🔗 Share this article

The Fallout TV series is back to streaming services, and it's safe to say that audiences were pleasantly surprised by the caliber of its debut season. By portraying the atomic-age, nuclear-ravaged United States through the perspectives of three separate characters, it succeeded in capturing multiple facets of the player's experience.

There was vault-dweller Lucy, striving to uphold her morals and learning that the barren landscape made that incredibly hard; Brotherhood initiate Max, the Brotherhood of Steel initiate, who starts challenging his organization's leadership and causes plenty of trouble in mechanized battle suit; and the Ghoul, a fan-favorite figure who has completely shed any ethical bearings out in the contaminated badlands.

Building Anticipation for Season Two

The show's first season conclusion disclosed crucial details about the culprits behind the global annihilation that sealed a population in bomb-proof bunkers for an extended period. It also raised several enigmas unanswered for the second season – and, this time, anticipations are considerably elevated.

“We’ll take ‘pretty good’ – let’s get that on a poster,” quips Jonah Nolan.

“Starting the initial season, people were like, ‘Just don't mess it up’,” adds the game director. “We are thrilled with the feedback to the show, so now people are bringing more eagerness and different expectations.”

A New Vegas Vibe for the Next Installment

The upcoming season is set in New Vegas, the setting of the 2010’s game Fallout: New Vegas, which is often praised for having the sharpest dialogue and personalities in the series, despite the fact that it was somewhat buggy at launch.

“It has a sun-baked feel, a Mojave vibe, that’s so key to that game,” explains Nolan. “That parched, blasted-out Route 66 aesthetic of the game is so much fun to incorporate into the show.”

In the show's timeline, a considerable period has elapsed since the story of the New Vegas game by the time the characters arrive there. However, the creators indicate that it acknowledges the gamer's experience.

The Importance of Physical Sets

The Fallout TV series is praised for its tactile feel – its creators insisted on real props and locations were constructed, mirroring the cobbled-together nature of the settlements in the games.

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

In fact, virtually each creature you see on-screen is real, even the notoriously frightening mutated beasts known as Deathclaws. In the show, they are created using practical effects, and were by all accounts rather intimidating up close.

Made by Fans, for Fans

The Fallout series works because it is made by skilled directors who are also passionate gamers, alongside the visionaries behind the video games. This shared passion for the universe is evident in the end result.

The second season is debuting on a episode-by-episode basis rather than as a all-at-once release, representing a shift from the first season. This approach will allow for a new audience reaction, a dynamic the showrunners themselves are eager to engage with.

“It's richer, it’s more expansive, it’s funnier, it has a lot of revelations,” says Howard. “I can't wait to seeing what people think.”