Fallout: New California - A Complete Analysis

I've sided with all factions and completed the mod multiple times. Here's what I found.
🕊️ / mikeburnfire
🕊️ / zach_hazard
🥽 / discord
🧞 / mikeburnfire
🔥 / mikeburnfire
👾 / mikeburnfire
00:00:00 - Overview
00:06:19 - Vault 18 Life
00:11:48 - Vault 18 Crisis
00:17:54 - Sidequests
00:21:05 - NCR
00:36:56 - Raiders
00:43:44 - Enclave/Wildcard
00:46:48 - Conclusion
Music used, in order of appearance:
Intro (Obliteration, Kevin Macleod)
Music (Kisses Sweeter Than Wine, Jimmie Rodgers, performed by Martin Purvis)
Vault 18 (Ethereal Relaxation, Kevin Macleod)
Vault 18 Crisis (Feral Chase, Kevin Macleod)
Companions (Medusa, Kevin Macleod)
Sidequests (RetroFuture Clean, Kevin Macleod)
Flowchart (Bicycle, Kevin Macleod)
NCR Questline (Ether Vox, Kevin Macleod)
Fort Daggerpoint (Volatile Reaction, Kevin Macleod)
The Father (Super Mutant Theme Song, Fallout New California)
Fallout: New Vegas (No Rest for These Bones, Fallout: New Vegas)
Raider Initiation (Sociopathic Hive Mind, Fallout New California)
Raider Questline (Soviet Monks, Fallout New California)
Enclave/Wildcard (Death Otters, Fallout New California)
Conclusion (Bicycle, Kevin Macleod)
Music by Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)
Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 4.0 License
creativecommons.org/licenses/b...

[@RadianHelix]

It's really awesome and an honor that someone would play this mod we made for 9 months. We started in 2010 as a Fallout 3 mod, if you can believe it. Just messing around to learn the ropes. It was just me at the time (Thain). The vault and John Bragg were the only things written with my boy Steven (who played Ben Kurtz.) We set it down til December 2012, when RickerHK joined, and together we made Project Brazil, which came out in May 2013. We took 2014 off. 2015 we started up again and did a 1 year sprint where FNC was an almost daily full-time job on top of freelance gigs in the film industry & broadcast. That's when all of part 2 was written and scripted, and at the end of 2015, September to November, the majority of the voices were recorded. We spent 2016 just editing and implementing audio, and 2017 uncutting cut content. Finally, in 2018, we wrapped the main quest and released it as FNC Beta 200, and the next year, getting to Beta 231 which was the last update. We had to leave it there unless someone is willing to take it to 1.0 with all the player feedback added in. For 90% of the time it was just me and RickerHK. It was a pretty lonely experience, full of frustration and disappointment trying to get more people to join us, fueds and hobby drama with other mod teams, and being unsure if this thing that took 8 years to make would finally get to public. That recording of Roger Owen was the first ever voice session. In a hot metal shed in Arizona. When I spoke to all our mutual friends and family at his memorial last year, that footage played. It means a lot to me seeing that in there. Eddie Bolero, who plays Elsdragon, also passed away from cancer and covid in 2020. And I miss him every day. He was such a good guy and a great friend. All my other actors were also picked predominantly from my friends and local film & theatre community. Three months of recording on one of my two mics in hot Arizona rooms, wrapped in sound insulation with the AC off. This mod is like a time capsule of my 20s. I was 22 when this started. I'm 35 on May 21st, with a wife and kid, just bought a house, have a decade long career in video vfx and now own a fully funded indie development studio with 5 full time emploees. In a lot of ways, we fulfilled that 22 year old's dreams. In a lot of ways, we also fell short. It's good to reflect on it, learn from it, and keep looking forward. Somel of my best friends live on in that mod. Their performances the last time we'll ever hear their voice. FNC came out almost 5 years ago, and there's still more to find in that world than even I remember. If one thing could change, I'd be the Father and Vaygr. Edit those two to bring them a different context and leave the rest unchanged. It was done for Marko in NVB, someone could do the same for The Father. Make the courier just someone the Star Player interacts with to deliver the Key, and let them walk off into the sunset. Obviously we can't ressurect Roger for a final voice performance on the narration, but there are ways to edit around Project Brazil. Overall, what a cool video. How many letsplayers would dive into a mod so many people in the community hate (and so many more love) and give it 9 months of attention, reading design documentation and publishing a final summary? It's just fucking cool, and I'm glad it exists. Helps me let go of some of the regrets, and remember the good stuff. Thanks Mike.

[@theoriginalcosmicwanderer]

As someone who's interacted with the discord (before getting removed) and played a lot of NC, all of you did a fantastic job, no matter what anyone says, all of you should be proud

[@shadowulfhedinn8261]

You guys did a great job, my first run secretly undermining the NCR for the Enclave was an absolute blast!

[@ICantThinkOfAFunnyHandle]

For all the hardships you had to go through, FNC turned out amazing.

[@walterfijn3586]

You guys made a better game than Bethesda ever dreamed of. ❤ I hope you come around again and keep up with the good work. ❤🇺🇸☢🌍

[@ryneboy3845]

You guys earned this, you made a beautiful creation. I remember I must have been like 16/17 messaging the project Brazil Facebook page years back asking for updates on time schedules (how annoying guys like me must’ve been) but reading your post really just made me happy to see that this mod was as big an experience in your life as it was. Keep rocking

[@Mrshadowmind14]

I think the main game tie in could have worked better if rather than being the courier, they were the ones who sent the hopeville detonator and started the couriers path.

[@BrandanLee]

That would have been better, I agree.

[@danielsurvivor1372]

It would also leave some room for roleplaying. E.x. Was Ullyses correct and he got the right guy? Or he accusing someone who d i d n t do it?

[@Ninjat126]

I feel like the "Star Player is the Courier" twist is like the Tale of Two Wastelands twist "the Lone Wanderer is the Courier." Not so much a story twist as a -gameplay- twist, designed to let you keep the same PC across both campaigns.

