🔗 Share this article

The post-apocalyptic TV show is back to Prime Video, and it's safe to say that viewers were agreeably astonished by the quality of its first season. By portraying the atomic-age, nuclear-ravaged United States through the lenses of three distinct characters, it succeeded in capturing different facets of the player's journey.

We followed Lucy the vault dweller, trying to do the right thing and discovering that the barren landscape made that exceptionally challenging; Brotherhood initiate Max, the militant faction rookie, who begins to question his organization's dogma and causes significant chaos in powered exoskeleton; and the Ghoul, a standout performance who has entirely abandoned any ethical bearings out in the irradiated wilderness.

Setting the Stage for a New Chapter

The debut season's finale disclosed key information about who helped cause the global annihilation that sealed a population in bomb-proof bunkers for an extended period. It also left numerous mysteries unresolved for the second season – and, this time, anticipations are significantly higher.

“We’ll take ‘not terrible’ – let’s get that on a poster,” remarks one of the series creators.

“Starting the initial season, people were like, ‘Just get it right’,” comments the game director. “We are thrilled with the feedback to the show, so this time people are coming in with more enthusiasm and new expectations.”

A New Vegas Vibe for Season Two

The new season is set in New Vegas, the location of the beloved game Fallout: New Vegas, which is frequently celebrated for having the sharpest dialogue and cast in the series, even if it was technically flawed at launch.

“It’s more of a sun-baked feel, a Mojave vibe, that’s so essential to that game,” says the co-creator. “That parched, desolate iconic highway aesthetic of the game is so much enjoyable to translate into the show.”

In the series narrative, a long time has passed since the events of the New Vegas game by the time the protagonists make their way there. Nevertheless, the creators indicate that it does reference the player’s journey.

The Importance of Physical Sets

The Fallout TV series is praised for its tangible quality – its production team ensured authentic items and locations were built, mirroring the cobbled-together nature of the towns in the games.

“As a sci-fi fan, so many shows I watch, I’m aware that they’re all standing in front of a blue screen,” comments co-creator Geneva Robertson-Dworet. “The primary goal of an adaptation, especially of a video game, is to appear as if it’s authentic.”

Indeed, pretty much every element you see on-screen is real, even the legendarily scary mutated beasts known as the apex predators. In the show, they are brought to life with animatronics, and were by all accounts rather intimidating up close.

A Labor of Love

The Fallout series works because it is made by skilled directors who are also dedicated players, with the help of the visionaries behind the source material. This common understanding for the world is apparent in the end result.

The second season is debuting on a episode-by-episode basis rather than as a all-at-once release, marking a change from the initial release. This approach will allow for a altered weekly discussion, a dynamic the showrunners themselves are excited to observe.

“It's richer, it’s larger in scale, it’s funnier, it has a lot of surprises,” says the game director. “I can't wait to seeing what people think.”