10 Video Game Prequels Nobody Asked For

6. Fallout 76

God of War: Ascension
Bethesda

Though the exciting potential of a multiplayer Fallout game obviously speaks for itself, it's tough to fathom why Bethesda decided to also make Fallout 76 a prequel.

The game is set in 2102, 25 years after the Earth-annihilating nuclear war yet roughly 60 years before any prior game in the series.

It didn't take long for fans to start poking holes in the game's prequel lore, some of which either directly or tacitly contradicted what was already established.

Most notably this includes retconning the date that Super Mutants were created, and also having the Brotherhood of Steel arrive in Appalachia almost 50 years before they actually exited their bunker.

The fact that Bethesda was forced to try and half-ass explanations for some of these issues speaks to the fact that most fans would've simply preferred Fallout 76 to be set around the time of Fallout 4.

Why complicate things with prequels which have to carefully navigate the tangled web of lore and, given the series' passionate fanbase, risk pissing people off?

However, a more current setting would've done nothing to change the fact that Fallout 76 was ultimately one of the most crushing disappointments of the last generation.

Contributor
Contributor

Stay at home dad who spends as much time teaching his kids the merits of Martin Scorsese as possible (against the missus' wishes). General video game, TV and film nut. Occasional sports fan. Full time loon.