How the factions perceive you is a lot more important, and it’s worth making a few friends. Karma is still there, but it has much less bearing on the game. One of New Vegas’ best tricks is sidelining the binary karma system for reputation. So when you go in you’re immediately struck by the fact that this is one of the last places that still feels like the old world.' And although the reveal of the Strip isn’t as impressive as it could have been-a result of the slightly creaky, ugly engine the game was built in-it’s still interesting to explore an area of Fallout’s wasteland that isn’t totally ruined.

'Everything has been blown up, but the New Vegas Strip is unique in that no nuclear weapons hit it. 'So much of Fallout is bleak,' says writer and designer Eric Fenstermaker in a 'making of' film included in the Collector's Edition. You begin the game on the edge of the desert among isolated towns and rolling tumbleweed, then move closer to New Vegas itself, where civilisation has a stronger foothold. It’s a more vibrant post-apocalyptic wasteland, but still tinged with the melancholy, desolate tone that defines the Fallout series. Fallout 3 was a sea of blues and greys, but New Vegas sizzles with oranges and reds. This part of the United States wasn’t bombed quite so heavily, and has retained some colour and life over the centuries.

The Mojave is a far cry from the grim, shattered ruins of the Capital Wasteland.

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