Ok, so Fallout 4’s next-gen update finally drops this week, and, obviously, it’s not remotely close to being Fallout 5.
If you’ve been among the droves of folks returning to everything from Fallout 76 to New Vegas after enjoying Amazon’s Fallout TV show, you don’t need me to tell you that it’s been a little while since we’ve had a new Fallout game. Bethesda’s been busy with Starfield and is now moving on to The Elder Scrolls 6, but, at some point – hopefully before 2077 – Fallout 5 should be a thing.
Though, while it’s still a weird little gleam in the eye of Todd Howard – and the rest of the team at Bethesda that brings these things to life – the cool thing is that we legions of Fallout fans can all merrily sit around and think about what we might do if we were in charge of putting the next game in the series together. So, that’s exactly what I’ve recently asked a number of members of the Fallout community to do.
Without further ado, and in no particular order, here’s what they each might say if they somehow ended up in a lift – an elevator for US folks – with Todd Howard, and amid the slightly awkward small talk those kinds of encounters always feature, he casually asked them what to do with Fallout 5.
“Fallout comes to New Orleans in Fallout 5: The Big Easy. You play as The Lost One – found aimlessly wandering the irradiated Bayou close to death, with no memory of who you are or where you’re from.”
“Leading into the character creator, you gain unprecedented control over your character’s backstory, driving who exactly it was that saved you from the Bayou and giving you a unique introduction to the game.”
“Was it the Steamers? The enigmatic gang based off a still-functional Paddleboat-turned-casino? The Admiralty, based off of a derelict battleship in the city’s port? Or the Evangelists, based in the city’s Cathedral?”
“Each faction seeks outright control of the remains of New Orleans – but the key for said control is a weapon that lies deep in the Bayou; shrouded in radiation and under the stewardship of those adept in Voodoo, it’s a journey few have made and survived.”
“Your SPECIAL stats matter more than ever. Not everyone’s strong enough to use a minigun; or dextrous enough to pick locks; or smart enough to hack a terminal. Different builds will force you to adapt to different playstyles. And you’ll need to use every tool at your survival to make it through.”
“After all… The storm’s coming.”
Nikki, AKA Tunnelsnakesfool, Fallout content creator, modder, and – more recently – Fallout TV show mapping whiz
“For Fallout 5, I would love San Francisco. I feel like it would tie in really well to what was in Fallout 4, with the quest that sees you go into Kellogg’s memories, you get to see San Francisco, you get to see the Golden Gate Bridge, which is cool to know that it’s still there. I would love to see that in a main title, not just a weird, trippy memory sequence like in Fallout 4.”
“I really like the theory that there are little hints in each game as to where the next one will take place, like in Fallout 3, it was heavily hinted that The Commonwealth [may be coming]. There’s this other close area that is related and we have these androids, then they were synths in Fallout 4 and that tie-in between the two games is something I love so much, like Dr. Li coming back, Liberty Prime, everything.”
“I would want something similar, Kellogg’s storyline was so interesting, so maybe going back to an earlier time period where you can actually cross paths with Kellogg, something like that. San francisco, obviously, I’d want to see struggle with the NCR, everything there. I just want something out west but that’s selfish, I live in California, so I would love to have a title that’s out west. I just don’t think Bethesda will ever do that, because it’s so east coast focused.
“I think my second choice would be New Orleans, because I think there would be such an opportunity with what they did with Fallout 76. I mean, people don’t talk about this as much, but 76 brought in a lot of supernatural stuff that wasn’t really in the franchise beforehand – like we had a ghost in Fallout 2 and Fallout 4 – but other than that and aliens it was really limited. I would love to go to New Orleans and bring in the Creole culture and see the supernatural elements of everything. We haven’t really had a main title that’s canon in the south. That would be really cool.”
Fin, Overseer, Editing and Analytics/Backend, the Independent Fallout Wiki
“While the protagonist emerging from a Vault is a common concept throughout the series, I think it would be interesting to be put in the shoes of someone living in the Wasteland. What would it be for someone discovering for the first time that people survived in underground vaults, how would that person approach its residents? I imagine these to be interesting ideas to develop a story around.”
Vance_vampire, Overseer, Discord Lead, the Independent Fallout Wiki
“I would love to see Atlanta. Well, the south-east in general, really, but I just feel like Atlanta would be a good setting for a Fallout game.”
