The Fallout franchise has been around for a long time – long enough for every title in the series to generate many, many rumors. A new one is that Fallout 5 will be an Xbox Series X exclusive now that Microsoft owns Bethesda.
Another famous rumor surrounding Fallout 3, New Vegas, and Fallout 4 is that hidden within these games were vehicles the player could use to travel the wasteland faster. These rumors were, sadly, false - we’re still waiting on those vehicles, Bethesda. Every now and then though, a rumor turns out to be true; with the Fallout franchise, this is usually not a good thing.
10 Close Encounters
The first Fallout game had a random encounter Easter egg involving a crashed alien spacecraft. Shortly after the launch of Fallout 3, rumors began spreading that the player could encounter an alien in the wastelands. This was confirmed over time as the location at which a crashed alien spacecraft could be found began spreading online. The alien was dead, but players could find the incredibly powerful Alien Blaster handgun. When Fallout: New Vegas had a group of aliens to encounter, nobody was surprised since this type of encounter had become almost expected in the series at that point.
9 No NPCs In Fallout ‘76
This rumor about Fallout ’76 was one of those rumors that gamers heard and figured was true, but hoped it wasn’t. Bethesda’s idea was to have every character a player encounters in Fallout ’76 be another person playing. It’s a sound idea, but it needs to be implemented right or it will detract from the game. Many other games, such as World of Tanks, have done this successfully. Bethesda was hoping that players would fill the area with a large, thriving online community of people trading with each other – rather than everyone selling gear to an NPC shop-owner. Instead, players found themselves wandering through an empty wasteland.
8 Fallout 5’s Release Might Be As Far Away As 2022 (Or Later)
With the upcoming release of the next-generation PlayStation and Xbox consoles quickly approaching a lot of gamers are eagerly anticipating playing the next generation Fallout game. Then the rumors started flying that it might be years until the next Fallout game is made available to gamers.
This was confirmed when Bethesda stated they were focusing on The Elder Scrolls 6, and after that, they will be working on their new IP. This will be a sci-fi themed RPG titled Starfield. So, unfortunately, it looks like the rumors of the next Fallout game being years are were true.
7 Dr. Who and Godzilla
The first Fallout game had some very unique random encounters – apart from the crashed alien spaceship. When this game launched there really wasn’t much of an internet. Even without easy access to information online, or perhaps because of it, there were wild rumors about crossing paths with Dr. Who and Godzilla (in separate encounters). Many players completed the game numerous times without ever encountering either. The secret was that a character needed to have a very high Luck score; a 9 or 10 to be safe. The player then might encounter the TARDIS (Dr. Who’s vehicle) as it faded out of time, and a giant footprint left in the desert by a titanic lizard.
6 Fallout ’76 Is Online Only
You know that scene at the end of Episode III of Star Wars when the newly helmeted Vader screams out, “NO!!!!”? This was the reaction from many gamers when the rumor that Fallout ’76 would be an online-only game was confirmed. This was a signal to gamers to expect limited gameplay options, dropped sessions, and microtransactions. Players can play solo but there’s always the chance of encountering another player who turns out to be a griefer; which really shatters the RPG element Bethesda was going for. Let’s hope any “online-only” rumors about Fallout 5 turn out to be false.
5 Getting Power Armor At The Start Of Fallout 3
One of the biggest complaints about Fallout 3 was that players only got access to power armor towards the end of the game – giving players only a few hours of gameplay with their new toy. Then a rumor started being whispered about online that there was a way of getting this armor at the beginning of the game. This turned out to be true when videos of the process began appearing on Youtube. It required “glitching” the player-character through the ground at a specific spot and running halfway across the map to the Brotherhood of Steel compound – but it was true.
4 Fallout 4 Would Be Set In Boston Area
When Fallout 4 was announced the rumors regarding the game’s setting began spreading like a wildfire. Many speculated the game would be set in the southeastern U.S.; with many rumors putting the game in the “deep south” of Louisiana or Mississippi. This made some sense.
The first two games took place on the West Coast of the U.S. Fallout 3 took place in the Washington D.C. area, and New Vegas was set in the American Southwest. The one large geographical region not visited was the South. In the end, the rumor about Fallout 4 being set in the New England area turned out to be the correct one. Once again, the South is being speculated for Fallout 5.
3 A Star Trek Shuttlecraft In Fallout 2
Fallout 2 was full of sci-fi and fantasy-themed Easter eggs. The player could encounter King Arthur and his knights – the Monty Python version…in power armor. The player could also encounter a time-traveling portal remarkably similar to one seen in an episode of Star Trek (Original Series). One other Trek encounter rumored to be in Fallout 2 was finding a crashed Starfleet shuttlecraft. The shuttle has several “red shirts” lying dead around it, and the name “Torres” printed on its hull. Torres is probably a reference to a character on Star Trek: Voyager named B’elanna Torres.
2 The Canvas Shortage Of 2018
The story of Bethesda pulling a bait-and-switch with the bag included in the Fallout 4 Power Armor Edition earned them a spot in the Gaming Hall of Shame. Instead of the nice canvas bag promised, players received a cheap nylon bag that was essentially a glorified trash-bag. Then the rumor of why this change was made began circulating. According to Bethesda, the reason for the nylon bag was due to a canvas shortage. Nobody believed a major company like Bethesda would make this easily debunked claim, so it was considered a rumor. It wasn’t a rumor though.
1 Set Player-Characters In Fallout 4
One staple of the Fallout franchise leading up to Fallout 4 was the ability to make your own character’s story. The player character’s story was up to the player to decide. Fallout 4 changed this up a little by giving players a choice of two set characters – one man and one woman. Players could change the appearance of the protagonist, but the characters came with a set narrative. This is a rumor the fanbase accepted as true without much of a commotion. At the same time, most players would rather have the character creation in Fallout 5 be more like that in Fallout 3 - even if it means the protagonist doesn’t have a voice.
NEXT: Fallout: 10 Silliest Perks In The Series
