Fallout 4 will have more room for non-violent play styles

I do so much killing in videogames that sometimes not killing is actually a more exciting option. Generally speaking, in games like Dishonored or Deus Ex: Human Revolution, I'll opt for a non-lethal path if one is available. I don't recall such opportunities coming up all that terribly often in Fallout 3 or Fallout: New Vegas, but Todd Howard of Bethesda told The Guardian that a life of (relative) non-violence will be an option in Fallout 4.

"You can avoid [killing] a lot," he said. "I can't tell you that you can play the whole game without violence—that's not necessarily a goal of ours—but we want to support different play styles as much as we can."

I don't expect a post-nuclear role-playing game to be entirely pacifistic, unless you're prepared to run away from literally everything and subsist on soup made from radioactive grass. But the prospect of Fallout 4 putting a greater focus on emergent role-playing opportunities is really appealing.

Fallout 4 will be out on November 10.

Andy has been gaming on PCs from the very beginning, starting as a youngster with text adventures and primitive action games on a cassette-based TRS80. From there he graduated to the glory days of Sierra Online adventures and Microprose sims, ran a local BBS, learned how to build PCs, and developed a longstanding love of RPGs, immersive sims, and shooters. He began writing videogame news in 2007 for The Escapist and somehow managed to avoid getting fired until 2014, when he joined the storied ranks of PC Gamer. He covers all aspects of the industry, from new game announcements and patch notes to legal disputes, Twitch beefs, esports, and Henry Cavill. Lots of Henry Cavill.