Fallout 3 endings

Just like the intro, the ending is narrated by Ron Perlman. The first and final parts are the same for each player, the 3 middle parts depend on their choices, Part 4 may be not played if the player entered the wrong code when trying to active the purifier(the purifier will be destoryed in an explosion that case).

Unlike previous Fallout games, there is no ending narration for individual towns visited by the player during the game. The only thing influenced by side quests is the choice of some of the slides shown during the ending cinematic.

Ending segments
There are 26 independent video segments for the Fallout 3 ending. They can be viewed on the PC version using the external software "RAD Video Tools". Whether they are shown depend on whether the player performs certain task in game. Some are mutually exclusive.

Part 1
And so it was that the lone wanderer ventured forth from Vault 101, intent on discovering the fate of a father who had once sacrificed the future of humanity for that of his only child.

High Karma
The Capital Wasteland proved a cruel, inhospitable place – but the lone wanderer refused to surrender to the vices that had claimed so many others. The values passed on from father to child – selflessness, compassion, honor – guided this noble soul through countless trials and triumphs.

Low Karma
The Capital Wasteland proved a cruel, inhospitable place – and the lone wanderer ultimately surrendered to the vices that had claimed so many others. Selfishness, greed, cruelty – these were the values that guided a lost soul through countless trials and triumphs.

Neutral Karma
The Capital Wasteland proved a cruel, inhospitable place.

Player dies
But it was not until the end of this long road that the lone wanderer learned the true meaning of that greatest of virtues -- sacrifice. Stepping into the irradiated control chamber of Project Purity, the child followed the example of the father, sacrificing life itself for the greater good of mankind.

Player lives
It was not until the end of this long road that the lone wanderer was faced with that greatest of virtues -- sacrifice. But the child refused the follow the father’s selfless example…instead allowing a true hero to venture into the irradiated control chamber of Project Purity, and sacrifice her own life for the greater good of mankind.

Project Purity blows up
It was not until the end of this long road that the lone wanderer was faced with that greatest of virtues -- sacrifice. But the child refused the follow the father’s selfless example. (A picture of the Jefferson Memorial in flames is shown. Part 4 is not played.)

Player doesn't side with Eden
Thankfully, when selected by the sinister President to be his instrument of annihilation, the wanderer refused. Humanity, with all its flaws, was deemed worthy of preservation. The waters of life flowed at last – free and pure, for any and all. The Capital Wasteland, at long last, was saved.

Player sides with Eden
Sadly, when selected by the sinister President to be his instrument of annihilation, the wanderer agreed. Humanity would be preserved, but only in its purest form. The waters of life flowed at last – but the virus contained within soon eradicated all those deemed unworthy of salvation. The Capital Wasteland, despite its progress, became a graveyard.

Part 5
So ends the story of the lone wanderer, who stepped through the great door of Vault 101, and into the annals of legend. But the tale of humanity will never come to a close, for the struggle of survival is a war without end. And war… war never changes.

Failed Expectations
Bestheda originally announced that Fallout 3 would have "over 200 possible endings." However, it was later clarified (quietly) that the number had been reached differently than previous titles. The number came from the four different segments that could play, each having 3-4 different variants, meaning there was technicall 4x4x4x3: 192 endings. Under this numbering system, Fallout 2 had over 1,000,000 different endings.

Example: If town A has 4 different possible endings, Town B has 5 possible endings, and town C has 6 possible endings, then you could say the game has "120 different endings" (4x5x6), or 15 different endings (4+5+6). Most players had assumed that the 200 number was reached by addition, and thus there would be a town by town and quest by quest epilogue.

It is also to be noted that the 'ending cinematics' are a narrated slideshow, and less than a minute long under any combination of endings. While they are in .bik format (videogame movie format), the endings are in-game images with zoom effects added through the movie format. One could create the same ending effects using screenshots and Windows Movie Maker.

There are some slides that show based on the actions of the player throughout the game. However, few players consider a three second viewing of a screenshot-quality image thrown in with generic narration to be counted as a 'unique ending.' In addition, the images for certain locations will show even if the player never went to them.

Reception to the ending of Fallout 3 has generally been an expression of being let down. For all of the freedom and choices that the player has had for the entire game in how to deal with any situation (As there are usually 5-6 ways past any challenge), two YES/NO questions back to back determine the ending (FEV and Chamber entry), and the entire gameplay up to that point only influences two sentences in the first segment.

Fallout 1 and 2
Fallout 1 and Fallout 2 also had a narrated slideshow as the ending, but with no added visual effects (Solid full-screen images). The images were high quality artwork, not in-game images (As these titles were playes from top-down perspective). While the first part of each ending was the same no matter how the game was played, it was followed by a town-by-town epilogue based on the actions of the player. Locations that had been 'skipped' were not mentioned. New Reno in Fallout 2 had no less than 7 endings (Siding with one of the four families, Knock up one of the Bishop family women, Not siding with any of the families, Massacre everyone in the city).

Continue Playing
Fallout 2 allowed a player to continue playing after completing the main quest line. There were no 'consequences' to having beaten the game, and new endings would not display if the conditions later changed. For all intents and purposes, it was the same as having never triggered the event that takes the player to the final area. Fallout 1 and Fallout: Tactics did not allow the player to continue playing, although there are mods that change this in Fallout 1.

Fallout Tactics
Fallout: Tactics had a combination of a "True" cinematic ending and a narrated slideshow. The cinematic was the same under all 3 possible endings, with the slideshow following the Fallout 1 and 2 formula of solid images with voice-over. Fallout Tactics had no town-by-town analysis, as the game featured few RPG choices (Kill someone or don't kill them).

Fallout: Brotherhood of Steel: (Need info here).