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How I'd Do It: Fallout 5

  • January 4, 2016 2:26 AM EST

    FALLOUT V

    Greetings!

    If you are reading this message, then congratulations on your appointment to the post of overseer of Vault 99! You are heir to a long line of overseers, stretching back XXXERROR[! generations to the very beginning of the vault program. Vault-Tec knows you will serve with distinction, as you await your glorious return to the surface.

    >................._

    Our records indicate that the current date is X.X.22XX. This is only X days away from the projected emergence date of X.X.22XX. It seems that you have ascended to you position at an auspicious time! You are now not only Vault 99's overseer, but it's Last Overseer - the one who will usher your people into a bright, nuclear-war free future outside of the vault. It will be up to you to shepherd them as you all adapt to your lives on the surface.

    >........._

    The world outside has no doubt degraded quite a bit from the one your ancestors left behind XXERROR~V years ago. You will have to brave many dangers and face many challenges on the surface, but we are confident that you will rise to the challenge. Please consult the many holotapes covering survival topics that should have been handed down by your predecessors.

    We will now leave you with one last bit of wisdom that you should keep in mind as you undertake the great new journey before you. Si vis pacem, para bellum. If you desire peace, prepare for war.

    And war never changes.

    What is it?

    Fallout V is the latest major edition to the illustrious Fallout franchise. It is set in and around the city of Vancouver, British Columbia, in the late 2280's. Vancouver presents a departure for the Fallout series in a few ways - it is the first game not to be set in the (current) United States of America, it is the first game to take primarily in a cold-weather environment and it is the first game to be designed by some nutter with no actual game design or writing experience whatsoever. In Fallout canon, Canada was annexed by the USA shortly before the outbreak of nuclear war on October 23, 2077. This, plus Vancouver's close proximity to the American border, gives us an excuse to extend the Fallout series' unique aesthetic of 1950's Americana northward, as well as adding in a new flavor courtesy of the Great White North.

    The player takes the role of the Last Overseer of Vault 99, a vault located in the area around Vancouver, at a time just before the vault's scheduled reopening to the outside world. The Last Overseer is tasked with being the first to emerge from the vault, to explore the surrounding countryside, discover what has become of the region since the Great War and - hopefully - with allying with those who have survived the fallout from the end of the world.

    A central aspect to the game, other than the usual exploration and combat, is how the player chooses to lead their fellow vault dwellers as they adapt to the fallen world they find themselves in. The Last Overseer will have many opportunities to influence the future of Vault 99 during the game, and the consequences of their actions will be felt both in the world, and closer to home. Some options include retreating back underground for good, building alliances with surface-dwellers as trading partners and even abandoning the vault entirely to assimilate in one (or more) of Vancouver's many factions. Needless to say, each and every option can provide rewards - and costs.

    Major Factions

    • The Royal Armored Police: Known to themselves as "the Force" and to outsiders as the Lobsterbacks (for their characteristic red power armor), these are the descendants of those members of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (the Mounties) who survived the Great War and attempted to keep order in the long night that followed. Though their numbers are small and their organization insular, the RAP is dedicated to bringing order and safety to the area of Great Vancouver - whether it likes it or not.
    • The Five Tribes: After the fall of civilization as we know it, humanity has reorganized itself into smaller, more insular and primitive groups. The many tribes of the Great Vancouver region are largely peaceful, but can be distrusting of outsiders. At the time the Last Overseer emerges from Vault 99, the Vancouver area is divided between five major tribal groups who share an uneasy peace. Earning the trust and allegiance of each group will be vital to ensuring Vault 99's survival, but be warned- old enmities die hard, and it may not be possible to please everyone...
    • The Guardians of the Lines: At the time of the Great War, there were a large number of Chinese prisoners of war being transported through British Columbia. As the bombs fell, they sought what shelter they could in the caves and basements along the railways. Over the past two centuries, they have reemerged and staked a claim in the foothills on the margins of the city. Though the Five Tribes view them as intruders and dangerous, there have been no large-scale hostilities - yet.
    • The Gray: The mountains to the north of the city were heavily hit by fallout following the Great War, leaving the entire region an ashen, snowy wasteland. It was from this hell that the Gray emerged- bizarre, semi-feral ghouls with pale skin and a cold intelligence bent toward killing anything not like them. Eighty years ago they poured into the Great Vancouver area, slaughtering  everything in their wake. The Five Tribes and the RAP united, managing - at great cost - to drive the Gray back into the Blight, then erected a mighty Shieldwall to prevent their return. Now, though, there are rumors that the Gray have been seen again, massing beyond the wall and waiting for the chance to strike...

    Conclusion

    From these elements arise the base of what Fallout V would be, if I had any say in it. This is ending sort of abruptly, largely because it's, like, 2:30 a.m. and I'm tired. I may update it later with a list of possible companions I've thought up and maybe a few major questline ideas.

    I'd also love to hear from you folks- does this sound like something you'd like to play? Does the setting make sense to you? What are some of your ideas for things you'd like to see in a new Fallout game?