A vast and frequently brilliant return to Bethesda's atomic sandbox, but constant technical issues are a frustration.

Confession time: I am an elitist jerk. Case in point, I am presented with the opportunity to review the most anticipated game of 2015 a week before it launches. The game in question is Fallout 4. My initial reaction? Whining, of course, because I had to play it on the PS4.

Improved graphics; spoken dialog adds to story immersion; crafting system allows for weapon and armor customization; lots to do in game

Some odd NPC path-finding behavior; one crash during prolonged gameplay; jury is still out on settlement building

It may not be your daddy's Fallout but it's an amazing experience nonetheless.

Stunning graphics; great new setting for series; interesting enemies; intruiging plot; intense set pieces; huge amount of content; new power armor mechanics are great

Facial animations can look weird; settlement system is a bit of a hassle; character leveling system feels like it creates weak characters

Bethesda games like Fallout 3, Skyrim, and Oblivion are similar in key ways. They're absolutely massive, containing both a hefty amount of freedom and technical troubles. Fallout 4, in the most reductive sense, also fits into that description.

It's more Fallout. If you liked Fallout 3, you'll probably like this.

The same great immersive systems and gameplay we've come to expect from Bethesda

Not much really "new" here to talk about; the additions feel almost vestigial and don't enhance the game overall

Fallout 4 is too big for me to tell you even a fraction of all there is to say about it. Its user interface is often too opaque, and at times Fallout 4 has some of the same technical issues as Bethesda's previous games, from strange AI quirks to performance hitches and actual hard locks of the...

The blue sky turned bland, and the sun faded behind a thick, green smog. I'd seen this kind of thing before. It was a radiation storm. Lightning snapped down in the distance but swirled closer to my location.

Its technical faults and lack of innovation are frustrating, but the game underneath is as enthralling and compulsive as anything Bethesda has ever made.

An amazingly detailed game world, with a secret and surprise around every corner; Excellent upgrade system, crafting, and good variety of companions; Interesting base-building

Technically unimpressive, especially in terms of character graphics and frustrating load times; Almost no new ideas; Dialogue and set pieces are often handled clumsily

The Fallout series is immensely popular and for the most part the games have been impeccable. But as Fallout 4 was presented at E3 the thing that probably got people just as excited as the prospect of the game itself was the fact that it was coming out this year.

War never changes. Since the third installment, the series that made that phrase popular hasn't changed much, either. When Bethesda Softworks took over the Fallout series for Fallout 3 and transitioned the game from turn-based overhead RPG to first-person real-time RPG, it was a huge change that...

Large, open wasteland filled with things to do; Equipment customization finally gives you a reason to collect junk; Dozens if not hundreds of hours of gameplay across the various side quests

Settlement mechanic is clunky and slapped-on; Power armor is suddenly dependent on a limited resource; Easy to get sidetracked; Feels like more of the same from Bethesda