[@allenaju1856]

@@Ninjat126 well the tale of two wastelands is taking ideas from the Original idea for the courier, they WERE supposed to be the Lone Wanderer, lines kinda hint this to the courier having a deeper backstory but due to alot of cut content and time crunches they just cut the idea out and made the courier their own person.

[@BrandanLee]

@Nintolerance That's exactly how I intended it. It was always meant to allow players to continue on the save in a seamless manner. Which is what people voted for in a poll where that was the #1 option chosen in a landslide between starting a new game from the start menu or making them separate characters. FNC was never meant as "a backstory for Courier 6" but it is widely assumed it is, and many people assume it was the whole point. If I'm being honest, I hate that because it was literally just a mechanic for fun.

[@Sattylites]

To quote a phrase I've heard somewhere "Fallout New California farted, so Fallout The Frontier could sh*t itself"

[@anthonyortiz350]

While funny also a bit sad. Could you please tell me where you heard it from?

[@samfire3067]

​@@anthonyortiz350his mind* probaly

[@thebaronlouis8619]

Frontier was still better than Bounties.

[@Paag603]

​@@thebaronlouis8619 lol nope

[@derpasstwahtskie2246]

@@thebaronlouis8619 Lol Lmao

[@samwill7259]

Mike: Takes his time to make his points, going into detail and explaining himself **Cuts in with Zach's knee jerk responses mostly just shouting and swearing at things** What a duo you two make.

[@scowler7200]

Damage control. Mike's the control, Zach's the damage.

[@TheButterAnvil]

Love this dynamic. Adam friended and PSA Sitch are political streamers with a similar dynamic

[@GTRFREAK17]

Ying and yang, order and chaos

[@DoubleWhammy]

​@@scowler7200 Doom 3?

[@poromafia]

My favorite ending is the Enclave one because it ties your character to 3 instead of the usual nv courier thing.

[@filmandfirearms]

It makes you generic Enclave soldier #389, then has you go back west and become the Courier

[@digger6843]

I wish it was tied to the Enclave branche in Chicago and your story would end there being some general big guy

[@38procentkrytyk]

After being stepped by giant robot " that's it, I'm going to deliver the shit out of Mojave Desert."

[@DD8842]

I love that ending too. The voice acting is top shelf. "The Monster from Vault 18 runs straight into the rising fist of the brotherhood of steel. The enclave buckels and breaks under there rebellion." Good stuff

[@courier6960]

If you play the submod for TTW that allows you to play all three games (new California -> Capital wasteland -> New Vegas) it gets even cooler than this. In the sub-mod, it effectively further expands upon the lore and endings to connect all three games and the enclave ending becomes even cooler with you even facing the Braggs in Raven Rock and your old protagonist in the purifier with autumn with further lines connecting the lone wanderer to the star player, and making the discussions of lonesome road have a little more subtext to what’s really being discussed with ulysses It’s all pretty interesting when you piece it all together, and it’s actually REALLY well crafted for what is effectively mainly a utility mod to lessen issues to allow you to play the three entries.

[@dxdrabbit6935]

You can find General Silverman's corpse in a trashcan in a hanger at the NCR Exiles Airport in the frontier mod.

[@talon5525]

Ironic they trashed on New California

[@gemgem396]

Ironic

[@CobetcknnKolowski]

I just wanna say how much I really enjoy these essay style breakdowns of these large mods!

[@Timberwolf581]

I think it's a shame how Kira Mann is written. She's my favorite character during the Vault 18 chapter for my playthrough as Nerd, yet whatever relationship we had during that time is completely gone once outside the vault. It's baffling to me that as a Nerd you have to pass a Strength check of 8 in order to intimidate Kira so that you can have both Jenn and Kira on your team. She was so considerate but also fragile in the vault (on the Nerd path), but loses all of that outside of the vault and instead becomes perpetually angry with a vengeful streak. It's hard for me to see my favorite companion character turn out this way.

[@RuSosan]

Yeah, Kira just turns into a completely different character outside the vault. An absolutely insufferable one at that. Overall most of the companions take a nosedive at that point. Of course it's easy to criticize from the outside and in hindsight BUT the way they all start to act up in high-energy spats at the safehouse, _right after the most harrowing and exhausting fight for their lives they've suffered through so far,_ is jarring and stupid as all hell IMO. While trauma and coming down from survival adrenaline can make people lash out, especially based on old rivalries and drama, it's actually far more common for people to really stick together and group up in those scenarios. We wouldn't be here as a species without that. Most survivors of violent events just want some rest, comfort and peace to collapse into for a while. I mean for all they know, they're ALL that's left of entire Vault 18 and none of them have anyone but each other to rely on out there. _In the hostile and unkniwn frigging wasteland._ And just imagining how likable, believable and relatable these characters would've been if they just pulled together instead of apart in that moment, and if the conflicts would've been handled and resolved slower and more subtly... Especially the whole Kira vs. Jen-thing comes out of frigging nowhere and just destroys Kira as a character.

[@filmandfirearms]

@@RuSosan As another point, let's just ignore the sudden personality change everyone undergoes. These people still grew up together. They have spent their entire lives together. And yet, they go straight to murdering each other within less than 5 minutes of getting to safety.

[@galacticfirefly6060]

Can't really Blame Kira. Spoiler: Kira had abusive parents... well the parents she had in the Vault. and when she told the overseer, Asking to leave them and arrest them. Jen made sure Kira stayed with her abusive parents. Jen was born in The Vault, while Kira alongside the StarPlayer were adopted in from the wasteland as Orphans. Kira felt like the Vault was a Prison more then a Actual Place to be Safe. She also suffers from Asperger syndrome, a form of Autism Spectrum disorder. Makes her Verry Intelligent, but she will straight up tell people in the face how she hates or likes them. Someone like Kira in this situation is not rly surprising how she changes Personality so fast. She thinks she was Free when the vault blew up, but the Person who made her life a Living Hell (Jen) survived and she couldn't just forgive and forget.

[@RuSosan]

@@galacticfirefly6060 Yes, deffo can and will blame Kira. Or rather whoever wrote her in such a stupid way. How TF does _Jen_ supposedly have such sway in the Overseer's decision-making regarding the custodianship of another kid? That's asinine. And FFS using _aspergers_ as an excuse to make a shitty character act shitty out of nowhere just makes it worse!

