Off the Shelf Media

Bethesda holds a special place in my heart for the amount of time I have spent exploring their captivating open worlds over the years. From escaping the imperial sewers and emerging into Cirodiil in The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion for the first time, or navigating the glowing sea in a suit of scrapped together power armor in Fallout 4, Bethesda truly is the king of exploring vast open worlds. 

Up until 2018, its flagship titles focused on single-player adventure in these carefully crafted worlds. Fallout 76 was its attempt to branch off from the typical solo role-playing game (RPG) and into the world of massively multiplayer online role-playing games (MMORPGs), such as World of Warcraft and Old School RuneScape. Fallout 76 was not only a new Fallout game following the success of Fallout 4, but it offered a chance to traverse the Appalachian mysteries of West Virginia with your friends.

Simply put, it didn’t meet expectations.

Anything goes

Fallout 76 was one of the worst launches of a video game I can remember. The game felt hollow and it was the first time I had been disappointed with a Bethesda launch. Sure, they are known for having bugs when games launch, and it gives the games a certain charm at times, but that was not the biggest factor by a mile. 

This is not to say that Fallout 76 is a bad game. There were many things going against it at launch other than its own faults. Many people were expecting a carbon copy of Fallout 4 but co-op, and did not enjoy the aspects of an MMORPG that make sense in that genre. It felt like a weird new world for the Fallout team to explore, and if it’s not your style of game, it can take you out of the immersion these worlds strive to create. 

To Bethesda’s credit, and after many years of development, they have put together quite a game. It’s unique from other Bethesda titles where it scratches that itch but the MMORPG aspects make it feel a bit off similarly to The Elder Scrolls Online. As a fan of the series, I do enjoy the world building and story of the game even if it feels more of a background in this game than other titles. Running around the woods and dealing with cryptid beasts like the mothmen give it a unique vibe.

The biggest issue at launch is an issue that continues to plague not only AAA game studios but many “Early Access” games that launch these days: they sold a game that was nowhere near complete for full price. Fallout – a series that focuses on intense stories of human perseverance in the shadows of nuclear winter, had no non-playable characters (NPCs) at launch. You were exploring a dead wasteland 25 years after the bombs dropped and walking around an eerily empty West Virginia. 

Whole lotta shakin’ goin’ on

They have had over a dozen major content updates since then, including adding in many NPCs and quests to flesh out the world. The state the game is in now compared to at launch is unrecognizable. I can admire Bethesda for not giving up on this game, while also being upset at the slop that they initially released. In the middle of all this turmoil was the microtransaction and subscription-based hell that has become commonplace in too many games. 

In 2019, Fallout 1st officially launched – a monthly subscription that gave access to cosmetics, in-game currency and the use of private worlds. At a price point of $12.99, on top of the $60 empty world that launched, many fans could not believe the audacity of Bethesda. They still retained a small player base, but as a long-time fan, it felt like the beginning of the end for a great franchise. 

The launch saw about 20 to 30 thousand active players according to Steam Charts, which quickly fell down to about 8 to 15 thousand for a few years. The game clearly did not align with people’s expectations and the hype for it, and while they continued to build on it, it was seen as a massive flop for Bethesda.

Uranium fever

What really saved this game and this IP was the launch of the Fallout show on Prime Video. As part of the promotion, they made the game free for a week. They had four years to finish the game they sold to people as complete back in 2020, and the time seemed to help for about three to five months of significantly higher traffic to the game. While the numbers came back down to just about where they were before, they proved that the love for Fallout is still there, and people were willing to give it a chance. 

With season 2 of Fallout launching this December, they have announced a brand new content release for Fallout 76, featuring Walton Goggins‘ character from the show. I would certainly expect a similar spike in players as the show releases, and they may even retain more players if it is a great update. The show has seen tremendous success, with season 1 hitting 65 million viewers in the first few weeks, and becoming Amazon’s second most watched title in history. By October, it hit over 100 million viewers. 

Accentuate the positive

There is clearly still a die hard audience for this beloved franchise, and the success of the show has shown us that. Fallout 76 has been on the upswing, and may even find a way to wash that flop scent off itself with the tie-ins to the rocket ship that is the Prime Video show. The moral of this story is that Fallout is a hot IP again after many years of sliding. The launch of 76 was dismal, and while people still hold love for the earlier titles, there was serious concern about the future of the franchise. As a diehard fan, I really hope season 2 of the show lives up to the hype and continues to build on a storied franchise. 

The ultimate dream of Bethesda rebuilding this brand back to glory involves many fan theories of a surprise game release soon. Earlier this year, the studio launched a full top-tobottom remake of the The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion almost completely out of nowhere. There were rumors and leaks for a week or two, and then all of a sudden this project that took years of effort was just…out. They have proven they run a tight ship that I’m sure has many levels of non-disclosure agreements, and that they can keep a secret. 

They also know that nostalgia is a very strong feeling, and in the gaming world, the issue people have with older titles is things get a bit dated graphically. The Oblivion Remaster was such a booming success because it took a game that people adored and brought it into the modern age. Fallout 3 and Fallout: New Vegas are two games that fit that mold, and rumors have been flying around about Bethesda taking a similar approach with this. If they really nailed a remaster of that quality without a leak before they announce it, I think it would be a cherry on top of a great rebuild of the franchise. 

A couple of dates to keep in mind for any kind of news for this, starting with Fallout Day on October 23, 2025. Canonically, this day is when the bomb dropped in the lore, and what a bomb it would be to drop that they remastered a classic or created a whole new title! Outside of that, anytime around the launch of season 2 on December 17th would be worth keeping an eye on. They do love to cross-promote as proven with the success of the Fallout 76 promotion, so could be a great time to drop a surprise. 

All that said, even if nothing for Fallout gaming comes out this year, the show should still be enough. Season 1 was great, and I’m just so excited to see so many new fans enjoying all the Fallout universe has to offer. So, as we wait for season 2 to hit our screens in December try to keep your uranium fever in check with an ice cold Nuka Cola and enjoy the ride.