So, I've been dealing with the scores of minor bugs and glitches all along (by minor I mean they weren't game killers, but some were still pretty serious), but now anytime I try to enter the Vegas Strip my game crashes and the autosave file is corrupted. It keeps happening over and over, and there is no way I can get onto the strip. I would just reload an older save or even start another character, but how do I know that it will not just happen again at some point? I've been a Bethesda fan for a long time (since the very first Elder Scrolls game) so I'm used to dealing with the occasional bug. When you make games as complicated and expansive as theirs, the occasional bug is to be expected. However, this game is a different animal entirely. I am just so frustrated and angry with the developers right now. I was eagerly awaiting this game, and went out and bought it the day it was released, but I wish I had waited. It's obvious to me that this game was rushed into release before it was ready. They should have pushed the release date back and fixed the issues, prior to releasing it. It seems like somone at Bethesda said "What do you mean the game isn't finished? Well, go ahead and release it anyway and we will finish it though updates." After the experience I've had with this game I will have to think twice before buying another Bethesda game. I'm not happy about this, because as I said I have been playing and loving their games for a very long time. But if this is the kind of quality we can expect from them in the future, I will just have to stick with playing Oblivion and Fallout 3.

I can't progress in the game because I killed that dumb debt collector at the strip... and I am lvl 27 and I am not in the mood in starting over without finishing it with this character which I completed ALOT of quests with...

Can't finish game as locked out of strip. The monorail blew up, and I cant rob the sercuritrons for anything. 40 hours wasted.
UNLESS....this patch will fix this problem, but theres no word as to what the patch will address.

I have the same exact issue. I literally just made this account about 20 minutes ago so I could post a thread about it. But you beat me to the punch and I agree completely with your opinion.
Maybe my 40 hours of game time won't be put to waste if they fix it and I don't have to restart the game.

The reason for the black screen you're experiencing is likely the completion of the quest 'Debt Collector', in which you're asked to bring back the hat of Caleb McCaffery. If you're interested in reloading another save or starting another character, do so, and either avoid that quest entirely, or resolve it through negotiation by passing a speech check.
I know the glitch svcks, and that it makes it so you can't play the game entirely as you'd like to, but for now, you've just gotta go with the work-around. :l

Can you get to Vegas via the monorail while this glitch is on?

As far as I know, yes you can.
You might not want to save in Vegas, though - there have been people getting stuck in buildings and such.

There's a workaround for this issue (not being able to enter The Strip without the game crashing), it is clearly posted in other topics so there was no need to start another one, but many people have found that getting an "old cowboy hat" (Apparently there's one at Mick and Ralph's as well as several other places) and wearing it as you enter the strip will allow you to continue your game until the patch comes out (which an employee has stated they're aware of and were working on for this patch, so it should be fixed permanently with the next patch).

I am 35+ hours into the game. I am a level 19. I was killing the deathclaws in Quarry Junction and that's when the freezing began. Long story short, I ended up performing a hard reboot and then reloading. The same thing happened over and over again. It took about 10 reloads and saves before I finally could kill all the deathclaws. I then fast traveled to vault 34 and then it froze again and again. I had enough at this point and shut off the xbox and quit. I will be buying COD: BO this Tuesday and probably not coming back to this game for a long long time. What is Bethesda doing? It's pathetic. How many other people are having this problem???

I've been having the same experience with not being able to get into the Strip. It not only freezes (and creates a corrupt auto save file) when trying to enter, but even standing near the gate too long results in a freeze. The area seems toxic.

I tried many things and found if I reinstalled the game, cleared the cache and crossed my fingers about 20% of the time I could get in via the McCarren train. If I wait too long near the station after emerging in the Strip, however, or stand near the gate to the other part of the Strip, the game freezes. I can fast travel out with no problem, so it has to be something related to the gates.