I'm finding that I enjoy the game more when I don't have any companions! I explore much, much more cautiously, as well as more thoroughly when I'm on my own. Having companions seems to give me a feeling of invincibility and I move faster,w less caution.

I think if there was a mod to give me a carrying capacity of 3 X, I'd play most of the game single. There are times I can't get by w/o companions: massed Carazons (sp?), Deathclaws, etc - the companions just make good bait/shields then.

If the game didn't have all the landscape/invisible walls that force you into a fixed approach to areas, I could probably get by w/o companions by using the landscape features for advantage or avoidance. FO3 was better in this regard.

I find deathclaws and those deadly ass bugs are HARDER with a companion. I can handle them fine - but my companions get swarmed and [censored] quite easily.

I agree i was planning on probibly soloing the whole game similar to what i did in fallout 3 except i had Dogmeat with me. Plus ive heard many of the companions do Dumb things.

Companions totally ruin my fun. They'll be fun for my final playthrough, a physically lacking NCR Scientist. There should be generic companions for Khans, Legion and others. Just normal NPC's you can dress up.

I found companions to be a relative annoyance. I felt like I was looking backwards more often than not to make sure they were behind me while I was running around. Imho my next playthrough I'm not using them.

I'm playing hardcoe + very hard and so far companions are useless except for their perks.

They die very quickly, so I just tell them to wait somewhere indoors where they will be safe and carry on without them.

Combat is much more fun solo as well, although I try to visit and talk to them from time to time to activate their quests. So far only EDE's quest is activated.

I will agree that there is a certain feeling of invincibility at times with companions (mostly the Boone ED-E combo. Both have never fallen, but Veronica decided 6 Fire Geckos was something she could solo). That can screw immersion sometimes, companions can also assist immersion as well, namely Veronica in the bunker. It's nice to hear other idle pvssyr that has nothing to do with me and adds a lot of value for me.

I've not played this yet, but is it possible to not have companions? I play solo in Fallout 3 and would like to do the same in NV (I play on PS3, so no mods/console commands etc).

I much prefer to go at it alone too. The companions would have been much better had they been toned down, and allowed for group tactics to have more followers with you based on charisma so that they could also have interactions with each other. Like in FO2 when you have Vic and Sulik, Vic often says, "Boss. Sulik's staring at me again..."

ED-E holds my junk!

I like playing solo, but I think an ED-E (or dogmeat, Rex, etc) type of follower is a good compromise.

Even the Road Warrior had a dog.

Later in the game, having a bad ace little squad with matching gear is pretty rad though. If it feels good, do it.

Companions are 100% optional, although if you don't use them at all you won't get any of their quests, some of which are cool. I like the companions, but I don't use them all the time. Veronica likes to get herself killed when I have her set to melee. I actually don't mind that, though.

I'm playing with hardcoe Mode on, so trying to make sure they don't get themselves killed adds to the challenge of combat. If I can come up with a RP reason to have them along I think of them as being under my protection. I've even caught myself talking to them a few times. "Get your [censored] skates on, Vero, we got company!"

Like I said, I don't use them all the time, but I'm a role-player, so I like to use them when appropriate because it adds to my character's narrative.

idk with boone leveled up ive been able to get through alot hes saved my life a few times. but when it comes to stelth i just tell him to wait before i leave, he's worked great as a companion for me

Boone keeps getting in my way when I'm sniping, very annoying because I keep sneak critting him by accident and he keeps getting knocked out.

Veronica is an imbecile. She wandered of with all of my energy weapons and is no where to be found. :cryvaultboy:

Sounds about right for a BoS person. That kind of thing just comes naturally to those tech hoarding bastards.

Yeah I like the companions as characters but I'm really only taking mine because I want to do her quest. She unbalances the game. If we run into some human enemies she guns them down in a jiffy. But if it's a deathclaw or something it's a automatic restart because she just goes charging in and gets killed.

It's also inconvenient that the Passive mode doesn't work. If it did we could just run past enemies. I'd be able to take Scorpion Gulch to get from west to east without having to go all the way around because I can just run past the scorpions. But the companion won't do that and they get killed.

If Cass and Veronica weren't so cute, and they didn't have quests associated with them I wouldn't bother.

I will admit that with companions I dont feel the need to shoot at all. Usually the companion does all the work and I have gotten more rhan lazy. Sometimes I just leave my companion somewhere and go out in the wasteland so I don't get rusty at the game :sadvaultboy:

I agree with everything you said OP. I already got a bit of that less immersive feeling in FO3, but it wasn't nearly as bad as it is now. Maybe it was the 7 Charisma but Boone was super overpowered on Normal diff, HC mode. Veronica didn't feel much better and I felt like I missed out on a ton of experiences that were ruined by the companions. I had to restart my character and I'm glad I did. The game is much more fun to play without them. Maybe I'll try them on Very Hard one day, just to see what storylines they've got.

I found that I've spent the majority of the game solo. Companions are just added flavor, but in moderation they can really make it a more immersive experience. Veronica said she wanted to see how scattered communities were surviving, so I had her tag along to Vegas with me while I explored the various suburbs, but sent her home before embarking upon a long NCR mission. It just wouldn't make sense to march around an NCR base with a woman wearing BoS power armor and a scribe hood. I kept Raul in my party just long enough to get him home. I go back to visit occasionally and have him repair my gear, because I'm sure he gets lonely in his shack in the middle of nowhere. I may take him with me on a low-risk salvage operation, but he probably won't see the sun too often. Overall, I'd say you are right. I haven't found a companion yet that I would want to tag along for the majority of the game.

I don't use Companions outside of their quests or other circumstances such as needing Veronica for a certain task and not wanting to waste a lockpick magazine.

Ha ha. Just can't trust em'.

I'm playing hardcoe / hard with a low battle skill character so those companions can come in pretty handy. And hey, someone's gotta use all the gear I collect.

But really, the game really feels much better when solo'd. The entire atmosphere is very different. Like you actually get to play the game instead of babysitting a companion. Just kidding, but I'm sure everyone knows what I mean.

leave em at home and keep the perks. Though it is a bit strange you can ditch 'em and still benefit from their presence.

I would love to hire disposable mercs in freeside.

I do some quests with companions, mostly because I want to do the companion quests. However most of the time, they just wander around my suite.

Most of the time, I prefer to be alone in travels. But, the companions are kind of fun to take into enemy infested areas to soften things up.

My “V” disappeared for several (real life) days. Then I was in the bottom a vault swarming with ghouls when I noticed a yellow blip on my HUD, and BAM there she was. :shrug:

I haven't used a companion in fallout new vegas, i just don't want to.

I think it would ruin the fun of exploring by yourself.

I just had that happen to me - I found her, but she won't follow, just stands there now