The only reason I brought it up isn't because I thought it sucked -- though it was slightly disappointing due to the rpg nature of the game, but vats still helped it feel like an rpg -- but because I like the exploration and questing more than the combat. By making the combat almost completely out of the way, I get to enjoy what I like even more.
I never managed to beat Fallout 3 because Bethesda is ran by fucking idiots who didn't allow you to keep playing the game once you beat the main story, but whenever I get Fallout 3 GOTY Edition for pc, I'm going all the way out whenever I play it.
Can't wait.
Next time you play Vampire the Masquerade: Bloodlines, hack the console so you get 9999 xp points, and become a behemoth. Watch the game become a hundred times funner. I'm not even kidding.