Before starting to compare Fallout 3 with Fallout New Vegas, there are things you should know first.

Fallout stories center on apocalyptic worlds where all hope is gone. Yet, here’s how they differ:

Fallout 3: Central Storyline Without Multiple Endings

Fallout 3 tells the story of your character – which you can customize and name – trying to find your father. You will go through the Capital wasteland discovering places, facing varied enemies, and exploring the land to find companions and side quests.

This title follows the same narrative structure as the classic Fallout games, which is why most fans say the story doesn’t delve deeper into the characters’ motivations and passions. 

Instead, you have a linear tale with no sense of choices and a Karma system that will decide if your actions are good or bad – a bit clunky for modern games. While meeting characters, the lack of character personality can make it a bit boring.

Yet, you still have peak moments on the lonesome road, like Tranquility Lane or the missions at Galaxy News Radio. The game allowed players to go deep into side stories that are developed far better than the main story.

However, there aren’t tons of missions you can complete without falling into the original storyline again. Still, the advantage of this title is that if you haven’t played other Fallout titles before, this is a great opportunity to start.

Developers always try to do their best when designing a game. Bethesda and Obsidian tried to create great games with unique world designs loved by players.

Fallout 3 - Limited Resources Concerned With World Development

Fallout 3 had graphical limitations because of the time, but they overcame them cleverly and gave players a great experience in a dark world. Developers used enclosed map sections and a subway system to control how players move without using invisible walls that you were used to seeing back in the day.

Still, with all their work, maps feel a bit empty – even though it’s part of the apocalyptic environment.

There are still crowded areas where Bethesda did a great job with random encounter RNG.

Overall, it’s fun to see how you reach a quest while walking or teleporting through the Wasteland. It rewards exploration among the limits of the game.

Each Fallout has a special place throughout the story. And Fallout 3 or New Vegas aren’t an exception.

But what are their lores about?

Fallout 3: Daddy Issues And Shallow Writing

The main story and side quests in Fallout 3 are linear. It is is entertaining but still has shallow writing moments. The quests follow a single start-to-finish path to complete each task.

Yet, there are some objectives – especially the side missions – that have the possibility of giving players a choice. You’ll have to choose between a black-or-white situation, which means your choice will modify the karma system. You could also have a short or long way to complete missions, each giving you more or fewer rewards.

You are sure to have fun whether you are killing super mutants or starting the mission to go to Rivet City.

When talking about gameplay experience, playing Fallout means you’ll have a pure RPG feeling.

Here’s what you can expect from these two games.

Fallout 3: Classic Retro RPG Mechanics

The game features classic RPG mechanics, including character creation, leveling, and skill progression. 

You can choose from "traits" and "perks" that will affect your character’s abilities and attributes. Traits are special abilities that have positive and negative effects, while perks are bonuses gained at every level. You can use them to customize your abilities further.

While completing quests and exploring the Wasteland, you’ll earn experience points (XP), which can be used to level up your character. This will give you additional points to spend on "SPECIAL" attributes like Strength, Perception, Endurance, Charisma, Intelligence, Agility, and Luck.

You can also find a set of skills, such as: 

• Small guns
• Big guns
• Energy weapons 
• Unarmed
• Melee weapons
• Speech

You’ll unlock them using points in SPECIAL and character creation.

The game also features a VATS System (Vault-Tec Assisted Targeting System), which you use to pause combat and target specific body parts of enemies for increased damage.

DLCs are extra downloadables you can use to improve your gaming experience in a game. Both Fallout 3 and New Vegas are great games that have solid content.

But which one has the better DLC? We’ve gathered all the add-ons you can officially download to the game so you can decide.

Fallout 3: DLCs Needed For Better Experience

Fallout 3 brings a few DLCs and add-ons to complete the apocalyptic experience. Each one of them offers something unique to the game.

The extra downloadable content you can find for Fallout includes:

• Mothership Zeta
• The Pitt
• Point Lookout
• Operation Anchorage
• Broken Steel add-on

To give you an idea, Broken Steel allows you to re-enter the game and keep playing after completing the main story. As such, you can return to Tenpenny Tower and other important places, harder enemies, higher-level caps found on your Pip-Boy, and more end-game content.

The rest adds extra missions and more content you can use and are considered some of the best DLC of the franchise.

Of course, Bethesda games can't be discussed without mods section. We’ve gathered the best modifications you can give to both titles and enhance your gaming experience.

Best Mods For Fallout 3

1. Fallout 3 Rebirth: This mod gives more life to the Wasteland. It will provide better graphics and more enemies to fight against, so you don’t feel the map as empty as in the original game.

2. Ultimate Perk Pack: Adds over 70 new perks and abilities to the game.

3. Martigen's Mutant Mod: Includes more enemies and enhances previous enemies’ looks. There will be more than feral ghouls.

4. Fallout 3 Redesigned: Redesigns the players' and NPCs' looks. It upgrades Fallout’s current graphical designs.

Best Mods For Fallout New Vegas

1. FNV 4GB Patcher: Patch allows FNV to use more than two GB of RAM. It’s great for current PC configurations.

2. Asurah Reanimation Pack: Upgrades combat movements. 

3. New Vegas Fallout – Enhanced Camera: Adds a full-body first-person camera and character shadows to improve gameplay.

4. Viva New Vegas: It’s a complete mod that offers better performance, stability, and other upgrades to make great new gameplay.

Fallout 3 and Fallout New Vegas are both highly regarded entries in the Fallout franchise, but they have distinct differences in their themes, gameplay mechanics, and storylines. 

Whether you like to play in a dark world after a nuclear apocalypse where good and evil actions are clear as day or spend a restless night on a western-like map in Las Vegas, you will indeed have a great time.

Choosing which one is the best comes down to personal opinions. Yet, if you love more profound stories and character development, we highly recommend you play Fallout: New Vegas - Ultimate Edition Steam CD Key.

On the contrary, if you wish to relive a classic RPG with dark themes that will make your moral compass doubt, then Fallout 3 Steam CD Key is the game for you.