So, before I begin I want to warn everyone that this post may contain spoilers for Fallout 4. With that said...

God, I hate the main story descision. I hate having to choose one faction to help you get into the Institute only to lead to the other faction's destruction. On one hand I want to go with the Brotherhood of Steel because frankly I think they are cool....in the past two games. I loved them in both Fallout 3 and New Vegas and I feel a sense of loyalty to them. (Yes, I know it's just a game, but still I have fond memories of them.) However in Fallout 4 they seem much more heartless and...well kinda evil. I guess they are just acting on their true purpose, but still it doesn't feel right. However despite how they act I still want to be loyal.

Now on the other hand I want to help the Railroad because frankly if I was in that scenario I would help them since....well I personally believe in what they're fighting for. I know that which ever side you choose ends in the other side's destruction. This is hard.

Anyway, I was wondering what side did you guys choose, and why? Maybe you'll give me some ideas on which side seems right. For now I'll just do some side missions.

I have a an issue with the set up of the main story. But first let me tell you what I picked and why.

I picked the institute and I'm pretty sure i always will:

1) I'm a technology/science fanatic and they seem to be the most tech savvy.

2) we as humans created synths so we should be moniter them because they could get out of hand. Plus they're smarter, stronger and a few other things than we aren't. They can easily try and take over the world since it's fragile right now. Who would stop them?? NCR? Enclave? BOS? Railroad? Minuteman? (Probably watched iRobot and terminator too many times.)
Now I don't think they should be destroyed like the Bos but they shouldn't be left un monitored.
An army of cursors are virtually unstoppable. I just feel that in due time the more they grow and the longer they're left unchecked they could do some sneaky shit.
Lastly, they can blend in with humans.
So I'd rather be in control of that.

So my biggest issue with the story, is the fact that in order to join the stitute you have to basically join the Bos or The R.R and do missions with them just to meet the stitute. Unlike the other fractions, if you choose the Bos or RR you can go straight to where they're located without having to deal with any other fraction. But you can't go straight to the stitute, you have to do missions first so you kind of get attached to them then you suddenly betray them.

I lean towards the Minutemen the most due to their methods and ideology of communities networking together in order to maintain order in the Commonwealth. If executed properly, this organization can be very successful. Although I like the Minutemen, there is no denying that Bethesda really skimped out on the faction development. The Minutemen had so much potential to be fleshed out yet Bethesda just painted them as the hillbilly militia of the commonwealth. The Minutemen really lack a personality unless you mod and manually edit the faction (which I did). Overall I like their potential but dislike their quest-line.

I performed the Railroad quest-line on my first playthrough and enjoyed it. The missions were rather enjoyable however I find their ideology and visions to be just dreams. They lack any other alteriority aside from freeing synths (which can become a policy of the minutemen). In the end I felt that they wouldn't accomplish any substantial feats in the commonwealth. It seams as if the status quo would not change with the exception of synths having the status of free will.

The Brotherhood playthrough was enjoyable to and Bethesda did a good job of painting their technological superiority as well as their ideology. The Brotherhood is a brute force/direct action faction that will not stop until their objective is complete. Their ideology is understandable yet hard to swallow at times. I was able to accept some aspects of it whilst adapting to the others. If you enjoy a stricter, strong, and organized faction, then the brotherhood would be your best bet. In the end though, I questioned whether or not they had the best interest for the commonwealth in mind as they were a more authoritarian faction.

Finally I gave the Institute playthrough a go and instantly hated myself. Its not that the Institute playthrough was a bad quest-line. I just hated the constant reality of contempt and xenophobia among the factions members. For a faction that has members who once resided in the wasteland, it is interesting to watch them insult newcomers and treating them as a contaminated pleb from the wasteland. I personally felt that Bethesda could have done more with the Institute since the commonwealth is literally their puppet. Either way, the institute has the technology and the robotics.

Since your leaning towards the Railroad I would give the Minutemen a consideration. Either way your best bet is to look at each factions ideology and assess their purpose in the Commonwealth. Good luck choosing your ending!

