This is my first playthrough and I think I have done things backwards compared to what the designers intended. I scoured all of the wasteland and did all the DLC before I even set foot in New Vegas. Now I feel slightly confused, especially from the Wild Card quests or more specifically – Wild Card: Side Bets.
I suspect that all my actions towards the factions before I arrived at New Vegas already has determined the outcome because the only thing I could say to the Yes Man was that I ignored any faction he mentioned, whether I was idolized or vilified with them. Now I have really no idea what that means or what other options I could have.
My affiliation is roughly on the good (or less evil) side (BoS, NCR, Boomers etc) and I have tried to pretty much wipe out anything gang-related (Vipers, Khans, Powder Gangers etc). I'm also currently neutral to The Legion.
Could someone explain what this quest is supposed to do?
Best Answer
There are a number of factions in the Mojave that have the power to affect the outcome of the final stages of the game and/or the ending in some way. The point of the "Side Bets" quest is to get you to interact with (or ignore) these factions, who you might not run into unless you're prompted to do so.
Normally, the NCR/House/Legion quest lines will force you to interact with these factions and gain their support (or prevent them from supporting your enemies) as part of storyline missions, but if you're playing the Yes Man/Wild Card track, there's a lot more freedom in who you deal with/kill/etc. Thus, Yes Man can be told that you wish to ignore them, since obtaining their loyalty might be impossible depending on your previous decisions.
It's certainly possible to win while ignoring all of these factions - in fact, following the Yes Man track can take you from the start to the end of the game in under a couple of hours, if you play your cards right. Having some or all of these guys on your side can make things easier, though.