It's an interesting idea...not sure whether it'll ever happen. The aesthetic of the Fallout series is tied very strongly to the 1950's style of Americana and retro-futurism of that era that it's hard to imagine what it'd look like without it. Would it even feel like Fallout? It might be interesting to see a game set in Canada, with a cold winter theme to contrast with the ashen wastelands and barren deserts of previous games.
I think the idea of an open-world post-apocalyptic survival game in London sounds fantastic, just not fallout.
Fallout's main plot driver is the vaults for better or for worse, they enabled tens of thousands of people to survive (including every protagonist so far by the way) and they often serve as critical plot devices for the main quests. A Fallout world set in another country with no vaults, no vault boy, and no American 1950's influences just wouldn't be a Fallout game.
As far as whoever suggested an open world Metro: Last light. Yes, make this now please.
As far as the next Fallout game, perhaps it could be a vault located in Alaska or Hawaii? I think Hawaii would be a really interesting setup. You could have boat travel between islands (either ferrymen or your own personal boat, or maybe both), with Oahu being mostly sprawling ruins and places like Maui and Kauai being mainly untouched paradises.
Why would there be no vaults in London? During the Blitz (WW2 bombing campaign) Londoners sheltered in underground Tube train stations, vaults are a logical progression from that.
The culture is already there!
Then look at the city's iconic structures: Big Ben, the Tower, Tower Bridge, St Paul's, Trafalgar Square, Leicester Square, the Houses of Parliament, the Lloyds Building, the City's gothic architecture, Regent Street, the West End theatres, Soho, Hyde Park , Regent's Park, Wimbledon's tennis courts, The London Eye, the Gherkin etc etc etc. London is perfect for Fallout!
I've never pre-ordered a game but if Fallout: London was announced I'd be in there like a flash!
I would love to see the Vatican and the Pope having gone violent purists/fascists, with the Swiss Guard having been turned into an anti-ghoul hit squad, hunting down all of them within a certain radius of the Vatican, with a Pope who acted like 101's Overseer. You could either take him down, and give the power to a more moderate leader, enhance his rule and set up a Medieval-type kingdom, or destroy it and take power yourself.
You say culture, but then you just list a bunch of buildings, buildings aren't exactly culture, just saying. What I was discussing was the influence of 1950's American Culture, particularly the baby boomer middle class move to the suburbs. London would have culture of course, it just wouldn't be Fallout.
As far as the tubes being similar to vaults......not really. The tubes were always designed with open entrances, made for transportation purposes primarily, contain no support elements (water purifiers, living quarters, etc.). The vaults were designed as full-encompassing living arrangements that would be sealed prior to the bombs.
Also the tubes were used as shelters against conventional bombings during WW2, not Nuclear Fallout, the vaults are designed to withstand Radiation (assuming they weren't designed to fail on purpose).
Using the tubes you could have metro: last light in London, not so much Fallout.
Like I said in my original post, I'm certainly not against a post-apocalyptic game set in a devastated London, it just wouldn't be Fallout.
I don't see why not. As I said the infrastructure is already there: the Tube underground network is huge, and would need only a little tinkering to turn into vaults.
And you have far too much trust in the British government my friend! In a post-apocalyptic world all bets are off! Although they'd probably enslave the population in order to make a better cup of tea.
The culture comment referred back to the sheltering in the underground during the Blitz. Sorry I thought that was clear. And it WAS a culture. Communities developed, people got together for communal sing-songs. The legacy of the Blitz lives on even today.
It wouldn't take much at all to turn tube stations into vaults. Far less than making them from scratch. I don't see the problem here.
In fact London by its history and infrastructure is already more suited to vault living than any major city on the planet that I can think of, including those of the USA
Why do you assume London didn't have baby-boomer middle class moves to the suburbs? Other countries had a 1950s too y'know. Admittedly English influence worldwide didn't start until the Beatles and the Stones, but before that there was still a rich musical tradition: Vera Lynn, music hall for instance.
London Fallout? Perfect!
I'm assuming you've never been to London? I lived and worked there for over 10 years. The Underground is a ready-made underground city. Probably why it's called 'The Underground' I guess ;). The vaults are pretty much already there! I'm rubbish at making stuff but I think even I could turn it into vaults
London Fallout? Perfect