🔗 Share this article

The Fallout TV show has come back to its platform, and it's safe to say that audiences were pleasantly surprised by the quality of its initial run. By illustrating the retro-futuristic, post-apocalyptic United States through the lenses of three distinct characters, it managed to capture different facets of the player's experience.

We followed Lucy the vault dweller, attempting to do the right thing and discovering that the wasteland made that very difficult; Brotherhood initiate Max, the Brotherhood of Steel initiate, who starts doubting his cult's authority and creates a lot of havoc in robotic power armour; and Walton Goggins's character, a standout performance who has long since lost any moral compass out in the irradiated wilderness.

Building Anticipation for a New Chapter

The show's first season ending disclosed a major secret about those responsible for the atomic conflict that trapped a population in underground vaults for centuries. It also posed plenty of questions unanswered for the upcoming chapter – and, on this occasion, hopes are considerably elevated.

“We’ll take ‘not terrible’ – we should print that on merchandise,” remarks Jonah Nolan.

“Starting the initial season, people were like, ‘Just don't mess it up’,” adds the game director. “We are thrilled with the response to the show, so now people are coming in with more excitement and altered expectations.”

The Mojave Beckons for Season Two

The upcoming season is set in New Vegas, the setting of the beloved game Fallout: New Vegas, which is often praised for having the sharpest dialogue and personalities in the franchise, despite the fact that it was technically flawed at launch.

“It has a desert vibe, a Mojave vibe, that’s so key to that game,” notes Nolan. “That dusty, desolate Route 66 aesthetic of the game is so much enjoyable to translate into the show.”

In the show's timeline, a long time has elapsed since the story of the New Vegas game by the time the characters arrive there. Yet, the creators suggest that it does reference the player’s journey.

Crafting a Tangible World

The Fallout TV series is distinguished by its tangible quality – its makers insisted on authentic items and environments were constructed, reflecting the makeshift nature of the outposts in the games.

“As a sci-fi fan, so many series I watch, I’m conscious that they’re all filmed against a green screen,” observes co-creator Geneva Robertson-Dworet. “The whole point of an adaptation, especially of a interactive medium, is to seem like it’s real.”

Indeed, almost everything you see on-screen is real, including the notoriously frightening mutated beasts known as Deathclaws. In the show, they are brought to life with practical effects, and were by all accounts rather intimidating up close.

Made by Fans, for Fans

The Fallout series succeeds because it is made by skilled directors who are also longtime fans, in collaboration with the game developers behind the video games. This common understanding for the world is apparent in the finished show.

The second season is being released on a weekly basis rather than as a full-season drop, representing a shift from the first season. This format will foster a new audience reaction, something the showrunners themselves are excited to witness.

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