Yes, the Perks have returned in Fallout 3, and they look to be as varied and as off-the-wall as classics like Bloody Mess. Your perks give you even more specialized abilities, but they won't be earned at every level. Many of them will alter the skills you've earned, such as Daddy's Boy (lest you forget, your dad was a scientist), which will automatically increase both your Science and Medicine skills. Some of them will have multiple ranks, too, enabling you to boost your skills past 100 percent. The most intriguing perk we saw was Lady Killer (called Black Widow if your character is female), which improves your persuasive skills with members of the opposite sex, as well as making it easier to take them down in combat.
Once we were done boosting our character a bit, we headed off in the direction of a tall structure at the top of a nearby hill. Although Fallout 3 defaults to a first-person view, you'll have the ability to switch to a third-person, over-the-shoulder camera view with a tap of the left bumper. The character animation looks much better than in Oblivion, but we still felt like first-person was the way to go. The core controls are pretty standard for the genre, and it initially feels like Fallout 3 could be played almost like a simple first-person shooter... until you enter combat for the first time.
While you can get off some shots at an enemy and take them down, it's a bit tougher than it initially seems, and it won't be long before you're relying heavily on the Vault-tec Assisted Targeting System during combat. V.A.T.S. gives the player the ability to pause combat in order to take precise aim at any enemy within sight (even if you haven't actually encountered them yet). With a tap of the right bumper, the action will pause and you'll be greeted with the in-game model of whichever enemy you're targeting. Each part of your enemy's body can be targeted, including its head, body, and limbs (since this is a game about nuclear mutants, there are plenty of foes with extra parts). You'll be able to see the percentage of likelihood that you'll be able to hit that area, as well as the damage that's already been incurred.
At first, we naturally went for a headshot every time we had a foe targeted, mainly because we've been hardwired to think that way after playing first-person shooters for years. Gradually, however, you'll learn that you may be better off going for a higher percentage shot that can alter the way your foe does battle. For instance, taking out an enemy's leg will keep it from charging you, while crippling the arm that holds its weapon will keep it from attacking. The action points needed to target certain areas play a major role too, as taking and missing the lower-percentage shots will force you into real-time combat. We're looking forward to seeing how the system works against tough enemies, which should take multiple rounds to drop.
