Fallout: New Vegas is a single-player open-world RPG set in the post-apocalyptic Mojave Wasteland, where players explore, complete branching story quests, manage faction reputations, and fight in either real-time or the signature V.A.T.S. pause-and-target system. Most current players run it heavily modded using guides like Viva New Vegas to fix long-standing bugs, improve stability, and add quality-of-life features. Because the 2010 Gamebryo engine is primarily single-threaded, the game struggles with modern hardware without tweaks. Crowded areas such as the Strip or large outdoor spaces create heavy scripting and draw-call loads that manifest as stuttering, low CPU utilization on extra cores, and inconsistent responsiveness. High frame rates make manual gunplay feel far more modern and precise, but pushing past the default 60 FPS cap without mods can break physics and movement unless community tools like New Vegas Tick Fix are used. Common pain points include sudden crashes during long sessions, noticeable input lag in real-time combat, and long loading times when streaming new areas. Many builders mistakenly assume a powerful GPU alone will solve everything, but the engine rarely stresses the graphics card, making single-core CPU speed, fast RAM, and a quick SSD far more important for eliminating choppiness at high refresh rates.