![]() Still, Fallout 4 isn’t particularly great about letting you know that Nick is a crucial piece to the puzzle here, as it’s entirely possible to play through the entirety of Far Harbor without him. Not only are there some major revelations to be had about Fallout 4‘s strongest character, but the sense of tension that results from bringing him to meet DiMA presents some of the most intriguing interactions found in this piece of DLC. If you’ve read any content about Far Harbor leading up to its release, you know that using Nick Valentine as your companion dramatically adds to the experience. ![]() Speaking of DiMA, his inclusion simultaneously presents one of Far Harbor‘s greatest strengths and a minor flaw in terms of player quality of life. ![]() There’s always something haunting when a character’s calm demeanor potentially contradicts his past actions, and Bethesda absolutely nails this sense of dread with DiMA. ![]() None of this would work without some of the best performances seen in Fallout 4, with DiMA, the leader of Acadia, standing out as one of the most fascinating characters found anywhere in Todd Howard’s latest masterpiece. On its own, this wouldn’t necessarily be a big deal, but every Far Harbor side quest presents an opportunity to stray from the moral straight and narrow, and everyone winds up remembering what you did during the three-headed conflicts ultimate conclusion. The end of this quest gives you a chance to make some extra money, but it will clearly damage your relationship with this particular villager. For instance, one side quests tasks you with obtaining a set of high quality tools for a member of the Far Harbor community. On a macro level, you’re going to wind up making decisions that play a role in the mortality of some of the major characters that you meet, and you’ll also stumble into fascinating moral conundrums on a micro level. Without diving too deep into spoiler territory, Far Harbor is absolutely loaded with both big and small decision moments, with each playing a role in how this mysterious island’s inhabitants move forward. Whereas the Brotherhood of Steel feels like a rebellious group of racists, as well as the most boring vanilla Fallout 4 faction, each of Far Harbor‘s three factions is crazy in its own way. Still, having kooky groups of characters isn’t enough to make for an interesting narrative, which is why Far Harbor‘s branching moral decisions take its narrative to that next level. What makes this conflict far more engaging than the war between the Institute, the Brotherhood of Steel, the Minutemen and the Railroad is that there doesn’t really seem to be a “correct” side to pick. Upon arriving, you discover that there’s a multi-pronged conflict between the ragtag villagers living in Far Harbor and the always comically insane Children of Atom, with the synth refugees of a small facility known as Acadia dipping their hands into both sides. ![]() The Nakano family tasks you with finding Kasumi, whose holotapes scattered about the house let you know that she has traveled by boat to Far Harbor, a not-so-subtle allusion to the real-world location of Bar Harbor, Maine. With the exception of a frustrating puzzle section in the middle of the main quest, Far Harbor not only lives up to the lofty expectations placed upon it, but proves itself as an essential piece of Fallout 4 as a whole.įar Harbor begins by guiding you over to Valentine’s Detective Agency, where Ellie lets you know that Kasumi Nakano, a teenage girl living with her parents in The Commonwealth’s northeastern corner, has gone missing. Far Harbor, Fallout 4‘s major landmass expansion akin to Fallout 3‘s Point Lookout add-on, not only succeeds in placing players firmly inside of that ever-so-powerful moral grey area, but it builds upon the best parts of Bethesda Game Studios’ biggest game to date. Still, the main narrative was more focused around pitting factions against one another, essentially forcing players to pick a side before the final credits roll. Granted, anyone who spent a great deal of time exploring The Commonwealth knows that there are oodles of hidden quests that satisfy this need, with a certain quest inside of a meat-packing facility standing out for its final decision. One of the largest complaints with Fallout 4, for better and for worse, was that there wasn’t enough of the moral ambiguity that players expect from this franchise. ![]()
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