Released in 1997, Fallout: A Post Nuclear Role Playing Game is one of the most influential RPGs ever. Interplay Productions’ mix of sharp wit and extensive roleplaying options would spawn a new wave of post-apocalyptic RPGs that continues to this day.
Dark humor, plenty of player choice, and the wasteland itself are core pillars to the franchise that future titles have more or less retained. Many Fallout fans jumped into the franchise with Bethesda’s Fallout 3 or Obsidian’s Fallout: New Vegas, never experiencing the unique dialogue and charm of the past titles. For those looking for more Fallout and haven’t played the older titles, here are ten reasons why trying out the Fallout that started it all isn’t a bad idea. This article avoids spoilers for Fallout 1.
10 The Story
Out of every Fallout title in the franchise, the original Fallout still has the best story. The premise is rather simple: players are a member of Vault 13 and are chosen to leave the confines of the Vault in search of a water chip. If the player cannot get a water chip within 150 days of leaving the Vault, everyone inside of the Vault will die.
Fallout does a brilliant job of taking a simple premise and expanding it as far as it can go. Players get to explore the various human civilizations that dot Southern California in 2161, a timeline that is earlier than any other entry excluding Fallout 76. By exploring the wasteland and talking to various NPCs, the player’s goals slowly shift towards something much more terrifying. Out of every Fallout game that has tried to make a compelling narrative, the original game still has the best story to tell.
9 Brutally Unforgiving
Most players are used to starting a Fallout game with a clear objective and a means of reaching it. That isn’t the case in the original Fallout.
Besides knowing that the water chip needs to be replaced, it is up to the player to discover how to obtain one. Players need to be extremely careful about who they talk to, what information to provide, and even what clothes they wear. Giving just enough information about the Vault can cause NPCs to distrust the player or end a playthrough entirely. Fallout does not hold the player’s hand in any way, which is surprisingly refreshing when compared to more recent entries that guide the player to their next objective.
For those that don’t like how punishing it is, the Fallout Wiki is an invaluable resource for guiding players through quests.
8 Turn-Based Combat
Screenshot uploaded on Reddit.
Anyone that enjoyed how violent V.A.T.S. combat was in more recent Fallout titles might enjoy the original game’s turn-based combat that inspired the system in the first place.
Every character gets a turn where they spend Action Points to move, shoot, or interact with the environment. Similar to Fallout 3 and Fallout 4, players can aim at specific body parts to blow off a target’s arms, head, or even their groin. It isn’t as intricate as XCOM or as accessible as Fallout 4’s V.A.T.S. combat, but it has enough flair that some hardcore RPG fans might get some enjoyment out of it.
7 Bleak Atmosphere
Thrown straight out of their Vault, players are comforted with a corpse at their feet and a cave filled with hostile rats. Contrast this with Fallout 3 or Fallout 4’s openings and it becomes rather clear that the original Fallout is the bleakest interpretation of the IP.
NPCs will fish information out of the player if they get a glimpse of their Vault suit or hear where they came from. Most enemies in Fallout are tough and can take the player down in a few attacks. Any hope of rebuilding civilization is twisted into insanity by the game’s antagonists and various supporting NPCs. The water chip isn’t just a narrative device, either. Players need to find a water chip in 150 days or the game ends.
While it might sound exhausting to some, it gives the original game a unique tone that stands opposed to Bethesda’s entries that focus on rebuilding while simultaneously separating Fallout from the pop-culture zaniness that is Fallout 2.
6 Super Mutants
Isn’t it strange that nearly every Fallout game has Super Mutants? Those that started the franchise with Fallout 3 or later might consider these enemies to be nothing more than mutated humans. Super Mutants are much more than that.
Without spoiling anything, the original Fallout focuses on why Super Mutants exist and what their purpose is. More than that, it shows why Fallout 3 and 4’s Brotherhood of Steel clans regard them as such a large threat. Don’t expect Super Mutants to be pushovers in this installment.
5 Mods Address Some Of Fallout’s Issues
Accessibility is the main reason many Fallout fans have decided to skip the first few entries in the franchise. It’s perfectly understandable. The original Fallout suffers from this the most, with a clunky UI, bugs that can ruin playthroughs, and dated visuals.
Thankfully, most of these issues can be fixed with mods. The modding scene for the original Fallout is rather small yet has some essential mods that players should look for. To make it playable on modern-day machines, “Fallout Fixit” by Sduibek is a must for patching the game and making it run at modern resolutions, fixing visual issues, and allowing players to revert the censorship changes that were applied to the Steam version of the game.
4 True Build Variety
Builds in the original Fallout have a massive impact on how a playthrough progresses. If a player has high Charisma, they can complete the entire game as a pacifist by talking to people. Low intelligence players can’t speak fluently, meaning they block most dialogue options in exchange for higher stats elsewhere.
Fallout’s iconic S.P.E.C.I.A.L. is in full swing here. Every stat impacts gameplay somehow, allowing for a wide range of build options.
3 Character Dialogue
Dialogue between NPCs and players in Fallout is some of the best the franchise has seen. Players get a wide range of options for replying to NPCs that can reflect any type of character.
NPCs also had a ton of care put into their lines. Convincing the game’s main antagonist that their ideals are ill-placed will forever be considered one of the franchise’s best moments.
2 Highly Replayable
Replayability is a core tenant of the older Fallout that is best shown in the first installment. The player’s S.P.E.C.I.A.L. stats and dialogue decisions have a large impact on how the main story progress.
In fact, the main story of this game can be bypassed almost entirely if players know what they’re doing. Knowledgable players can beat this game in just under an hour if they play their cards right. Fallout’s fluid quest progression and lack of hand-holding make every playthrough different from the last.
1 It’s A Unique Take On The Franchise
More than anything, the original Fallout is a great game for its time. As the first entry in the franchise, it’s shocking how much has changed between each installment. The game’s story, tone, camera perspective, and even some of the game’s lore have been changed heavily.
Even with all of those changes, the original Fallout set a certain tone and setting for the franchise that has been preserved in future titles, for the most part. As for fans that cannot get enough Fallout, the original game is such a raw yet refreshing take on the franchise Bethesda popularized that players owe themselves at least one session with this old masterpiece of an RPG.
NEXT: Fallout 4: 5 Overpowered Builds (& 5 That Are Just Ridiculous)
