Haggard Beauty: Fallout 3

As the opening credits kicked in for Bethesda's Fallout 3, Ron Perlman's distinctive voice delivered an accurate and damning indictment of humanity.

"Since the dawn of human kind, when our ancestors first discovered the killing power of rock and bone, blood has been spilled in the name of everything, from God, to justice, to simple psychotic rage."

It paints a portrait of the world we're about to set foot in. Loud and clear.

Though there weren't many skeptics when Bethesda announced they were visiting the classic Fallout franchise, some fans of the isometric originals were unhappy at the radical shift of perspective. Whilst a few were still undoubtedly unsatisfied with the resulting adventure, most of us were more than happy with what was delivered in what is still one the of the finest RPGs of this generation, Fallout 3.

It starts off with a birth. Emergence into the world, and another familiar voice (Liam Neeson this time). Through an accelerated childhood we learned the mechanics that would go on to serve us as we cut our way through the DC wasteland of the future.

Internal Vault politics, and the neat introduction to the choice mechanics aside, the first genuine jaw-dropping moment came when that tutorial part of the game was concluded and we emerged into the world once again. Only this time it was from our home, sanctuary and prison - Vault 101 - and out into harsh wreckage of Washington.

That moment - climbing up to the top of the rock under which our childhood home was hidden, and staring out across a huge world crammed full of desolate detail and beautiful destruction - it truly is one of the highlights of the last generation of gaming.

It was a world teeming with life, despite its irradiated past. Megaton, the nearest island of humanity, revealed a taste of the dilemmas that would be faced throughout the duration of our adventuring. And while it gave a taste, it didn't go anywhere close to hinting at the depth and breadth of the challenges that would be faced.

We'd find a canine companion, slaughter slavers (or become one ourselves), take on the establishment, settle old disputes, and explore more grey areas of conscience than most games can muster. Nothing was black and white - there were no certainties - just choices that would go on to shape the world. You did as you saw fit, whether that was finding victory through diplomacy, or conquest via the barrel of a gun.

The V.A.T.s system allowed us to revel in the gory glory of our successes. The multitude of enemies required us to hone our skills, to pick our moments. The NPCs posed us thought-provoking dilemmas, and questioned our morality on numerous occasions. We were able to truly shape our character in any direction we saw fit - the world was our mutated oyster.

Fallout 3 provided a plethora of incredible experiences, some more memorable than others, but none can be recalled as vividly as that first moment, when the true scale of Bethesda's offering was revealed and we climbed out of our Vault. It was huge world, deadly and violent. Scarred yet beautiful. Utterly unmissable, and as far as post-apocalyptic settings go, yet to be bettered.