New Vegas is way better than fallout 3, which I thought sucked. It's very open ended, giving you multiple paths to complete the storyline, and it doesn't rob you at the end the way fallout 3 did (without spoiling shyt). You can be a real badass in fallout new Vegas. If you're into classic isometric RPGs, give the first two installments a go at it, too. They are more traditional, but the games are very fun and extremely rewarding if you like non-linear role playing. IMO, I would avoid fallout 3, but that's just me. It plays too much like oblivion, which is to be expected, since it's from Bethesda. New Vegas uses the same engine, but the gameplay is a lot better.