I played all the faction's story lines and I have to say that me personally, I liked them all. It's really hard for me to say which one I liked better, I guess because I'm the type of person that can fit in the groove of whatever my character's path is in I guess? Like when I'm with the Institute, I feel like I'm the Gestapo of the commonwealth, appearing and disappearing to take out or retrieve what's rightfully ours and with cunning action, and giving myself a sense of justice for the future.

Then my other character as a Railroad agent makes me feel like the Resistance. Working underground to save a race of beings from enslavement, and being forced to to do what their masters tell them even though you have seen in-game alot of them have a sense of freewill (Which I can agree with wealthywyatt in the sense of a Terminator situation) BUT, I believe just like their are bad synths, their are also good ones to fight back.

Now my Brotherhood character is like.....hmm how how should I say...They are like the Templars of the common wealth, coming on a crusade to purge those who are unclean like a mission from God and those who deny MUST be evil and taken out, And It's pretty cool how they use Latin like "Ad Victoriam" to have a sense of history and deep roots. I have to say it is the most hardcore of the factions. (It IS the Brotherhood of course)

And then you have the Minuteman, and I agree with Limitlessness, they did seem kinda Anti-climatic and poorly planned out, BUT that doesn't mean you can't feel like a natural hero of the commonwealth with them. It's like you are reliving what made America what it is and still keeping that flame alive to do what's right. And you get to be a General of an Army in which YOU decide how big it is. (In terms of Preston's missions to save the settlements).

All in all, It's really how you feel your character would side with. And if you don't like the outcome just make multiple characters like me, that way it takes the guilt away from any faction you may have joined and gives you the chance of redemption.

TheThompsonBoss wrote:

However in Fallout 4 [The Brotherhood] seem much more heartless and...well kinda evil.

That's something a synth would say. Prove your loyalty, friend. Do it for the Brotherhood! Ad Victoriam!

I picked the BOS because I think their right. I really don't like synths, with the exception of Nick Valentine, and I felt like they need to be eradicated, I know I sound racist. If they teamed with the Institute, they could rebuild society, but they hate each other. They have the power and could take over vast majorities of land. But, I would love to see them team the Enclave, since the Enclave is my favorite faction.

I chose the Brotherhood because the Institute is the most technologically advanced faction in the game and The Brotherhood is likely the only faction who could take on on such a tech titan. While I agree much more with the Minutemen's ideology, they just weren't ready (in my opinion) to take on such a technologically superior faction with elite soldiers who can solo stomp entire fortresses of Gunners (who I've seen wipe the floor with Minutemen). Also, I see the Brotherhood searching the whole commonwealth for tech while simultaneously wiping out scores of Raiders, Gunners, Super Mutants, and Feral Ghouls, thus leaving the Commonwealth to be easily united by the Minutemen. 


As for the Railroad, they're heart is in the right place but from what I've seen they don't really care much about the people of the Commonwealth, just the escaped synths. For example, they could free some synths and unknowingly and unwittingly create the most dangerous organization of raiders ever seen in the wasteland and they wouldn't give two sh*ts, saying something like, "It's not our fault the synths decided to become raiders!". As far as eliminating them goes, I must say it's a bit harsh.

Thanks everyone for responding, I've read each respond and I gotta say you all bring up valid points. In the end I choose....Brotherhood of Steel. I just had to. I actually will try to go for all four endings. So, I decided to start with the good old BoS. Again, thanks for all the responses everyone! Feel free to keep leaving responses if you wish and tell me what faction you guys went with.

I finished my main character with the BoS, not only do I stick to their ideals since FO3 and the current BoS ideals made me even like them. Sure they may seem evil like they'd like you to kill Virgil the guy who helps you get to the Institute but everything good comes with a cost. Getting rid of synths and non humans makes them more like the Enclave but they don't just kill every wastelander that is not one of them. And I do believe if the Institute takes control of the Commonwealth, It will be inevitable for a Terminator scenario to happen.