[@galacticfirefly6060]

@@RuSosan In the Wiki says that Jen 'Persuaded' the Overseer in keeping Kira with her Abusive Parents. So Jen knew pretty well what she was doing.

[@MartinPurvis]

Hey mate, Thanks for the very kind words about my music, that means a lot! Some fun trivia about this mod: 1. At 11:20 in the video, that is my head. My friend had a 3d scanning app on his phone, scanned my head and Thaiauxn managed to get it into the game 2. At 18:41, I think I remember scripting that quest really badly and there was a chance some players money got lost in the ether forever (sorry), I think someone else ended up fixing it - oops A big shout out to Pablo who did the instrumental for the Brazil track we recorded, and his uncle/grandpa who did the whistling (because it turns out I suck at whistling), he also did a load on music/sound in the mod as well which was really good It was a very fun project to be a part of Again, thank you so much!

[@gunterthekaiser6190]

Love your music. This mod made me a fan and "For Miles and Miles" remains one of my favorite song!

[@MartinPurvis]

@@gunterthekaiser6190 thank you! 🙌🙌

[@zantanzuken]

one thing that might throw a lot of players for a loop trying this mod for the first time... right after escaping the vault, raiders will show up and threaten you... and if you attack them, which the game heavily implies you should, what with kurtz telling you that you should set up traps in the nearby area, you end up skipping over a rather neat part of the game and fastforwarding the mod by quite a bit... this could throw off the groove of the mod very quickly as you're thrust immediately into the fight on the bridge with the ncr and raiders, and then just a few missions later is pretty much the end.

[@nickgotvyak5890]

I had 2 walkthroughs and on the second one I avoided it. I wouldn't call this part neat. It's a railroad-y prison escape, which goes on for too long, and is placed just after Project Brazil part. So from the pacing perspective it also doesn't make sense. You've just got out of locked tutorial area and want to explore a new world? Nah, here is another few hours escape from a locked area.

[@SarahImperial]

Fallout: New California is easily one of my favorite mods of all time - hell, I've replayed it a dozen times and back when I was a stupid and naive teen, I even included it in a mega-playthrough modlist where I had it running concurrently with TTW 2.9.something (don't ask, it was a glitchy mess, never attempt it). It also partially influenced my opinions regarding how Fallout mods should be, notably in how much you're free/able to self-express your character through its RPG mechanics, and was such a huge inspiration for me that it made me want to write for The Frontier back when it was still in development (although, the site said they didn't need any more writers, so that didn't come to pass until far, far too late). Over the years though, the cracks in the mod have become more and more apparent... although I think the art-style for Fort Daggerpoint and the major faction settlements are top-notch, the world itself is so empty that even my masochistic ass who likes walking instead of fast travelling started to really dislike it. The lore for the world (sans the Super Mutant stuff) is genuinely interesting as well, but the writing is so swingy, it genuinely hurts... like, sometimes, it genuinely got me to think, such as the conversation between an NCR-aligned Courier and Captain Jameson and how my actions actively work against the kind of frontier vigilantism my character lived for, but then it swings the other way hard; I don't think FNC ever reaches the lows of, say, The Frontier, but comparing Kira Mann in the Vault to her outside the Vault, it's night and day, and that's not even touching on the Super Mutant/parasite stuff and the questionable handling of some of its characters. Although the mod has its flaws, there's a reason its endured for so long and has its influence still clinging on to the Fallout modding community to this day. I respect the hell out of it, even if I don't think I'll ever install this mod again (having scoured every last sq. in. of this mod so many times, there's not much reason for me to return to it), I have to give props where it's due and give thanks to the devs for, well, being a part of my youth, lmao. I hope they're doing well in whatever they're working on nowadays.

[@BrandanLee]

It's still possible to improve FNC. The workload isn't remotely close to what it would take to restore and redeem the absolute disaster of the Frontier. It's the difference between months of work, and years. One in an environment where you literally can't trust anyone, and the other where the community is strong and healthy. Even more important-- after what the Frontier team did to other mods, to this community, and to its own crew... that behavior earned its own crucifixion. They had to go out of their way to be that awful. Why wade into that, when you could instead do less work for a better end result in a fraction of the time, for people who won't screw you and blame you for their own behavior?

[@SarahImperial]

@@BrandanLee The development for FNC's revamp has ended, so I'm only talking about what's there - what's on paper can be vastly different from its execution. As for why I joined TF over FNC, I was asked to join TF and my curiosity about the devs and if they really were as shitty as people made them out to be got the better of me. I've since left Fallout modding, so it's a moot point regardless

[@drink__more__water]

You're getting pretty good at these long form/essay things! Not that the others had issues, but this one feels particularly coherent.

[@beck-nightengale]

It feels fair, too. Like he doesn't just focus on the negatives but gives the mods a chance by pointing out some of the points where it succeeds. Most long essays I'd seen about The Frontier and New California just rag endlessly on all the bad points to turn people off of playing them, whereas Mike's videos made me actually download and play NC myself because there were some things that I wanted to see and do for myself.

[@shadowulfhedinn8261]

Great analysis, I enjoy these mod reviews! For all the faults of New California, I still enjoyed it a ton. My first playthrough as a member of the Enclave secretly undermining the NCR and putting the senator in charge before taking Daggerpoint from hordes of mutants was some of the most fun I've ever had in a mod! Not as replayable, and the companions were lacking, but whats there is still worth experiencing.

[@beck-nightengale]

You know, my opinion on the story and "twist" would've changed completely if it pulled a "psyche!" and gave you a chance to point out the obvious plot holes, absurdity, and be able to call the Father on how stupid his plan is much like how the (very ordinary, non-mutated human) Vault Dweller did with the Master in Fallout 1. If the twist was that this crazy super mutant was convinced you're some clone of the Vault Dweller but it turned out that you're *not* (maybe the original clone died or is actually a different NPC), that would've been so much better and given you more of an excuse to explore and unearth secrets. You could've used wit and cunning to defeat the Father, rather than just your normal skill checks. Also I always hate the deification of the Courier that mods like New California and The Frontier did that makes you some larger than life god-like figure, rather than just some unlucky schmuck who delivered the wrong package. I don't think there needed to be some mutation to explain why the Courier survived a shot to the head *because real life non-mutant human beings can survive crazy experiences like that* - there was no need to make the Courier the super special most important flower in the radioactive tulip field. Overall I feel like a lot of the problems with New California could've been fixed easily with a little more time and some rewrites. Despite its flaws, I found myself enjoying it and appreciating the talent and effort that went into making it. It isn't free from criticism and people are allowed to love it or hate it, but it seems like it gets written off because of a few dumb choices that were made and that's just unfortunate to see.

