Maybe this is an unpopular opinion, but I genuinely believe every Fallout game has something worth appreciating, even the most criticized ones.
From the classic isometric games like Fallout 1 and 2, to Fallout 3 and New Vegas, to the more divisive Fallout 4 and Fallout 76, and even the criticized Brotherhood of Steel, to the long forgotten Tatics, I think every entry has something that makes it worthwhile in its own way your money and your time, if you are really willing to do it with an open mind.
Obviously, I'm not blind to the fact they're all equally good or that criticism isn't justified. Every game has flaws, questionable design decisions, missed opportunities, and things that could have been done better. I even agree with quite a few of the criticisms people make about certain entries, after all this opinion comes from a Fallout fan who loves to death Fallout 4, Fallout new vegas and Fallout 2 for its own reasons (and genuinely i just cant decide my favorite between the 3, because all of them are my top one for its own reasons).
But sometimes, I feel like SOME PEOPLE (NOT EVERYONE, I HAVE TO MAKE THIS VERY CLEAR BECAUSE I WAS ALREADY CRITICIZED FOR THIS BEFORE) inside Fallout community can be a little too harsh on some of these games.
Fallout 4 for example, gets criticized for its dialogue system, simplified RPG mechanics, and changes to the formula, but it also offers fantastic exploration, environmental storytelling, gunplay, settlement building, and an incredible amount of replayability, and i need to say, even in its own vanilla game, specially in its survival mode (i have about 2000 hours on it, and half of these hours are un-modded)
Fallout 76 had a pretty rough launch and plenty of legitimate problems, but the updates over the years have made it a much more enjoyable experience, and there's something special about exploring the wasteland with other people, and even if i coudn't play that much after all these years (i only have them on ps4, and honestly i just cant habdlenthe fact that i have to pay to play online) the limited amount of hours i've had with this game, i truly had some fun investing my time on it
Even the older games have their own techinal limitations, but their atmosphere, writing, worldbuilding, and role-playing possibilities are still fantastic, like my favorite older games, Fallout 2 and Fallout new vegas: both have its own technical limitations? Sure. Controls can be a little janky at times? Of course, but still its storytelling, environment, mecanics and such a lot of other things make them one of best games of my ENTIRE LIFE
And honestly, one of the things I love most about Fallout is the modding community. Whether it's restoring cut content, improving mechanics, adding quests, changing the gameplay, or simply making the game more comfortable to play, mods can help you tailor the experience to your preferences. Community-made content has also given games like Fallout 4 even more reasons to revisit them in one of the things i agree in some parts with the community, that is the lore inside the game (FEVer Dreams managed to make Fallout 4 a game with better story, with more lore depth).
And that's before even mentioning the TV series, which has its own charm and has introduced the franchise to a whole new audience, and yes, in my opinion, season 2 can not have the same charm such as season 1, but i still think it have a fun and interesting story to tell in this universe.
Personally, I enjoy pretty much every era of Fallout. I can appreciate the old-school isometric RPGs, spend hundreds of hours in Fallout 3 or New Vegas, and then jump into Fallout 4 or 76 without feeling like I'm betraying what the franchise used to be.
I don't think every Fallout game is a masterpiece. I just think there's a difference between a flawed game and a genuinely bad one.
Sometimes, I wonder if certain entries would be judged a little more fairly if people focused on what they actually bring to the franchise instead of only comparing them to their favorite Fallout, and again, its not everyone on the community, it is about some people that i think its insuferable in some kind of way, im not blind to what people complain about all games, i see the good and bad points of all Fallout media, and honestly, liking all of them by specific reasons don't make me someone with low or no standards.
I'm genuinely interested in hearing different opinions. You don't have to agree with me, because in the end, opinions are all subjective, but personally, im 100% certain that i'll die on this hill.