“Claire, with all due respect, what the hell did I just play?”
It’s the Spring of 2024, and one of my best friends, Kasey, has been sucked into the wonderful world of Fallout. But unlike most fans, Kasey got into the franchise via Amazon’s incredibly well-produced Fallout television show. Naturally, she fell in love with the Wasteland, and immediately wanted to hop into playing the Fallout games, too. I’d suggested the most recent non-MMO in the series, Fallout 4, which was released in 2015. Unfortunately, despite enjoying some aspects of the game, Kasey was disappointed
I’ll be honest: I hate Fallout 4’s story. But Kasey isn’t much of a gamer, so I figured starting there was our best bet, rather than throwing her into the deep end with Fallout 76 when she’s never played an MMO in her life. Certainly, Fallout 4 would keep her attention better than the older games, which are fantastic but in desperate need of a fresh coat of paint. So Fallout 4 it was. Unsurprisingly, she hated the bizarre conclusion of the main story and the overall slog of constantly babysitting settlements.
“The show is better than the game,” she added. “I’m sure that’s blasphemy in the circles you run in, though.”
I tell her she’s not entirely off-base, but she also raises an extremely valid complaint:. As it stands now, some of the best Fallout games are nearly impenetrable for the influx of new Fallout fans who watched the show but aren’t dedicated gamers who are willing to overlook things like ancient graphics or slightly clunky controls. In short, it’s a bad time to be a new Fallout fan.
