Fallout: Where Bethesda Went Wrong

The Road To Fallout 3

Following cancelled projects, the failure of spin-off title Fallout: Tactics, and various production problems that led to the cancellation of a sequel to Fallout 2, the series would eventually fall into Bethesda’s hands after they acquired the Fallout IP from Interplay in 2004. And after Interplay failed to produce an online Fallout game (that’s right, Fallout 76 wasn’t the first attempt), a legal battle would see Bethesda gain full control over the future of the Fallout series in 2007.

Enter Fallout 3.

Moving from an isometric camera to a fully 3D world that players could freely explore, Fallout 3 heralded a new chapter in the series under Bethesda’s banner. Fully immersing players into a post-apocalyptic Washington, the latest game contained many of the notable characteristics and quirks that made the previous titles so endearing from its retro-futuristic aesthetic, reoccurring factions, and a laser focus on roleplaying and player choice while its shift to real-time action and gunplay marked this entry as something new.

For many players, this was their introduction to the series and, given Bethesda’s earlier success with Oblivion in 2006, they were for all intents and purposes the undisputed champions of RPG games at this time.

The series only got better with the release of Fallout: New Vegas two years later, a game that’s frequently hailed as the best Fallout game ever made.