[@syabri2342]

The player character being really just one of quite a few people born out of this experiment but not a literal clone of the Vault Dweller is actually a real plot point, but you only find out after the interaction with the Father. You can read a few journal entries from a high-ranking mutant noticing how the Father is getting more and more desperate about this far-from-foolproof experiment and he's pretty sure that by the end, the Father probably does not remember much about the original Vault Dweller and just decided that the experiment was a success as a coping mechanism. It is too bad that this is relegated to some journal entries right before the ending of the game.

[@ArchieRatsworth]

"That crazy postman who crawled out of their grave and can't be stopped before they finish what they started." Badass, reasonable premise. Likely to do whatever they damn want. "A clone of a historical figure." Strange, contrived, still has potential.

[@beck-nightengale]

@@syabri2342 See, that's cool. I'd have liked that if it was better incorporated into the game and made into a plot point you could find out BEFORE the Father dumps the whole "yer a mutant clone, Harry" on us, and even give us an option to rebuff his claims so it's clearer that the Star Player/Courier is NOT a clone of the Vault Dweller.

[@beck-nightengale]

@@ArchieRatsworth I think it could have potential in a different context, at least. I'm not against someone making a whole new character that's a clone, but shoehorning it into the Courier's narrative as a "Ooooo this is why you survive that bullet to the head!" was definitely very strange and contrived and just... not good writing. It's also what annoyed the heck out of me, and likely many others. But yeah. I don't entirely disagree.

[@legateelizabeth]

In total fairness, the basegame started that trend with Ulysses treating you like the second coming of the apocalypse.

[@HaloBoy58]

I must admit that this video does make me look back a little more fondly on my experience playing New California. My playthrough of New California started with me pretty pleasantly surprised, I definitely left the vault feeling like it was gonna be a worthwhile experience (I ended up with Kira and Ben as my only companions, which definitely was a problem down the line). I had sided with the Enclave, and so the idea of infiltrating the two factions and turning them towards my own goals was really exciting, and even the dearth of side content didn't really drag down the experience at first, the problems really began at the dam, where my extremely well equipped guns focused character discovered that he could slaughter as many mutants as he liked, they'd keep coming. By the time of the big reveals at the end, I was already lost, and my last bit of hope was that my unique triple-agent style navigation of the main plot, where I had become an integral part of the NCR's warplan and the leader of the Raider Alliance while still remaining true to the Enclave, just turned into a generic "You became the Courier and New Vegas is happening, the End". Having the amount of effort put into the mod put into perspective helps me appreciate it for what it is. I can't exactly say I think it was a good, cohesive, or holistic experience, but it was definitely worth playing for a guy like me that wishes we had more NV style games with huge focuses on skill checks. (The skill and attribute checks were responsible for like 50% of my enjoyment of the mod tbh)

[@mitchellwright5478]

I like to think all couriers canon from this mod are fucking insane beyond belief as soon as they hit the Mojave, regardless of goodness or role play, no human can bear witness into this and not go CEST LA VIE, IM NUKIN’ CALI AND ARIZONA!

[@kornelkalksztajn3883]

Damn, I knew there was a lot more planned for new california but seing how much of that was left makes me sad, I really enjoyed playing new California, I hope that maybe one day somebody will pick up the piece and turn it into a game that all of us wanted, but deep down I know this is a wishfull thinking :(

[@Josh-jw3go]

The frontier team/communities hate really doomed this mod

[@UndeadJames]

These longer essay videos are bangers I’m glad your doing them

[@jroden06]

Mike you sound amazing in this! You’re speaking more confidently and clearly - absolutely love it. You guys are going far!!

[@Echo2-2]

These video essays are really fun to watch. Awesome job!

[@jackmason6788]

I would love to see you do more deep dives into games or mods it's always interesting to hear from the perspective of a modder

[@BlackMoonHowls]

Was watching this nursing my hangove3r and I was pleasantly surprised by the overall experience I had with watching you play Fallout and not just this video either, you and Zach both. Thank you for being some of the best people out there and fallout fans. I made my AI Dungeon story because of your Legion playthrough in the Frontier all that time ago.

[@Gyrfalcon312]

Even though watching your playthrough series has undoubtedly spoiled the plots for me, I think I'll give _New California_ a try someday. Reading RadianHelix's pinned comment reminded me that at the end, he and his team were fans who took the next couple steps and went for a total conversion mod... but were among the very rare few to hit the finish line. That for me is even more worthy of respect than being part of a "professional" development team.

[@antcatthegamer]

It was great seeing both your perfect playthroughs and attempts at all the endings, I tried playing this mod years ago and had an issue where the outside world wouldn't spawn in or something and it was just a wide empty desert with nothing in it, but I did enjoy playing thru the vault section. Cool to see such a deep analysis since I couldn't really play it myself.