The second faction i'd probably join is the Minutemen since basically they are the true perfect good guys in the Commonwealth.

TheThompsonBoss wrote:

In the end I choose....Brotherhood of Steel.

"Danse loved that."

And so did I! You made the right choice. Ad Victoriam, brother!

I chose the BOS well mostly because:

Fallout 4 really went away from the cartoon character bad guys/ good guys.
With the Institute they made a goal: They want to remake humanity.
they viewed the current peoples trying to survive on the surface unsuitable to continue and decided that for a more pure humanity to survive they must be removed. So, FEV, Abductions and murder... but ultimately they view these atrocities as necessary for humanity to have a future. Their advanced science would definitely ensure humanity a future.. but only the Institute Humanity. The normal people living on the surface have to be replaced/ removed.

So while their goal is for humanity to survive as a species, It will only be the Humanity of the Institute all others will be eradicated. So will you as the player be happy to see all others than the institute purged?

Now the BoS...
They are not the Cartoon-ish good guys of FO3. The whole "we must save everyone and anyone", from super mutants to ghouls (they shoot to miss them and scare them off, except ferals)
They are there to save the people of the Capital Wasteland, they just don't know how or have the means until you the player shows up. (then with the water purifier and liberty prime the final act is in motion) Essentially a force that wants to save the world, but not at the expense of a single life, an ideal goal... but largely impossible... So with FO4 BoS, they are more of a military, they are there to destroy the Institute who is reproducing the same actions as the Prewar Governments by creating FEV, the Synth Replacements (kill and replace your target), abducting people so they can be human guinea pigs for experiments (FEV). The same thing CPT Maxon was outraged to find and caused him to turn against the scientists in Mariposa.

This BoS understands that they cant save everyone, they understand that the sooner they defeat the enemy the less casualties there will be as a whole. Civilian Casualties are unavoidable in a war over contested area, but that doesn't mean that you should go out of your way to cause them. Hence why they tell you not to shoot at civilians while operating as the door gunner on the Verti-bird. They give you the task of feeding the troops by getting supplies from the local settlements... now as the player you can force the settlements to give things to you, you can charm them into giving them to you or you can pay them for the supplies. How you get the supplies is up to you, but the BoS needs them, but keep in mind that you will have to live and exist with these people for the prolonged future.

So with that said it feels like the BoS knows that war is not clean or neat or fair. That Civilian Casualties will happen, but that doesn't mean that Civilians are targets, that their right to life is to be respected. The Institute not so much as they abduct, murder and experiment on them. The institute creates organizations to validate their actions such as Commonwealth Police and their Synth Reclamation Unit found in FO3. Who show a ruthlessness to reclaim what is theirs whether they be rogue scientists or synths.

So from what I have seen from FO3 to FO4... the Brotherhood is the correct choice.
Especially now that there really isn't a cookie cutter good guy/ bad guy.

I chose The Minutemen so I wouldn't have to kill any other faction besides The Institute. Although with The BoS is more gratifying, I hated that I had to kill The Railroad so I don't regret anything.

@mpaz96
well there is a option with the Bos Where the Minutemen, the Railroad and the Bos are all ok.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OUFEeYdQnVc

But yea, this was one of the speeches from the Institute that had me pausing....

"For years now you have suspected that the institute still exists, that we are among you, it is true.
But it is not the whole truth, we're here, and we are your new masters.
Our Superior Technology represents the Future of the Commonwealth.  Today we activate our nuclear
reactor.  Ensuring that we will persevere long after the world above ground ceases to exist.  Ensuring that mankind has a future.
We have no desire to interfere in the unimportant details of your pathetic existences.  We simply insist that you do not interfere with institute operations.  To do so would result in your complete annihilation.  Rest Easy, know that the Future is out of your control, and that man kind will thrive under our guidance."

So yeah... I guess its not so much as I am anti-institute... as much as I am pro-everyone else..

@SgtSpectre It seems they also went with the Minutemen, but thanks anyway.