you never know.

 

[Jim Kata]

JK, so if you had 10 million Euros to build a football team, you'd have no qualms with the idea of buying a left defender for 9 million? Someone has to play there, right?

What are you, an idiot?

 

[Jim Kata]

"Featuring prominently throughout the game" might also mean "appearing in cut-scened dreams between the chapters", you never know.

I'm almost certain that's what this means. I am thinking of the show "Jeremiah"

 

[Vault Dweller]

"Featuring prominently throughout the game" might also mean "appearing in cut-scened dreams between the chapters", you never know.

Cutscenes or not, it sure looks like the father plays a large and dramatic role in the Fallout 3 storyline and that kinda, well, sucks. The wasteland is a place where nobody gives a fuck about you or your dad. You are just another wanderer and sooner or later you'll be dead, one way or another. The dad things doesn't fit.

 

[Admiral Rimjob POOBUM]

One thing that confuses me about this is that it's really, really not Bethesda's style. They've ALWAYS gone with the completely anonymous player background in the ES games, and now they're putting your dad in? Weird.

 

[Vault Dweller]

I assume they decided to show everyone that they can create a good and original story if they really, really want to.

Fallout 3: A Boy and his Father.

 

[Admiral Rimjob POOBUM]

Maybe it'll be like that PA novel. The Road, was it?

 

[OSK]

Something tells me I won't be able to kill his character within the first few minutes of starting the game…

 

[DemonKing]

So so far we've had Captain Picard, Boromir and Qui Gonn Jin. They're certainly trying to appeal to the Geek demographic. It wouldn't surprise me if Gerad "Leonidas" Butler wil be voicing the next Elder Scrolls game: "THIS... IS...TAMERIL!!!!".

It is disappointing that it seems Neeson is specifically playing the PC's father according to the press release. If "father" stood only for "father figure" or "authority figure" it might make the game sound more interesting and mysterious to me.

 

[Longshanks]

Your father will either be the President or the Vault Dweller.
And yeah, this "prominent father figure" does not bode well for non-linear main quest.

 

[Joe Krow]

Cutscenes or not, it sure looks like the father plays a large and dramatic role in the Fallout 3 storyline and that kinda, well, sucks. The wasteland is a place where nobody gives a fuck about you or your dad. You are just another wanderer and sooner or later you'll be dead, one way or another. The dad things doesn't fit.

Not this time apparently. So what? Having a well written and convincing relationship with one or more NPCs could be a good thing, no? It's all in the execution. They mastered the art of shallow, forgettable, characters in Oblivion. Let them try something new. Liam might even respond to the player's actions if they pay him enough. Wouldn't that be swell?

Overeacting now will make it seem like more of the same later on. Save the venom for when it is deserved. There will be plenty of legitimate things to bitch about I assure you.

 

[Vault Dweller]

Venom? It was merely an observation. And yes, having a well written and convincing relationship with your father maybe a good thing, but I'm not sure it fits the setting. It's like if Bioware announced that Queen Latifah will voice Shepard's mom who will accompany her brave son and play a dramatic role in the storyline.

 

[Spectacle]

Usually celebrities have two different price levels for voice acting work. One where the employer is contractually forbidden to publicize the celebrity's involvement with the game, and one where they can freely use his name for marketing the game. The latter is not surprisingly far more expensive than the former.

Since they are hyping Liam's part it's obvious that bethesda hired him not just for his acting skills but because they believe that shouting "Liam Neeson, Liam Neeson" all over the internet is going to result in extra sales.

 

[Shoelip]

Well it will won't it? Just look at the ESF.

I wonder how the father will be involved with the inevetible 'Save the World' plot.

 

[Jaesun]

Bethesda reminds me of the Shadow Lords of Ultima V.

It's like they have entered the realm of CRPG's and continue to corrupt and ruin all that they touch.

Thou shalt not lie, or thou shalt lose thy tongue.*
Thou shalt confess to thy crime and suffer its just punishment, or thou shalt be put to death.**
Thou shalt humble thyself to thy superiors, or thou shalt suffer their wrath.***
Thou shalt donate half of thy income to BETHESDA, or thou shalt have no more RPG's For the XBox.****

Perhaps Gariott was warning us of TEH FUTAR!

* Unless it is Bethesda. We know what we are doing.
** Unless it is Bethesda. See "Thou shalt not lie".
*** Listen to Bethesda. They are your CRPG Master's now!
**** Buy all Bethesda Products, or the future of RPG's will be gone!

 

[taxacaria]

Fallout 3: A Boy and his Father.

A girl and her father is the alternative you have. Perhaps.
Now we have a family in Fallout. No mother.
Be prepared for Fallout:Bonanza with Liam as Ben Cartwright.

 

[Ladonna]

Mother sold seperately.

 

[Alexander]

While I believe I do see the point you're making about a central character like such a father, I wonder if that's enough to know the game will disappoint like many people here seem to think.

I didn't like Oblivion as much as I had hoped I might, but it had nothing to do with the fact that certain famous actors were used to voice main characters. Some of you seem to think that's enough to spell disaster, but I must beg to differ.

Why not just wait untill we're able to actually play the game, or at the very least know a great deal more (anything at all) about the content of the game, before dismissing it?

 

[Anaglyph]

I wonder when Bethesda will announce their epic movie to be directed by Uwe Boll.

This is actually pretty funny.

 

[hiciacit]

Mother sold seperately.