[@firestrom44]

How your companions went is honestly grating with their personalities and dialog

[@mastercraftmainframe]

Thanks for introducing me to New California, Mike! My favorite playthru is the Nerd with all of the associated science perks and the ALPHA killbot. I also managed to get every character except for Johnny and Jenn in a large group; it made combat almost too easy at times, with myself and ALPHA going out on scout missions to make combat more of a challenge--leave everyone on break in the Union Sewers bunker, I love that little place! Senator Duville being a classic evil character did not ruin it, and I have never sided with him in the game, always playing both sides so I have the advantage. The lack of sidequests makes me wish that someone would come up with a couple of smaller quest-mods to graft onto the main mod itself--like expanding Odyssey's role, adding two or three RPG elements to the Angel-Breakers, setting up an NCR outpost at the Daggerpoint Training Barracks, adding a few more traders to Angel-Breakers and Odyssey, a mission specific to Anti-Missile Tracking Site A(unlocking that one door in the side of the mountain), expanding the role of Radar Point as another NCR capable outpost, Some missions related to Barstow, Barstow Mining Co, Solar-Salvage Expedition, the Pinehaven area and Black Bear Mtn Lodge being a player home with expanded basement amneties, etc, etc, I've only played NCR so far, so those were some of my criticisms and suggestions, if anyone with modding experience on Fallout New Vegas wants a challenge, I would highly recommend messing with New California--it has great potential as a sandbox. Thanks for the hour of fun, Mike!

[@Snicketbar]

I must have played through this mod at least half a dozen times. As well as follow its development. And whenever a new build would come out. I'd check out what was added/ taken away for a while anyway. I might even have one of the first builds on an old laptop I used back in college. Though, I did lose track of it at some point and only rediscovered it, when the revamps were 'supposedly' going to take place. And then again shortly after the Frontier mod's drama hit its peak. Did a heavily modded playthrough just before Mikeburnfire started. Following the Nerd path. And then an evil Jock path. Shortly before the channel finished its first playthrough. I enjoyed the nerd path a lot more than the Jock. If I'm being honest. It's a shame that this mod was never finished. That there were just grand ideas planned for it, most of which we will never see. While it does stand on its own on what was released. You can tell that more was intended to be added at a later date. I even considered reaching out to the mod team and asking if I could take a crack at finishing/implementing some of the ideas they had planned and maybe even some of my own. But then remembered realized it would be an impossible endeavor.

[@JoeRogansBigToe]

mike always love your Analysis videos you always have an interesting and wide perspective and i love how infatuated and knowledgeable you are about these games and mods and fallout itself your a smart dood with a good brain don't change my guy

[@walterfijn3586]

There are 13 possible endings in New California. The one I personally think is the best is having high karma, nuking the Enclave, accepting as a NCR intelligence officer, becoming an NCR hero, and saving all of your family members from Vault 18.

[@seanmennecke1310]

Wait you can save Mandy and Shawn?

[@geekkellen621]

I kinda wish New California had just not had the one night then everything goes to shit and the vault explodes. If they'd have had the Vault as a hub and you come and go as a wasteland scout with bragg's uprising being a slow and less mustache twirling evil and up front thing it'd have benefitted from it

[@rexmartin1048]

Hey mike you made my days much better over the years cured ma sadness thanks man

[@peszek8405]

i love these types of videos and i love your content so it's early christams for me, hoping for more like these

[@aeven13]

No Oliver Swanick? Literally unplayable!

[@drink__more__water]

I've already gotten my refund for the mod. UNPLAYABLE.

[@NukaLuLu]

Great video Mike. I always look forward to when you do these. Also hoping to you guys eventually cover Th3Overseer quest mods and Salt Lake Stories

[@memeofwheat]

Glad to see your content take a new form! Keep it going man

[@JohnRRyder]

My thought process was: So much amazing potential. So many cool things throughout. But not fully finished...and its a damn shame. Like i imagine the different towns and areas around Union City/Athens Tec/Daggerpoint having much more developed lore and questlines similar to Frontier? It would be *mwah* Beautiful! I know the mod hasnt been updated since...2020 i believe? But what is here defintely shows lots of amazing progress AND potential....wonder if one day someone will try to add to it. Not completely rewrite (would be difficult with needing VAs alone), but just...add more to whats there, you know? Flesh out/clean up whats there, sure, but also add more around it.

[@Blank55600]

New California was so bare bones. Felt like an open world shooter. No safe zones besides the ncr base, rest was all hostile

[@necromech_]

fantastic video, you really dove into the weeds on this one, really touching ending by the way about the real world stuff

[@Marc-ww7cc]

I agree that Martin did a great job with the music - I couldn't find a link here, but I've found he has a KZbin channel with some music videos and other stuff www.youtube.com/@MartinPurvis/videos

[@JDWard27]

Finally, I was waiting for this to release. Ty Mike for the content as always.

[@eepee_eepee]

loving these vid essays

[@mrfancypanzer549]

I always enjoy these essays, have to wait until later today.

[@joshzerbe6043]

I was just thinking yesterday how much I liked your new 3D is avatar in these essays and was hoping you’d keep using it. BRING IT BACK MIKE, BRING IT BACK

[@TenkoBerry]

This is really good keep up the great work Mike 👍

[@jimbo2947]

In another world, Fallout: The Frontier is released even more half-baked due to lack of development resources and instead Fallout: New California got those more permanent modders instead. This is the good timeline. We're in the bad.

[@Josh-jw3go]

Then those same degens shoveled their fetishes into fnc instead

[@Dragonwolf920]

There is a trend in the fallout NV mod community were big quest mods or series have lackluster ending, most notably, Frontier, New California, and (unfortunately) the sumguy series, New vegas bounties 3 and it whole premise kinda taints the whole thing, though some of it is rectified in The Better Angels. I haven't played the New Reno quest mod series yet so i have no clue how that one will turn out

[@The_Kentuckian]

The music is one of the high points for me. I've listened to the playlist on Spotify a few times since completing the mod.

[@Hailix4240]

Oddly enough I kinda liked how all the companions are shitty people. Completes the whole “ragtag band of misfits” vibe. Seeing them in New Vegas was really cool, seeing how their lives played out. Extra satisfying seeing Kira get what she deserved

[@casket_05]

Love this format Mike

[@zk0rned]

If you can make a playlist with the creepy teddy playthrough would be nice the comedy was perfect and I'm new to your channel and wanna binge the whole series, also the ending was like super jarring to me the parasite thing was out of nowhere and I was like uh tf? But the rest of it was amazing

[@KrutchesRDH]

The beginning changed so many times, I remember trying it several times in the beginning, this recent time I was dreading the dream sequence and bam it was removed lol

[@DR.ExE7]

I really wish the Enclave had their own unique quest. But hey at least we can side with the Enclave unlike some mods that shall not be named

[@oliverhendrix8176]

32:48 I wouldn’t say that’s a logic inconsistency given that in Fallout 2, Frank Horrigan was even more mutated and he still was going on about how he was going purge the wasteland.

