Legion said: The only real way to start FO4 out on the right foot is by using an alternate start mod. Start Me Up specifically edits the main quest dialogue to create the illusion that you're a random adventurer tracking down a missing child rather than a father tracking down his son. You even have to visit Vault 111 on your own time to start the story quest. I haven't finished the main quest on the alternate start yet, but when I do, it'll be with the Brotherhood. I doubt it'll be a perfect ending, but I expect it to work better than FO4's default ending.  Thanks, I'll look into this mod. Maybe with the no voiced protagonist + full dialogue mod Fallout 4 becomes more palatable to me. I (still) want to enjoy the game, somehow.

Ever since Fallout 4 was released, I've never uninstalled it, even if I don't play it as I had hoped I would before its launch. I have 204 hours on it according to Steam, but I've only ever finished the main quest in one playthrough and gave up the game entirely in all the others before finishing either the main quest or any other meaningful thing. Never touched the DLCs either. One of the main problems I have, after the voiced main character that forces me to play as a very specific kind of white guy (city family office man that doesn't sound at all like the badass veteran I want to make. Even if I make that veteran a white guy, he's not the "right" kind of white guy for the main characters' voice, you know?) is that I can't really justify doing anything else than looking for my son. How could I? It's my son, stolen and lost in this effed up world with giant roaches and zombies after some bloke just shot my wife in the face. An ancestor of Brahmins to cut the wall of text. Other Bethesda-made and published games always leave some kind of "opening" for you to roleplay. In Skyrim, it makes sense that you want to prepare before commiting to the dragon-hunting and the fulfillment of your destiny, or hell, you can just warn Balgruuf and leave Whiterun for the world, never even beginning the main quest. In Fallout 3, you can roleplay as a dick-head punk-rebel son that doesn't really care about dad and becomes disillusioned with the promises and pleasures of this brave new world, especially after learning that this whole sealed Vault thing was never really a thing at all. Maybe after your dad leaves you can blame him for screwing up completely with your nice little life in the Vault and your childhood sweetheart Amata, and go down the path of moral depravation. In Fallout New Vegas, you're even more free. Do you want to go looking for revenge and to fulfill your contract? Do you want to try and get as far away from the man who shot you? Do you simply not care and just give up your job as a Courier after seeing how dangerous it is, maybe taking up bounty hunting to learn how to protect yourself in this unforgiving world? In Oblivion, you can leave the prison, take the message to the Priory and go on about your way. You can also just leave the sewer and forget all about it, maybe try and sell the Amulet of Kings? You can play crazy and go straight to the Shivering Isles while the world around you falls apart. In Morrowind, you're a prisoner who leaves the boat and register at the local office. That's it, you're free. How can you do the same kind of thing in Fallout 4? Even some of the main quests' branchs I find hard to follow. Unlike New Vegas, where you could logically go with either Mr. House, the Legion, the NCR or Yes Man, in Fallout 4 I find it very hard to go with the Brotherhood, the Minutemen or the Railroad against your son, even if I, personally, would prefer the Brotherhood to all other choices just like I prefer Mr. House to all other choices in Vegas. This post was edited by Mr. Edd at November 12, 2018 1:10 PM EST

1. No voiced protagonist. 2. A new lead writer. 3. More faction quests not connected to the main quest and more "standalone" and "independent" quests, catering to various playstyles and builds. I think Bethesda can manage the rest.

I've debated with myself if I should write why I'm not into 76. I won't, because I don't want to sound too grumpy. But I'm with Legion.

Bloody faithless Imperials getting my God kicked out of site polls. No Talos? Kyne it is then.