On a random Friday, Bethesda announce Fallout 5, built on new Creation Engine 3, plus Fallout 3 and New Vegas remasters, new Fallout title from Obsidian Entertainment 1
Image: Bethesda

Welcome news, indeed, but why now?

That's went through my head when Rich posted Bethesda's Fallout mega-announcement in our work Slack channel, which includes the following points:

  • Fallout 5 is in pre-production using a new engine, Creation Engine 3, which offers "new tools, rendering and systems"
  • Fallout 3 and Fallout New Vegas remasters are in production, albeit with no firm release date
  • A new Fallout title is also coming in collaboration with Obsidian, who made New Vegas
  • Fallout 76 is getting a 2027 expansion called Raven Rock which serves as a Fallout 3 prequel
  • More content is coming to mobile title Fallout Shelter
  • Season three of the Fallout TV show is in production with Amazon Studios and Kilter Films
  • A new unscripted Fallout TV show is also "in the works" from the same creators
  • There will be a Fallout Day 2027 live broadcast from Washington DC, presumably announcing some or all of the above in more detail

As well as the Fallout announcements, Bethesda also covered the rest of their roadmap, which includes a focus on The Elder Scrolls 6 as their next big game - also using Creation Engine 3 - plus new content for Starfield. The announcement also mentions that the Zenimax Online studios recently rocked by layoffs will be integrated into Bethesda more directly, presumably to support the development of TES6 as well Elder Scrolls Online.

It's hard not to see this randomly-timed Twitter post as a knee-jerk reaction to the recent widely publicised Xbox layoffs, which saw 1600 people lose their jobs immediately with 1600 more terminations planned by 2028. Knowing that long-requested projects are on the way is of course exciting to Fallout fans like me, but it hits differently with that backdrop of human suffering.

The manner of the announcement is also deeply weird. Bethesda has always done quite involved video presentations showing off their games when they were ready - and often to coincide with either game release anniversaries or major games showcases - while resisting demands to release information beyond "we're working on it" beforehand.

Doing a Twitter post on a random Friday morning, with no sign of leadership like Todd Howard or developers like those that were represented in the Starfield reveal, feels off. I could be way off base here, but this feels distinctly different from Bethesda's traditional full-throated game reveals, and not in a good way.

What do you make of the news, and how it was presented? Let me know in the comments below.

[source x.com]