“I loved the inclusion of the Minutemen as the player’s personal faction in Fallout 4. An expansion of this, tied with the settlement system, allowing the player to take over non-settlement locations, collect income from faction activities, and decide what equipment their faction uses and how they get it, could be very cool.”
Kinggath, Project Manager, Kinggath Creations – studio formed by a number of creators behind Fallout 4’s acclaimed Sim Settlements mods
“I’d like to see something in the middle or south of the country, or heck, go up north to Canada and embrace winter, somewhere none of the other Fallout games have really touched. That would let Bethesda get kind of crazy with new elements to shake up the formula, introduce some more new factions to rival the Brotherhood and Enclave.”
“For example, there’s some Lovecraftian stuff that pokes its head up occasionally, they could lean into that and give us some giant over the top Cthulhu-esque monsters.”
“Wherever it lands, I do hope they keep the rebuilding theme moving forward. I loved the settlement system as it let the player have an impact on the world more so than just the spoken thank you from NPCs after quests. Obviously I’m biased, but there are some elements we put in Sim Settlements, such as your settlements attracting unique NPCs, and letting them do some of the construction, that I would love to see in the next game.”
Richard ‘Sirick’ Griffiths, head writer, Kinggath Creations
« What I’d like to see is more of a survival experience, in both gameplay and the game world as well. I’d love a more “realistic” world space to explore, where groups have adapted and rebuilt, and have believable infrastructure and development. And also, I’d want dangerous and very real threats and challenges both those groups and the player would have to contend with. »
« I suppose what I really want is a bit more grit and grime brought back to the Fallout universe! »
Taher ‘Khobis’ Chy, VO Director, Kinggath Creations
« My biggest desire is for it to lean a bit more towards that zanier nature of prior Fallout titles, those pre-Fallout 4. Just as with Fallout’s alternate take on the 1940s-1960s aesthetics – the slight wackiness of the quests and characters gave the franchise its identity. »
« It’s a huge part of what made Fallout stand out from other competing titles in the genre; adding to the memorable experiences. Bethesda wasn’t afraid to pick a very specific direction and roll with it. That’s what I’d like to see with the next one. Give it character! »
« One of the biggest categories of mods out there on Nexus Mods for Fallout 3, New Vegas and 4 is alternative start mods… over 3 million downloads alone for the Fallout 4 one. I’d love Fallout 5 for us to start out NOT as a Vault Dweller, but as teenage trader with your family in the Gulf of Mexico, part of a trading boat caravan moving goods in the Gulf Commonwealth between Florida and Louisiana. »
« New Orleans has a lot of rich culture and history to tap into, from Cajun influences in the swamps, folk medicine and voodoo, the wild parties on Bourbon Street, etc. A trade deal goes bad, your family is killed and you find yourself forced into raider life, latching on to a ‘father figure’ Overboss. After getting word of a Vault filled with loot and easy pickings, your gang bust in and things go wrong as you find yourself reliving your own worst day from the other side, looking down the gun sight at kid no older than you were. »
« So you run, you break free from that life…fleeing into the swamps, in a nightmare daze of unstoppable flashbacks, suppressed memories of a life once lived. The journey this time isn’t about finding a water chip, your Dad, a dude who left you for dead, your son or the Overseer…this journey is back to a happy life stolen from you, a journey back to yourself. In the end the choice will be revenge for what was taken or choosing redemption. »
Blubbin, Overseer, Community and Discord, the Independent Fallout Wiki
Set it in either Canada, so we can see the fallout (heh) of the American occupation – we know there are Vaults in Canada, so they can still use those – or set it in New Orleans. The way Fallout really highlights and dives into the local culture of the locations it is set in, like in Boston and West Virginia, New Orleans seems like a slam dunk. There’s so much you can do with that location. But only do it if you get House of the Rising Sun [by The Animals] on the soundtrack, otherwise there’s no point.
