🔗 Share this article

The Fallout TV series is back to its platform, and it's safe to say that fans were delightfully shocked by the caliber of its debut season. By portraying the retro-futuristic, post-apocalyptic United States through the perspectives of three different characters, it succeeded in capturing various facets of the gamer's journey.

We followed vault-dweller Lucy, striving to do the right thing and learning that the barren landscape made that exceptionally challenging; Brotherhood initiate Max, the Brotherhood of Steel initiate, who starts doubting his cult's authority and unleashes significant chaos in robotic power armour; and the Ghoul, a fan-favorite figure who has entirely abandoned any sense of morality out in the contaminated badlands.

Setting the Stage for a New Chapter

The debut season's ending unveiled a major secret about the culprits behind the atomic conflict that sealed a population in subterranean shelters for an extended period. It also left several enigmas unanswered for the upcoming chapter – and, now, hopes are significantly higher.

“We’ll take ‘not terrible’ – let’s get that on a poster,” quips Jonah Nolan.

“Heading into the first season, people were like, ‘Just don't mess it up’,” adds the game director. “We’re over the moon with the reception to the show, so this time people are coming in with more excitement and different expectations.”

The Mojave Beckons for Season Two

The second season is located in the neon-lit city, the setting of the 2010’s game Fallout: New Vegas, which is widely regarded for having the most compelling narratives and characters in the series, despite the fact that it was somewhat buggy at launch.

“It has a desert vibe, a Mojave vibe, that’s so integral to that game,” notes the co-creator. “That parched, desolate Route 66 feeling of the game is so much fun to bring into the show.”

In the series narrative, a long time has elapsed since the story of the New Vegas game by the time the protagonists arrive there. Yet, the creators hint that it acknowledges the gamer's experience.

Crafting a Tangible World

The Fallout TV series is notable for its tactile feel – its production team insisted on physical models and locations were constructed, reflecting the cobbled-together nature of the towns in the games.

“Being a genre enthusiast, so many productions I watch, I’m conscious that they’re all standing in front of a blue screen,” says co-creator Geneva Robertson-Dworet. “The primary goal of an translation, especially of a video game, is to appear as if it’s real.”

In fact, almost everything you see on-screen is physical, even the legendarily scary irradiated monsters known as the apex predators. In the show, they are created using practical effects, and were apparently quite terrifying up close.

A Labor of Love

The Fallout series works because it is crafted by skilled directors who are also passionate gamers, with the help of the original creators behind the source material. This common understanding for the lore is apparent in the finished show.

The new batch of episodes is being released on a weekly basis rather than as a binge-able batch, marking a change from the first season. This format will foster a altered audience reaction, a dynamic the creators themselves are eager to witness.

“It delves deeper, it’s larger in scale, it’s funnier, it has a lot of twists,” says Howard. “I can't wait to seeing what people think.”