[@randomguyblank1616]

Love it or hate it this mod pioneered something for FNV, the game sized addon mod, which currently only has two but there's actually more being worked on right now, New Mexico, The Odyssey, and Revelation Blues, and more I've probably forgot to mention. Its not perfect, in fact one could argue that the sheer scope of these mods detracts from the experience. The Frontier has a lot of lessons in its failures, from its development, to what it actually put out. On the other hand Fallout New California does some things right that mod authors could learn from. One of those being, having the option for the player to absolutely bugger everything up, sure some people might reload from a save but some people might continue on the path they created. I'm reminded of a TTS line that goes something along the lines of "Magnus we may have screwed up this campaign, but we screwed it up of our own accord. It is something that is distinctly ours and that's what makes it worth fighting for."

[@butcherybutcher8868]

Your channel deserves so much more views than it currently has

[@aeven13]

The graphs! The diagrams! Chef's kiss!

[@drink__more__water]

Yeah, that quest flow chart was great. Good work Mike!

[@SilencedP2P]

I recall having this when I played it, my computer kept having issues and more importantly, NONE OF THE COMPANIONS WERE FUN. I LIKE GOOD, FUN COMPANIONS WITH FUN STUFF TO DO AND STUFF TO SAY. THEY WERE ALL BLOCKS OF WOOD!

[@Magensson]

I think Fallout New California/Project Brazil was one of my first experiences with large scale modding other than the New Vegas Bounty series, But I'm glad to see this review of it.

[@myopiniongoodyouropinionbad]

I loved the opening vault scene. Thats hiw a Vault should look. Kinda fell out of it once I got to the first settlement.

[@ANominalSnowman]

No raging Zach commentating? Ive notified that proper authorities... Anyways, I really enjoyed my few playthroughs. The only things that really bugged me was the Japanese character, it makes no sense that anyone would understand that in the wasteland. I also didn't care for the hissing raiders, some of the cartoony characters like the snake raider leader and the viking raider leader. But overall I found it to be pretty fantastic. I don't agree much with the idea that you're railroaded down the same quests and that it is a bad thing. FNV itself can be very similar between the mid game where you ally the same 6 or whatever factions to fight for whatever major faction you choose. I know everyone complains about the really strange FEV evil ending where you join the mutants but I like the general idea that the Master's plan actually ended up working out in some strange body horror-esque manner. Floating flesh eyeballs in space was a bit far fetched but it is Fallout at the end of the day. Outlandish sci-fi is part and parcel. I also liked the non-canonical prologue to the courier. But the most disappointing part of it was trying to break the 4th wall explaining how you can reload to a previous save and you never actually die. It's an utterly fantastic mod. And having spent all my teenage years moddding Fallout 3 and NV I know how much work went into this and how low the bar is for most mods. Aside from some directional choices I would have done differently and some corny kind of childish stuff that somewhat reminds me of the Trochili from The Frontier, I'd say this is one of the if not the best major mods for FNV and probably top 10 ever for any game. Lastly, I think the overall consitency is reflected in the incredibly small team. Where The Frontier failed to me is too many contributors and not enough supervision and tough love higher management saying some contributions wouldn't be appropriate. The Frontier was all over the place and it felt very unfocused and like the skill level of the various contributors varied dramatically and the team would take any and all skill willing to help. But there was nobody to be the bad guy and say this is unacceptable or poor quality content. Anyways, it's a great mod and it must be taken into context, it's completely free.

[@morgalorga1987]

mikeburnfire out here making video essays??? yoooooooo hype

[@aidenchilds5478]

I’ll never forget my first playthrough. I used robco certified and some other tech based goodies I can’t remember that I added to give more things for the nerd playthrough. As someone who played through it back when it was project Brazil, it was fun to get to a certain point in the game and put in the bug report that a certain Orion can be recognized by their chest from a wild wasteland trait that used to be in the base game. Getting stuck on Elsdragon, and spending time trying to make the game trigger the next stage of the quest due to killing him in an odd spot. Such a fun game. Fallout new California will always be my favorite mod of all time.

[@maxicoon5855]

Awesome break down. Also you narration voice has gotten a lot smoother and more natural awesome work.

[@joshuas9]

That wild waste land check in the talk with father still cracks me up XD

[@Genjinaro]

I enjoyed it. Ben's edgy vibe & Kira weren't my favorite bits but I liked it.. I feel like they could've peppered more side quests in those random world areas. The music (ambient/battle/opening) for the mod was great, my favorite from any mod to to date.

[@its_renji8429]

I have this mod downloaded right now. I absolutely love new California and whenever I start a new play through on new Vegas I’ll pick the new California start just because I love it so much

[@daemonredfield3211]

I've played through this mod 4 times. There are many aspects I liked, though there were many flawed. I usually went Revanchist because it had the most content, though I wish there were a way to do Revanchist without betraying the NCR at the end. I wish it went through a few more iterations; I really wanted to do a Enclave play through with the new Dakota companion they were working on.

[@Jimboh1637]

I think New California does a better job being tonally consistent with it's story’s and premise while still feeling like fallout compared to the frontier which just goes off the wall with it's tone, aesthetics, mission structure, etc. I say it's a good mod.

[@MLPDethDealr32]

iTs more in line with Fallout 1, 2, and New Vegas.

