I'll be honest, I think them turning fallout into a beth game saved the series.
Saved it from what? And what worth is it saving something if you're going to turn it to something else completely (but still of the same name)?
They paid 6 million from the franchise, and from how things went one can only draw the conclusion that they paid for a prewritten setting so they wouldn't need to come up with stuff of their own and marketing privileges that come from being able to point out towards past success.
Most people that play fallout have never even heard of the series until fallout 3.
I don't see that as a problem. Fallout was never a mainstream title and always a series for the cRPG niche.
I'm honestly not seeing the big deal here. I don't care if the gameplay isn't all that deep, though it's at least deeper than Skyrim's. It's fun. RPGs should be about roleplaying, not focused on mechanics of gameplay.
But the mechanics are the things you roleplay through and with. Otherwise it is just an adventure simulation with some playpretend on top. *shrug*
That's what JRPGs are for if you fancy those, in my opinion.
No I don't "fancy" JRPG's. And I don't understand why you pulled the JRPG card out to begin with - western RPG's have had quite strong focus on their mechanical bases from the Gold Box games onwards.
But you're an original fallout fan. I know some original fallout fans who love 3 and NV, but I've seen a handful like you as well. It's to be expected.
I love how that always comes out. Makes me feel special. B)
Seriously though.
I know some too, and it is ok to like it that way. But it doesn't really change anything.
I'm a fan of the design principles that the series held (New Vegas brought some of that back, but only some) - that made the series renowned still as one of the best cRPG's ever created (and for a reason too). Back when it was news that Fallout was to be a first person game, I was among those giving it the benefit of doubt because things can be (and have been) done in many ways, and because I seriously didn't think it would sink as low as it did.