Fallout 3 spoilers, of course (since I know at least one other person out there is also playing it right now ;) ):

It was a busy day in Fallout 3, as I first headed down to Rivet City. I knew the bobblehead for raising INT was down there, and getting it early helps more since you then get more skill points for more levels. The city turned out to be an old aircraft carrier, and the interior is rather large and twisty. I also discovered a few other fast travel places along the way and ran into a new enemy, the rather disgusting Centaur. While there I also got a new lead about the whereabouts of my father, and picked up a new quest to find the Declaration of Independence.

But instead I returned to Megaton and defused the bomb there, having finally picked up enough Explosives skill (I have various clothes which raise skills now too), and that rewarded me with my own house in the town. Finally, I have a place to reliably store all the spare stuff I’ve been picking up. I can also outfit it with some enhancements like a workbench or a jukebox, but they’re way too expensive for me right now. It also comes with a floating robot that makes bad jokes. It has a bad habit of getting in the way, so I trapped it in a closet and closed the door.

I explored northward a bit more, stumbling across the Scrapyard and finally finding Dogmeat. Yay, doggie! I also explored the town of Minefield (filled with mines, natch), and rescued a couple of the Big Town citizens from Germantown HQ. The Big Town residents were rather grateful, and I also fixed a sentry robot of theirs and helped repel a super mutant invasion.

I’m at level 7 now and finally have enough skill points to beat ‘average’ locks and computer terminals, and I should probably start spending more points on the combat skills. I think I’ll head off and do the Anchorage DLC soon as well, as I’ve heard level 8 or so is a good point to start it.