This also ties back to the survival aspects I mentioned earlier, because I also felt like equipment was much more important in Fallout...
Pretty much agreed with everything and this paragraph is probably why I am picking Fallout and (partially) TES3 for I like the opposite than you and OP, and both sides are valid. My journey is of sharp spikes of interests when I find a new shiny thing or mechanic, even if it's not my speciality, rather than a smooth gradual progression that puts an accent on a character you nurture. On that distinction, it sound like playing the mechanical part of an RPG like an arcade\action game.