Fallout 2 is cool because it's a nonlinear, nonclassbased kickass postnuclear computer roleplaying game with a high replayabillity value. Fallout 2 allows you to play your character the way you want. If you want to play a goodie-two-shoes, you can. If you want to play an evil bastard, you can Yes, you really can hit children in the groin with a sledgehammer. If you want to play a moron who can hardly talk because of his low intelligence, you can. Need a guide? This guide exists because I realized that if I wanted the kind of complete Fallout 2 guide that I envisioned, it pretty much meant writing it myself.
That turned out to be quite an undertaking, but on the other hand, as far as I'm concerned Fallout 2 is the best computer game ever made. This guide is an attempt to provide a thorough presentation of the things you can do in Fallout 2 : quests to perform, places to go, people to eat. It is not, on the other hand, an attempt to compile reams of game data such as documenting every karma point gained or lost, because it wouldn't be much fun. The basic assumption is that players want to squeeze as much out of their game as possible - which is another thing that makes writing this guide worthwhile, because Fallout 2 is a game that just keeps on giving.
There are details and aspects you won't notice until your second, third or fourth game, playing different characters with different attitudes. Or until you read this guide, anyway. I've been playing the game using the UK edition, patch version 1. To my knowledge there is not a single significant difference between the UK and US versions except for the children thing.
I've also used Falche2 Character Editor 2. Since trainers, utilities and mods aren't part of the game, I won't deal with them specifically. I don't recommend cheating, other than momentarily for the purpose of experiencing things that you wouldn't normally see, or in a last-ditch attempt to save a doomed character. Virtually every piece of information or advice presented here has been verified in personal testing or playing experience, although I have of course consulted rather a lot of existing walkthroughs and board postings for snippets of information and things to try out.
Sadly, many guides are either poorly written "klammth this place stinks btr get sum quest!!! Hopefully this guide should avoid those pitfalls with some margin to spare. General credit goes to the people on the No Mutants Allowed message board.