[@darkash900]

you are a very pleasant to listen to person

[@kickerz7914]

I've only recently played New California, around the same time as this channel did actually. Almost every second was great, no matter what hiccups there might've been. The stories were really in depth and actually felt quite foreshadowing of the New Vegas main story as well with all the hints and conversations you can have that parallel the main game. NCR is definitely I think the best written story of the bunch and felt the most right moving into NV and I love how each story tied into the start of NV really well. Whilst I was taken aback initially by the Brazil revelation, honestly it didn't seem too out of place if you really consider some of the wacky things already in Fallout. It didn't bother me and kind of helped the start of NV too, surviving a gunshot to the head. A lot of the characters were really engaging too which felt so refreshing from mods. Bragg, Elsdragon, Silverman and Duville all captured you with their performances and gave you genuine reasons to get behind them to some degree. Like this video says, the voice acting of basically every character was top notch and comparable to the base game. The worldbuilding had ups and downs, locations were really well designed and unique! We just needed more of them. With that in mind, the NC Overhaul mod primarily focuses on adding lots of extra locations and turned the NC map into one that gives exploration to rival that of Fallout 3. Exploration became outstanding and surpassed NV with what both mods offer. NPCs in general were sometimes just filler but that didn't detract too greatly for the overall experience. Armor and weapons were really cool to add into NC as well with lots of awesome new designs and options. My biggest upset was in trying to take as many with me as I could into the base game! Finally companions were interesting, while I felt they were a bit incomplete, what we did get was strong. Also seeing these guys 20 years later in NV was actually really heartwarming and it really felt like you'd reunited with old friends! I think I'd confidently say that this mod is the best large scale mod available for New Vegas and it really tries its best to deliver an authentic Fallout experience. I find the only mod(s) that rivals my enjoyment of this would be the Someguy Series. In fact I'd heavily recommend having both of these mods as almost a little saga of how the Courier develops from Vault 18 all the way until Frost Hill and Hoover Dam.

[@DSFARGEG00]

If Chevy's hypocritical anti-mutant sentiment is an inconsistency, at least it's a consistent inconsistency. It recalls Frank Horrigan in Fallout 2, who is also a mutant - and a cyborg besides that, because his mutations are so out of control they literally have to be kept mechanically in check. I imagine this is a deliberate callback to Fallout 2, though you can at least explain Horrigan's hypocrisy with the fact that he is canonically a dumbass.

[@BrandanLee]

Chevy and Bragg are both true believers - Chevy far more cynical than John. They genuinely believe mutants are a threat to bringing America back and reclaiming the world for humanity. Part of that is disgust at what they are, hidden under the surface. They hate what they are, but use it for their goals. They are fully aware of what will happen to them when they win.

[@T1ttyLedz]

So I remember hearing about this (along with a hell ton of other mods for NV/FO4 over the years) this is one that i remember i was excited for before i burnt out on fallout a bit. so its kinda sad to hear this didn't really become some amazing thing, but it seems to (for the most part) sound like a little mod worth playing.

[@bastiisalive]

Col Bragg was really something, never gonna forget him

[@marzh2517]

I recall the banking system was bugged in the final version of the mod where you lose money instead of earning interest so you'd never end up getting quest where you're actually supposed to have your money stolen, there is a fix for it on the nexus i believe

[@zombieslayer02gjustzombies85]

I do think the best thing about this mod is having the ability to continue on into new Vegas proper afterwards seeing how on normal or higher it’s still a fairly slow leveling up even if you have a really smart high exp and skill points build to get to 50, where it’ll still be a midrange chance to make it there before beating it (you could probably even attempt to do it without changing up the weapons you got from California)

[@MrSpartan993]

This was really nice.

[@andymarquez971]

I actually enjoyed this mod and your video tbh. I know it does have its issues like you said but I mean its a basically a large free uncompleted dlc. Watching this made want to play it again so ima go download it real quick 😅

[@dreamingflurry2729]

That done already? Damn, missed that - I am into total conversion mods, but most of the ones I've heard about are still in development (some have been for 10 years - sure, the devs are people who make the mod in their freetime, but still 10 years is quite a while!)...hm...sounds like a good reason to boot up Fallout New Vegas again (love that game! Sure I was never able to get all those graphics improvements to work, but it is still among the best RPGs out there, especially since it has interesting factions, very good companion characters, great DLC and good endings that were truly different - unlike Fallout 3/4 and Mass Effect 3!)

[@itsjustin8295]

seeing a new mike video is like YAAAAAY WHO WON THE LOTTERY I DID!!

[@danielsurvivor1372]

20:38 Wait no way I remember there was a scientist dude that also gives side quest (I watched Many a True Nerd Let's play and remembered that guy)

[@teoteous]

Honestly, this mod would be improved if other people could make their own mods to fill in the gaps. Add content to the empty wasteland.

[@DarthVinatiss]

Based on what you've said this game seems kinda like an opposite of NV, where the choices you make in NV don't really open anything up but they have an effect on the different end slides and interact with each other(which sheriff you get for primm interacting with the faction you choose for instance) and NV has many end slides, but this game has a lot of different outcomes for quests depending on your choices and build but the end slides are very similar. For example if you help the 1st recon in NV you can't use them to help you storm red rock(which I feel like this mod would allow you to do) but they can help forlorn hope and have different ending slides( whereas in this game they wouldn't be mentioned at the end)

[@DarthVinatiss]

Basically in this game a lot of your choices affect how you can resolve quests or what quests you can get but they don't affect the ending, whereas in NV I feel like your choices don't affect the quests you do but heavily effect the endings you can get.

[@Ratty524]

@@DarthVinatiss there are quests that open up depending on skill checks (notably the quest with Joana at Gomorrah) but they are few and far between.

[@GTRFREAK17]

Even though they didn't get to where they wanted, they still deserve considerable respect and applause for what was accomplished with the resources they had. Definitely going to play it now after hearing your perspective Mike.

[@drakecurry217]

Love this mod to death. Bit of a gimmicky main story but has a great way of integration of player stats and perks in gameplay. Also i think if youre gonna do cutscenes in fallout this is how you do it. Has alot of the flaws and amazing qualities as the frontier(also the music sllllllaps)

[@bayraindavis6277]

And it was all left on the cutting ro- Wait wrong channel. Great video

[@RecoilGunnerStudios]

The companions also show up in the main game too! If they survive.

[@davidiceberg2744]

I really hope we'll get to see Mike do a similar Analysis of Enderal: Forgotten Stories which is a free RPG made with Skyrim assets.

[@joevenespineli6389]

You two could make these kinds of videos monthly or so, either for large expansion sized mods or games you love (or hate).

[@Not-Great-at-Gaming]

I completely forgot I played this a while back, until watching this video.

