Gaming

The 'Fallout' Franchise is Ready for a Movie 

In a universe filled with hundreds of stories, it's time we witnessed one on the big screen. 

Nicholas Bashore

Last year when Fallout 4 was released and we all got to dive into the wasteland surrounding Boston, we were greeted with one of the best opening cinematic in recent years.

Following the male player, this opening cinematic introduces players to the Fallout universe with a series of live-action shots and some seriously beautiful props. More importantly though, the opening provides historical context for the game – fleshing out the years when Fallout differs from our own historical timeline: World War II, atomic energy and the global nuclear war that turned Earth into a wasteland. Sounds like a great concept for a movie, doesn’t it?

The Fallout universe is a large, complex beast that’s been growing for well over a decade. Essentially, Fallout follows our own historical timeline up until the end of World War II. Instead of focusing on nuclear weapons and computer technology, scientists in the United States (and around the globe) unite to develop nuclear energy on a grand scale. This led to the development of personal robots, advanced technology, and even more effective war machines — while keeping the culture of the 1950s in tact for hundreds of years.

The result? An America where everyone considered the world a peaceful, wholesome and rich place to live — and it shows through all of the elements laced into the franchise. Classic Cola-like bottles litter the landscape, atomic-powered cars travel the streets, and the music remains upbeat while everyone dances in dress clothes.

But it’s also one filled with corporate greed, scientific experimentation and militarization – all of which eventually brings about the Resource Wars after all our natural supplies dissapear. As time goes on and the conflicts continue, the Great War happens, and all nuclear-capable nations launched their warheads at each other to save themselves. Then came the end of the world, which descended into nuclear holocaust.

YouTube.com

While placing the a Fallout film adaption in a post-apocalyptic timeline that other video games have covered might be safer, I think a film covering the history beforehand would be more interesting. More often than not, historical information that predates the Great War is hidden, and requires players to piece it together from different sources within the game. Unfortunately, this means that some information is lost, or still missing — which could easily be solved with a movie script.

Plus, by devoting a script to background info, moivemakers vwould eliminate Todd Howard’s fear that the films can never accurately represent the Fallout worlds like his games can.

That said, it looks like Bethesda Softworks isn’t planning anything for a Fallout film, but that isn’t a reason to give up [hope.](http://fallout.wikia.com/wiki/Fallout_(film)

Until we see a Fallout film project on the horizon though, I suppose we’ll have to settle for some new Fallout 4 content filled with robots and a few excellent YouTube fan films.

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