i prefered new vegas as even when the NCR , Legion and house want you dead you still had places to go like goodsprings or the brotherhood of steel or the great khans and etc while in fallout 3 once you blow up megaton and take pot shots at the brotherhood there is literally fuck all to do beyond dlc and crying in DC as super mutants chase you with minguns

I preferred the Atmosphere and overall wasteland in Fallout 3, it seemed more of an unforgiving post-apocalyptic world with guns in worser condition and scarce ammo/food. I just felt like it lacked in faction development, like we don't get to learn much about the Brotherhood of Steel until later into the game and when you reach that point the game closes to a closing soon after.

The story of FNV was better imo, you really get to see the struggle the NCR faces with the Legion especially on their turf (Nelson, Searchlight, etc). Also the uniqueness of The Strip really gives you a feeling of "hope of a better world". I just felt this wasteland was far too tame (understandably) for my liking. I missed the eerie feeling I got crossing through the DC ruins each time and feeling the need to sneak around in case of an ambush from raiders or super mutants.

Tl;Dr Both games are good, but for different reasons. FO3 for the unforgiving Atmosphere and FNV for the more in depth story development

I prefer Fallout NV more for its mechanics, theme and freedom.

I prefer Fallout New Vegas IMO, It has better mechanics, freedom, and it stays with the original, also NV has more factions, more choices and more interesting dialogue,  Fallout 3 has the unforgiving dark wasteland theme, but NV has the same theme with Fallout 2 and Fallout 1.

Haven't really played much of Fallout 3, but I'd definitely say New Vegas.

Fallout 3 for vanilla playthrough, but New Vegas for a modded playthrough. New Vegas had better gameplay features like hardcore mode and iron sights, but vanilla Vegas was honestly very boring and very small. Don't believe me? Take a picture of the map and color in the areas that you can't access and then take another color and fill in the areas that have absolutely nothing in them(the dried up lakebeds and the river). After that, the whole map is very small and linear.

I love that in 3 you can play after the main story with the Broken Steel DLC, but I like the NV world better. 3 was dark and drab, whereas NV is colourful and bright. Also the mechanics were tweaked and the companion wheel addition was welcome. And just for the modding capabilities alone, with MCM and NVSE along with other aspects. When I first started 3 I wasn't at all interested in playing NV.....but I am forever grateful I gave NV a shot!

Fallout 3 was my first Fallout game and holds a special place in my heart. I love that game, I really truly do. Fallout New Vegas is my choice for a modded Fallout experience, 3 is just for exploring the Wasteland and taking it all back in and experience it all like it was my first time again.

I prefer New Vegas. The revenge driven story, the factions, the gameplay mechanics, the ability to play in hardcore with thirst and hunger, the settlements, the westernish atmosphere, and the mods of course. That being said, I think NV has some major flaws compared to FO3 (which in itself is a pretty much complete game). Something that always bothered me in NV was the map. It always seemed to me that the NV map is way smaller than in FO3, and that there is more unforgettable location in F03 than in NV. And the supposed war between the NCR and the Legion is more than ridiculous ( kinda like the civil war in skyrim).

Well, there a many sides that NV and FO3 better.
FO3 have better story in my opinion, better ambience and music, and i love Capital Wasteland more than Mojave Desert.
NV have better engine, more from FO1 and FO2.

So if you like both of them, i highly reccomend Tale of Two Wastelands, and story of 101st.

I like FO3's story & game world and Fallout NV's better gun play & game engine. So I decided to try TTW and now I am playing FO3 with FO4's gun play & game engine...

FO3 seemed to have a lot more locations, which I love exploring, especially the metro, I get spooked when heading down there alone XD It's hard for me to pick which is better!

i dont know i have to play fallout 3 again to say

I've got this really narrowed down actually, and it comes down to how you play and what aspects of a game you like best:
New Vegas: Heavy replayability due to massive branching endings/quests, and sheer number of quests. The world was dead, somewhat dull, and lifeless, it was wacky but everything was in the realm of possibility (no aliens) and it also had many statements about different forms of government that was very interesting, as none were the right choice. And the writing was superb. The branching DLC's were done well and well received.

3: Not much replay value, not many quests, two endings. But the world felt good, it was fun to explore, and the main quests were very straightforward and took itself seriously. There wasn't much replay value due to streamlined dialogue (Inquire, Asshole answer, Polite answer, neutral answer) The writing was not THAT great but it had its moments, quests were pretty memorable despite being fewer than new vegas. The DLC's were all received neutrally.

All and all it comes down to: Story or Atmosphere.

It's been a while since I've played Fallout 3 [Vanilla or Modded]
I played New Vegas more recently
I love Fallout 3 for the Atmosphere and setting
I love New Vegas for the choices and story
If I had to pick one, it would be New Vegas

NV for me, Fallout 3 just felt like the main story was way too quick and you had to go all the way across the capital wastes to get to rivet city which was annoying. Just couldn't get myself close to the fallout 3 lore plus not having true iron sights really bugged me. NV just felt like i can get involved in the story where as going so far away to find daddy was what killed it for me.

I think fallout 3 is better to the story and the apocalyptic world but it's a little bit more limited for the modding. Fallout New Vegas let us have more possibilities for modding , adventure and fun.
So I think Fallout New Vegas is funnier than Fallout 3.
(That's a personnal opinion)

Peace.

New Vegas was the first Fallout game I played, and I had lots of fun with it. Later i bought F3, played it like 2 hours, but I didn't like it somehow. Maybe it's the atmosphere, missing NV-Mods, or something like that. Now I'm playing Tale of Two Wastelands (Fnv+F3) and I absolutely looove Fallout 3. The landscape is muuch better made than that empty worldspace in New Vegas and the story is imo better, too. Fallout 3 with NV aspects is pretty much heaven for me