[@mwalsh616]

New California: The Nerd Review was great! Can’t wait to hear The Jock’s perspective.

[@BigHighWarGodBandos]

Brazil was such a good song,thank you martin pervus

[@durandol]

The only thing I could think about with that computer is being reminded that it has the same voice as Tuis from the old Space Engineers Group Survival.. thingy.

[@13thprotector64]

You should do a video like this for each very big mod yall play

[@aidenmurdoch]

I clicked on this so fast. Love these types of videos.

[@roberthill5805]

FONC was an interesting go through since it had to rely on a story of its own making instead of building on prior events. I did find the endings to be a bit meh, but also found people holding it up to the standards of a single story questline or to FONV a bit absurd. Watching you guys play it made me go back and go through it once, with about 4 abandoned playthroughs.

[@GoldLuminance]

I don't know if I'll ever play this again on account of the direction its story took, but something I will defend is that this game has phenomenal atmosphere and single-handedly convinced me that Fallout 1 and 2 could feasibly be remade in the modern engine and still retain their tone and asthetic. I love the main NCR town especially.

[@megloen2995]

4:03 the battle there took so many hours to complete, they just keep coming

[@joejo956]

Zach: This mod sucks. Mike: I like this mod, it’s interesting.

[@squidfestMods]

New California was interesting for me. It was the first time I tried a full overhaul/fan DLC of New Vegas, and I remember the excitement I felt playing it for the first time. For me, it perfectly captured the tongue-in-cheek nature of much of the series' humor, and the set pieces were excellent (even if they ran horribly on my old PC) as well as the interactions. The evil choices never veered into the Fallout 3 level of hyperbolic bullshit, they all stayed rooted in the key context that evil is not done for evil's sake. Even low-karma options in New California make some sense. The fact that it's not an all-or-nothing good vs. evil is a massive point in its favor. A lot of criticism of this mod falls into some of the territory of the criticism of the Frontier, and I think it's for a very similar reason: people get very invested in these games, and when a mod challenges the scope of the expected canon, it isn't seen as "an interesting idea", it's seen as "ignorant and/or cringe." There is a line by the Father that you can get with Wild Wasteland that genuinely redeemed this and the Frontier for me, because it perfectly encapsulated my beliefs towards RPGs in general: "Damn the Lore, Vault Dweller! Let's live dangerously!" (not a direct quote). That perspective, of embracing "having fun and seeing creativity" over strict adherence to the lore, has been my approach to everything, from TTRPGs to Fallout mods themselves. People seem so married to the idea of what fiction MUST be, when the ultimate goal of these mods is to entertain and to express. It isn't supposed to be a final word on the lore of the world, it's a fun scenario to experience the talent of creative people and their ideas. I want this preamble to stand testament that I unironically love New California. Before I ever got involved with the Frontier, I was a FNC fan. To this day, I have mad respect for the talent in making some of the genuinely incredible spectacle and inspired map designs. I'll never forget the mire of flesh in the Father's domain, or the caverns of luminous fungus beneath Athens-Tec, or the simple adobe town of the NCR. Now, I do have critique. For starters, the conflict between the companions you can get is under-developed. I don't really know why Kira hates Jenn, nor do I understand why within the span of 12 hours, these people who had a cordial life in the Vault together are at each others throats. Yes, a stressful situation to be sure, but I feel like the tonal shift between Kira in the Vault and Kira outside is breakneck. This has been beat to death, but the Japanese Shi lady was thematically and creatively unfitting for the universe. Where did she get the armor? Where did she learn to paint her face like that? Some of the other medieval-adjacent Raider groups are explored in their demeanor (Vault Vikings, for instance), but the fact that she is a random Japanese-speaking samurai with kabuki face paint and a katana, and is supposedly a member of the SHI, WHO ARE CHINESE, is so absolutely out of left field that it takes me out of the story more than the mutant stuff ever did. The vast majority of the Raiders are actually really well written. Seeing the cultures, the way their mythos and style came to be from their tribal roots, and how their adjustment to post-apocalyptic motifs came around, all was really inspired. That being said, Elsdragon and the other "raider" raiders brought what could be a really interesting commentary on the morality of a post apocalyptic world down in favor of making a Mexican Vaas from Farcry 3. It infuriates me that so many of these characters, who you can get to know their histories and cultures and seek audience with their tribes, are sidelined for the stereotypical "bad guy raider in a leather jacket." One of the strongest aspects of New Vegas was making the "raider" faction led by a well-read and calm-spoken tactician with aspirations of establishing something more than just a free-for-all kleptocracy. I feel like Elsdragon falls back on too many Mad Max tropes to really feel like a fresh character. From a purely pace-focused standpoint, I really didn't care for the Raider ending, where it's a frantic scramble to fight waves of super mutants in specific locations. Perhaps if the player had to employ more tactics with the way they progressed from battle to battle, with consequences for being too late to certain areas, it would feel less like a bullet tax. Storming the base also felt weak, as Super Mutants are both less visually and tactically interesting than other factions in my opinion. I really liked the Aztec-inspired stuff and the secret puzzles, and it really bummed me out to find out that there really isn't anything to that beyond them being there. I wish to know the ancient secrets of the Corn. Overall, I love FNC and I feel like it does a lot of what it was trying to do, but falls short in ways that I can't overlook entirely.

[@TheZamaron]

Despite it's problems I like this mod as it gives some back story to the Courier. But man if things were better this could have been part of an awesome 3 arc story for New Vegas. NC as the prologue, New Vegas the meat of the story, and Frontier (If it wasn't so problmatic) as an expansion for the NCR-Legion war going on. Coupled with the official DLCs enhancing it better.

[@Kavou]

I wonder what this sign does there at 4:20 like how are you supposed to travel from California to Athens in Greece. Would be a cool idea to see that if you had some perk that would let you see crazy stuff like that.

[@RuSosan]

_Athens-tech._ America has a ton of locations named after "old world" ones. So it's just Athens, California. Not Athens, Greece. Of course you could've been making a joke there buuuuut text doesn't convey tone or body language to indicate sarcasm sooo, meh.

[@Kavou]

@@RuSosan Nice did not knew that.