Fallout 3 Finished in Less Than 24 Minutes for New World Record

As an open-world Bethesda game, Fallout 3 is one of those games that provides you with a huge number of options in terms of how to play it. As it turns out, one of those options is to blow through the whole thing in about the same amount of time as it takes to watch an episode of South Park or cook a piece of chicken.

As the above video (via Kotaku) demonstrates, speedrunner BubblesDelFuego managed to complete a run of Fallout 3 in just 23 minutes and 55 seconds. As an "any percentage" run, the only real objective is to make it to the game's ending in as little time as possible. 23:55 is reportedly a world record for Fallout 3.

If you watch the full video (it won't take long!), you'll notice some unusual techniques for getting through the game so quickly. As detailed in this FAQ on Fallout 3 speedruns, these include pushing NPC characters along so that they reach their destinations faster and skipping dialogue by using quick saves and quick loads.

In other words, the run you see above will likely look a great deal different from how the game ordinarily plays. Perhaps most notably, at least in my mind, is how effective running in a mostly straight line can be--it sure does make those well-equipped Enclave soldiers look like a bunch of doofuses.

You can keep track of the top times for Fallout 3 speedruns in this document. You likely won't see BubblesDelFuego setting many new times, as the description of this world record video reads, "Pretty solid, I won't try to improve unless something big is found, or if the record is taken by some good competition."

For more mind-blowing speedruns, check out Dark Souls II being completed in 20 minutes or the original Super Mario Bros. being tackled in less than five. Let us now if you've ever attempted one before in your gaming career in the comments below.

Chris Pereira is a freelance writer for GameSpot, and you can follow him on Twitter @TheSmokingManX
Got a news tip or want to contact us directly? Email [email protected]