What if annihilation is not the end of humanity, but yet another chapter in the history of mankind? Such a question is posed in the Fallout series, which consists of post-apocalyptic video games set in the 22nd or 23rd century. Rather than following recent history, the setting is based on an deviating timeline after WWII. Years of conflict between the United States and China has resulted in a global nuclear war which has turned the world into a wasteland.
With all societal structures gone, survivors engage in an ongoing war for survival and dominance in the wasteland. But the wasteland is not only inhabited by humans: Raging ghouls, irradiated animals and even super mutants – genetically modified humans – are among the obstacles the player must constantly overcome in his adventures.
The last remaining examples of civilized societies are in the underground vaults. Provided by the Vault-Tec company before the nuclear war, the shelters were promoted as safe havens, but were actually elaborate lab-environments for carrying out inhumane experiments on the residents.
Everything is the result of the late civilization where the divided humanity had neglected one another for far too long. But in the wasteland, the power balance has shifted. Now, everyone is vowing to take back what was rightfully theirs.
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5 Comments on "After the War"
*Spoiler alert*
(I assume both of you have completed Fallout 4. 🙂 )
Food for thought regarding the synths: Looking back on my playthrough of Fallout 4, I don’t recall feeling any remorse when I destroyed The Institute and deliberately murdered my son.(Funny how gamers often refer to the controlled character as themselves) On the other hand, I was absolutely thrilled to be reunited with the young synth Shaun back in the settlement. This made me wonder: How does the virtual environment justify our unethical and outrageous actions?