The first episode of Fallout Season 2 just released on Amazon Prime Video, with fans of the franchise no doubt flocking to it and celebrating the early Fallout reviews that paint its strong continuance. Indeed, some fans will no doubt flock to the games too, like Fallout 76‘s Burning Springs update or the show’s setting of titular New Vegas, but many are awaiting news on Fallout 5. Fans know it is coming after The Elder Scrolls 6, which is years out, so it’s hard to say when they’ll be able to play Fallout 5. Howard dropped some new information in a recent interview that at least sheds some light on the highly anticipated game.
In fact, it seems Bethesda has been quite chatty in recent weeks. A few Bethesda developers recently gave a small update on The Elder Scrolls 6, saying that its development is still progressing, but there’s no internal time pressure because they want to get it right. Some work on Fallout 5 is likely being done in tandem, especially because Howard revealed where it’ll take place on the timeline.
Fallout 76 May Have Opened a Pandora’s Box That Fallout 5 Can’t Close
Fallout 76 broke new ground for the Fallout franchise, and this means that Fallout 5 can’t walk back the steady pace of progress.
In a recent interview with BBC, Howard was asked if the TV show would have any impact on Fallout 5. “In short, yes,” Howard said, before continuing to say that “Fallout 5 will be existing in a world where the stories and events of the show happened or are happening.” This timeline is very important. As fans know, Fallout 76 is the earliest game in the franchise, taking place just a couple of decades after the bombs dropped in 2077. The flip side of that is the Fallout show, which is canonically on the complete other end of the spectrum. The conclusion that can be easily drawn here is that Fallout 5 will be the latest set game when it releases.
Fallout Game/TV Timeline
- Fallout 76: 2102-2105
- Fallout: 2161-2162
- Fallout Tactics: 2197-2198
- Fallout 2: 2241-2242
- Fallout 3: 2277-2278
- Fallout: New Vegas – 2281-2282
- Fallout 4: 2287
- Fallout TV Series – 2296-2297
Based on Howard’s comment, this means that Fallout 5 takes place no earlier than 2296 and could easily stretch into the 2300s. Given that Fallout 3, Fallout: New Vegas, and Fallout 4 all proceed down the timeline, this may not be too surprising, but since Fallout 76 takes place so early on the timeline, it may have been thought that Bethesda didn’t want to leave the 2200s. Given the locales change in each major game, it could have been placed anywhere—especially after Fallout 76 took place so early—but it’s nice to know this timeline progression is continuing.
Furthermore, it’s worth noting that the Fallout timeline extends well into the 2900s. Events set after the TV series are predictions or strange little hints, not meant to be taken all that seriously, but the 2300s could just be the first step in a new century for the game. In fact, taking place around 2299 and 2300 would be an interesting plot point if done right. But some notable predictions or events include Vault 101 suggesting the United States would be habitable again by 2377, Mr. House’s prediction that he could colonize other planets by 2381, a sonic invasion in 2910 is repelled thanks to the Courier’s actions, and 2997 is the year that Vault-Tec predicts its Vaults and technology would cease to function. That’s probably propaganda, but it’s still interesting.
“Fallout 5 will be existing in a world where the stories and events of the show happened or are happening.”
Ultimately, none of that may matter to Fallout 5, but it does mean that each game and the TV series could continue to flesh out future events. Here’s hoping for a good 2300 anyway.
- Video Game(s)
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Fallout, Fallout 2, Fallout 3, Fallout 4, Fallout 76, Fallout Shelter, Fallout: New Vegas, Fallout: Brotherhood of Steel, Fallout Tactics: Brotherhood of Steel
- Creation Year
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1997
- Developer(s)
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Interplay, Black Isle Studios, Bethesda, Obsidian Entertainment, Micro Forté
- Publisher(s)
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Interplay, Bethesda Softworks
Fallout is a franchise built around a series of RPGs set in a post-nuclear world, in which great vaults have been built to shelter parts of humankind. There are six main games, various spin-offs, tabletop games, and a TV series from Amazon Studios.