Solomon742, Community Admin, Community and Discord, the Independent Fallout Wiki
« Fallout 4’s gameplay paired with the writing style of Fallout 3 and Fallout: New Vegas. Set in Nova Scotia, Annexed Canada. Native people play a huge role in the story and are a major faction. There’s a large amount of pre-war Ghouls due to the ‘Halifax Explosions.’ There is a lot of anti-American sentiment due to the annexation of Canada by the US. Faction-wise, [there’s] no Brotherhood of Steel, Enclave or Super Mutants, but Vault-Tec has a presence. »
« Fallout 5 takes place in the urban environment of New York city – extensive subway networks, impossibly tall skyscrapers and wild suburbs! »
« Adventure alone or bring up to 3 friends! CAMP anywhere! Mutations and legendary perks are back! Story choices build and change the game world around you! Build your own miniature Vault! [A new game plus mode that sees] you emerge as a new Vault Dweller and your previous choices have shaped the world! »
Narratorjack, Future-Tec, Community and Modding, the Independent Fallout Wiki
« I would use Fallout 4’s loop as a basis and tweak existing systems, such as having written-out dialogue sentences and getting rid of the protagonist’s forced backstory. I feel that, if it’s well written, Fallout could work anywhere. I would probably set the next game in Alaska or maybe even Canada. »
Wana, Tech Admin, Technical Editing and Modding, the Independent Fallout Wiki
I’d love to see Fallout: New Orleans actually, and have it delve into mutations more deeply, hopefully as a gameplay element. Maybe using some of the scrapped concepts for Fallout 76, such as the Super Mutant / Molerat-Man progression, and having areas to unlock via quests by making them safer from mutagens/radiation. Hopefully also more ways to traverse and explore (jetpacks, grappling hooks, etc.) I’d like an actually overgrown Fallout 5 with dangerous flora and a mutated landscape being somewhat strange and alien.
Eric, AKA Erk, lead on Fallout 4: The Capital Wasteland modding project, also works on Fallout: Cascadia, Fallout 4: New Vegas and Fallout: Miami
The biggest one that I think would probably work would be a game set in San Francisco sometime early in the timeline, like 76-ish. I wanted to pick a time that lets the writers fiddle around without the NCR being so overbearing and [to experiment] with new factions. San Fran has some really great terrain that would make it really easy for world borders to be placed, and the area itself has a lot of ecological and geographical variety.
« There are a lot of earthquakes on the west coast and I don’t think Fallout’s used that idea before. It could be interesting if some segments like closer to San Leandro and Oakland could take some ideas from [former Bethesda artist] Adam Adamowicz’s older work. The whole earthquaked area would probably need to be one mesh of with a lot of other meshes and stuff built on top of it, it’d be hard but it should be possible. Silicon Valley is located in the southern San Fran and is totally ripe for Fallout satire. You could do a whole bunch of tech-related stuff with it. Automated cities like 76 has, unethical experiments. You know, the works. It’d be a good spot for high-difficulty encounters too. »
« The actual gameplay would probably be akin to Fallout 76’s, with its balancing to power armour and builds. I’d probably change the perk system to allow for more dialogue options. I liked that in New Vegas you could have skill checks for your build and that made each playthrough feel special. Fallout 76 kind of has this with just SPECIAL checks, but I think it should be expanded on. It’d probably be similar to New Vegas’s storyline too – I’m only sort of a writer – with the player interacting with a lot of factions and deciding on what happens for the main events. For the factions, the Shi are an obvious pick. I felt like they could expanded upon a lot and they have a pretty cool look to them. The Brotherhood seems almost impossible to avoid. They have an outpost in Fallout 2 and I think it’d be fine if they were a minor faction. »
« People like the Brotherhood, they look sick and they’ve got a cool gimmick. The rest of the factions I’m not too sure on. I’m not really the guy for that and if this *actually* got green-lit and if they agreed with me they’d give that job to someone else lol. Probably for the best really. For the engine I think 76’s should probably be best for what I would want to do. Although I like a lot of the lighting changes Starfield made, I wouldn’t know about committing to it until I got my hands on the new version of the Creation Kit. Oh, and there wouldn’t be any Super Mutants, I think. »
Rimuru_mayhem, Future-Tec, Art and Editing, the Independent Fallout Wiki
« I love Fallout: New Vegas, [though] oddly for a fan, I’m hoping the next Fallout isn’t a Fallout: New Vegas 2, but really just anything with real love and care built into it. Fallout 76 is great in terms of research, but the fact that it is so microtransaction-based kinda kills it for me. I just want a pretty camp, but everything’s got to be monetized, everything’s got to be something that can make a profit – I don’t want that. »
« I guess if I had to say ‘Bethesda, make a game here’ I’d want to see something (a DLC maybe) that explores the wasteland outside America. That, or something based in San Francisco or the Bay Area, because it’s my hometown. If that happened I’d hope they didn’t say stuff like ‘ah, also, all the cats are extinct here’, because then I would be very sad. »
