It hasn't exactly been a fun couple of days to engage with the Xbox ecosystem, and by extension engaging with Bethesda has felt a little awkward. Theirs was the home to the award winning studio that Xbox callously murdered for no discernible reason before immediately coming and declaring they needed more studios just like the one they destroyed a few days earlier. Incredible. And within that debris questions have been asked about who would be next, what other legends would find themselves jobless for the foolhardy whim of having worked with Microsoft? How much more grandly could Xbox damn themselves before a seemingly inevitable exit from the console market that seems all but confirmed at this pace- regardless of whatever, increasingly futile, lip service the team constantly feeds our way. But through it all, I hear that Fallout seems to be doing okay.
I mean it should be, right? Fallout is the face of video games breaking into the mainsteam right now and the surging player count's for the entire franchise are a startling example of that. Fallout 4 is getting updates again, that break all current mods but it's the thought that counts, people's twentieth New Vegas playthroughs are kicking off with gusto. Fallout 76 is actually seeing a rise in players that are somewhat galling about all the hate the game received back in the way, blissfully unaware of all the actual pain they missed getting involved so many years down the line. They don't even have to experience the dead Wasteland before the 'return to Appalachia' update. Truly they are the winners of the Fallout fanbase. But all of that only really goes so far, now doesn't it?
When The Last of Us dropped it's series the creator's were ready with a rushed and messy port of the iconic game finally coming to PC after all these years that people absolutely wharfed up with abandon- rocketing the game up the charts despite it's shoddy QA work. That is a tangible boost in profits that can be traced directly back to the show. And Fallout? Well, I'm sure they've made a pretty penny from people catching up with the games- but there isn't anything new in the Fallout world, is there? You can't really get away selling even Fallout 4 for full retail after all this time, so people are picking up inexpensive collections for a fraction of 60$ and filling themselves up on all the Fallout hype. I would call it an unexploited marketing opportunity.
What Bethesda really needs is a fresh product they can sell the heck out of. A remaster would be nice, but what they need is a fresh new game that soars in the spotlight- a great game that is rocketed into superstar status by merit of association. What they need is Fallout 5. Which is ironically the only thing that they can't have. Fallout 5 isn't on the docket until after The Elder Scrolls 6, as probably Todd Howard's last game before retirement. Which means we won't be seeing the Wasteland again until at least the 2030's. What we need is something in the interim to keep people busy. An in-between game. A 'Fallout 4.5' so to speak. And whole could possibly be employed to create a little something like that? Oh yes, the rumours have started once more.
Obsidian have been sitting patiently on the sidelines for what feels like half their lifetime. Gone are the days when they were pushing the boundaries of the Classic RPG genre, reviving it with a gusto- now are the days when it feels like they're pushing what's possible from a AA perspective- proud work, to be sure, but not enough to get their name in lights for the new generation. And dammit, they deserve to be! Obsidian have yet to put out a bad game, even if I think The Outer Worlds wasn't really what I wanted, it's still a cracker of a title! Whatsmore, they've always demonstrated a deeper understanding on what makes Fallout special than Bethesda ever has- we need them back around again!
Fallout New Vegas was their last go around, given the tools that made Fallout 3 and given a little over a year to smash together those elements into something new, Obsidian put out the single best game the franchise had ever had, and still has ever produced. The created an RPG of choice and consequence, a world of purpose and weight and value and the tools to destroy it all as much as you wanted. New Vegas put Bethesda to such shame that they attempted to ape it's systems with Fallout 4, to honestly somewhat amateurish (in comparison) results. Give them the Fallout 4 engine and who knows? Obsidian might even be able to make a real RPG out of it! And what a way to send up the Fallout franchise, than giving it back to the people who made it to begin with!
Of course there's nothing real in the works yet. Xbox have declared that they're aware of the feelings about Fallout, particularly given the popularity of the TV show, but playing it coy is the name of the game so that no hopes are drawn up. However, I would say that recent happenings may end up expediting the process a bit. Xbox is desperate, looking for a way to justify itself underneath a parent who is placing ever more attention on their goings ons. In fact, following the surprise layoffs of Bethesda award winners, one might say that the next few projects might end up being influential in deciding whether or not Xbox even makes it to the next console generation or not. It's times like these, you need to start cashing in the chips at your disposal.
The stars seem to be aligning. Xbox is too desperate to say no, Bethesda are too busy to multidevelop, Obsidian are reaching the end of work on their current RPG and Chris Avellone has been cleared of all those misconduct allegations he had thrown his way. This is the time to bring the band back together for one last go around, smash out a Fallout game like the world has never seen before and give this franchise the absolute rocket high it deserves! And if ever it was going to happen, it's going to be now! I usually don't fan the flames of speculation, I'm usually the first to douse cold truth over it all- but today of all days I'm daring to dream. Bring us back to Fallout, Obsidian- I know you have it in you!
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