We’re bug crazy. We might be called Gearfuse today, but tomorrow we’ll be called Bugfuse.

What happens when a radioactive mutant goes berserk on a stairwell in an abandoned and destroyed hotel? Nothing, really. I stumbled upon this guy while feverishly searching for a fusion battery. I took some potshots at him and went for a pick pocket, neither one achieving any success. When I loaded out and came back, the mutie was gone.

Not quite as impending as the exploits found in the game, but defintely a surefire way to rid the player of any immersion he/she once had. Again, nice job by the QA team at Bethesda Softworks.

Fallout 3 is about to hit Japan’s store shelves and news has emerged claiming that the developers, Bethesda Softworks, have made changes to the game to more comfortably appeal to the Japanese market. You can probably guess from here what changes have been made, but just in case your a little rusty on your history, I’ll tell you.
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Shame on you, Pete Hines. Claiming that your latest game, Fallout 3, contains only the mildest form of DRM was a lie. A big fat lie. Not only does the PC version of Fallout 3 contain DRM, it contains the most infamous of all DRMs: SecuROM.

Remember what happened to EA for releasing Spore with SecuROM? It got hit with a class action lawsuit. It’s no mystery that SecuROM permanently stays on your computer, even after an uninstall, leeching precious resources from your PC. The only solution is reformatting your hard drive. So far, the only problems caused by the Fallout 3 DRM has been conflicts during installation for a small group of users. Just wait, much like the Master Control Program in Tron, SecuROM will take over.

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I really have no use for a Fallout 3 lunchbox. I like Fallout 3, but I’m far too old to be taking a lunchbox to work. That’s where my illegitimate son comes in. I’ll force him to take this lunchbox to school. All the while he’ll be bitching and moaning for me to buy him a Ben 10 lunchbox.
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I’ve been flaking at work, school and life ever since the release of Fallout 3. I snagged the collectors edition of the game and haven’t stopped playing since. One thing I can say about the game this early on is it’s tough scrounging for ammo, especially after you’ve wasted all of it on a giant fire ant’s skull. Now in regards to leveling and building up your character, it is much easier than Fallout 1 and 2. In the previous games, you were lucky if you came out with a well-rounded character that could do a little of everything. Well, either lucky or just weak. In Fallout 3, with the adjustments to the way tagged skills work and the many skill-related perks in the game, a character can easily be half-decent at every skill in the game.

Of course, most players like to focus on one skill and become a master of it. I’m just surprised how well a “jack-of-all-trades” character works in this game. If I were to make a similar character in Fallout 1, I wouldn’t get past the first radscorpion cave. Check back for screens of the goodies that come in the collectors edition, later today.

If you’ve already pirated your own copy of Fallout 3, then you’re surely aware that the Xbox 360 version of Fallout 3 has been leaked. This is giving the pirates out there the one-up on all of the bugs and possible exploits the QA guys missed. Nobody likes a cheater, but when in Rome, do as the Romans do.

A random reader of Swongled.com sent in a video and a thorough walk through of possible exploits that allow you to gain infinite experience and infinite caps (money) in the game. I won’t spoil anything by writing the exploits here because I’m not an asshole. Hit the link to see for yourself.

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Just a few days after going gold, Fallout 3 has leaked on to the Internet. While it may seem to be one of the worst console piracy cases of the year, so far it has yet to reach the controversial level that Spore has had and Bethesda has yet to make an official statement regarding the leak.

So far, only the Xbox 360 version has been leaked. Meaning, you’ll have to heavily mod your console after downloading the 6.52 GB file. While the game ships on the 28th of October, many pirates can’t wait that long. And why should they? We’ve all been waiting ten years for this game, it’s about time it got in to the hands of the public. I can’t wait to play it.

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Check out this cool tattoo based on the Fallout 3 perk called Bloody Mess. Kotaku reader David Lo has high hopes for the upcoming post-apocalyptic RPG. So high that he decided to permanently ink the game’s mascot, Vault Boy, on to his arm.  Fallout 1 and 2 are classics, but Fallout 3 - that remains to be seen.  Here’s to hoping he won’t regret it.

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One of the more interesting booths on the Penny Arcade Expo show floor was Bethesda’s Fallout 3 homage. An Airstream motor home on a patch of faux grass decorated the center of Bethesda’s show room floor, along with a central booth filled with mannequins modeled after playable characters in the game. The Airstream motor home was completely gutted and refitted with a wonderful blend of retro Fallout 3-era memorabilia.

Originally, the plan was to donate the trailer to PAX. Now Bethesda has decided to donate the Airstream to Child’s Play following the game’s release. One lucky child will be sitting in this electric-powered motor home, drinking a six back of Nuka-Cola while launching mini-nukes at an army of chain gun-wielding mutants.

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Everyone has been comparing Bethesda’s Fallout 3 with Oblivion. That’s a real shame, considering Fallout’s true roots lie with Black Isle Studios. Though the game may not be what long-time Fallout fans are hoping for, it certainly will be remembered for the gore. One thing I’ll miss: groin shot. Here’s a few good reads on the upcoming post-apocalyptic pseudo-RPG from Bethesda:

Enjoy!