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Has the success ofFallout’s live-action adaptation left you giddy for more? Good news! you’re able to revisit the best of the game series relatively easily, and you might not even need to spend any caps to do so.
TheFalloutTV Show Is Good
Video game to screenplay adaptations don’t always go well, but the team behind Amazon’s production managed to pull off something special with the first season ofFallout. You can watch the show right now with anAmazon Prime membership, and it’s absolutely worth your time.
Falloutis faithful to the source material, packed with cheeky references, and has all the trappings of a worthwhile watch. With a good foundation of solid acting, a suitably hostile setting, and a cast of interesting new characters, the show feels right at home in theFalloutuniverse. Everything from the color palette to the occasional echo of haunting ambient music feels worthy of the series.
But don’t take my word for it, reviews are good across the board. The show has been praised forfeeling like it was made by gamers, forits clever representation of some of the game’s core systems, and for staying loyal to Fallout’sdark comedic brand of violence and political commentary.
The show succeeds at being both a worthy entry point into theFalloutbrand for newcomers while ticking the boxes that seasoned veterans expect thanks to generous lashings of familiar paraphernalia and references. The show thankfully avoids hitting you over the head with its lore callouts and feels more like a tribute than pandering to fan service.
Or maybe I’m just biased because I loveFallout. If you also loveFallout, buckle up because the show will almost certainly make you think about donning your PIP Boy and getting eviscerated by Deathclaws all over again.
Fallout 4Is Getting an Update
Fallout 4was released in 2015, making it a nine-year-old game at the time of the show’s debut. Despite its age,Fallout 4is probably the most accessible version of Bethesda’s open-world RPG. It’s the most recent wholly single-player installment, and it’s available with Game Pass (Xbox and PC) or as a standalone title (on everything, including PlayStation 4 and 5).
Set in The Commonwealth, a region that incorporates what was once the state of Massachusetts and the city of Boston,Fallout 4features a fully voiced player character, new base-building mechanics, improved combat, a robust crafting system, and some of the best visuals and world design the series has seen.
Bethesda announceda free next-generation update forFallout 4that arrives on August 08, 2025. This update features a new Enclave quest and new weapons, skins, and decorations for all platforms. It also brings bug fixes, stability improvements, and enhancement to the game’s modding and community content tools.
The Xbox Series X|S and PlayStation 5 will finally get native versions of the game, with performance and quality mode toggles that offer up to 4K resolution and 60 frames per second. PlayStation 4 and Xbox One versions will get new content and tweaks to make the game run better.
The PC update will add ultra-widescreen support and plenty of fixes to versions of the game on Steam, the Microsoft Store, and GOG. Bethesda is also adding the game to the Epic Games Store. Lastly, the game will finally get Steam Deck verification for handheld play (although “Deck Verified” can be a mixed bag).
Fallout 4made some changes to the series that aren’t necessarily to everyone’s tastes, notably to the speech system which makes it a little more difficult to predict what your character will say in conversations. The game also pesters you to build and defend settlements, but you can pretty much ignore this aspect if you’d rather.
Fallout 76Has Come a Long Way
Fallout 76was Bethesda’s first attempt at making a multiplayerFalloutexperience. When it launched in 2018, the game was rough and the reviews reflected this. Not only were there bugs and crashes in abundance, but the game felt crushingly lonely (even for aFallouttitle) due to a stark lack of human non-player characters (NPCs).
Fortunately, the game improved massively in the years that followed. Bethesda introduced human NPCs and overhauled many of the game’s systems in 2020, and followed it up with numerous transformative updates that introduce new items, locations, quests, and more. There are in-app purchases for in-game currency, but all playable content is free.
The game takes place in what was once the state of West Virginia, an area of natural beauty and hostile mutations. The game is an online multiplayer affair where you can encounter other players and team up to take on quests together. There’s also a heavy emphasis on base building, resource collection, and the in-game economy.
Fallout 76has come a long way since launch, and though it’s probably the weakest game in the series, it’s still a great way to explore the wastes with your friends. It’s also on Game Pass, so if you have a subscription for the Xbox or PC version then you can try it relatively risk-free.
Fallout 3andNew VegasAre Still Landmark RPGs
Fallout: New Vegasrepresents something of a crown jewel in theFalloutseries. Developed by Obsidian Entertainment, this follow-up toFallout 3fixes many of the problems that players had with Bethesda’s previous outing. As the name suggests, the game is set in the Mojave wasteland and features numerous Nevada landmarks including the Las Vegas strip.
New Vegasmight have the best main storyline of anyFalloutgame. The game’s meandering plot line incorporates complex choices that have real (if at times unintended) consequences. It also deftly incorporates RPG mechanics in a more tactful way than its predecessor. Though it was horribly buggy at launch, and at times even today, there’s a huge amount to discover and be engrossed by while traversingNew Vegas’sun-scorched wasteland.
Fallout 3marked the first 3D game in the series and the first Bethesda release after the game rights were acquired. Set in the Pacific Northwest,Fallout 3’sdreary wasteland was somewhat groundbreaking at the time. Though the main quest line is a bit boring, there’s plenty of fun to be had and stories to discover.
Fallout 3has arguably not aged as gracefully asNew Vegas. Your character isn’t a true blank canvas, there are some glaring plot holes in the main quest, and it’s clear that Bethesda was finding its feet in terms of which direction the series should go after the move to 3D. Even so, the game received massive praise on release and it’s not hard to see why.
Both titles feature Bethesda’s signature environmental storytelling, rich detailed worlds, scathing satire, iconic soundtracks, and melancholy post-apocalyptic vibes. The games are available on Game Pass for PC and Xbox models from the 360 through to the Series X|S. You can also play on the PlayStation 3.
Don’t Forget the OriginalFalloutGames Either
It feels somewhat sacrilegious to have the originalFalloutgames that started everything as an aside at the end, but the reality is that the original games are probably the least accessible of the bunch.Fallout: A Post Nuclear Role Playing Gamewas the 1997 turn-based RPG that set the stage for an entire series (you might say genre) of game.
Its follow-upFallout 2arrived a year later. Developed by Interplay and Black Isle respectively, these games use a top-down trimetric perspective and rendered 3D cutscenes to deliver a tactical tale of survival in the aftermath of a nuclear war. The stories told in these two titles are arguably some of the best in the entire series, and the critical acclaim they received is a testament to their standing in gaming history.
For the time, these games were exceptional. Many still hold them up today as great examples of how traditional pen-and-paper role-playing games can be cleverly ported to an interactive medium. you’re able to complete quests in multiple ways based on your character’s skills and whims, something the 3D titles aspired to but which often felt unsatisfying.
The oldFalloutgames can be a little off-putting for their dated (yet charming, and oddly period-appropriate) graphics, steep difficulty, and availability. You can buyFalloutandFallout 2for Windows on GOG, Steam, and the Epic Games Store. Combat-heavy spin-offFallout Tactics: Brotherhood of Steelis also out there.
Please Stand By
Jumping back into your favorite (or first)Falloutgame is the best way to scratch the itch left behind by Amazon’s excellent series. Unfortunately, it looks like a trueFallout 5sequel isa long way off yet.
Bethesda is currently working onThe Elder Scrolls VI, a follow-up to 2011’sSkyrim, so it’s possible we’ll see another series of Amazon’s show before we see anotherFalloutgame.
