It is understandable how a popular series could get stale. There is a lot of inertia in one direction that can be challenging to reroute as gameplay standards get more ingrained, backstory bloats, and deviating from what fans expect becomes riskier. That is the perfect environment for something like Fallout London. The massive (and free) entire conversion for Fallout 4 was made possible by the mod group FOLON, who approached the project with new ideas and eyes and without concern for upsetting the Fallout acolytes.
The plot is released from the weight of most of the decades’ worth of lore from the Fallout series by setting it over the Atlantic, an area that the America-centric Fallout universe has never formally visited. While a fan-made Fallout may not have the polish and user-friendliness we would expect from a major developer, Bethesda RPG fans are used to putting up with a few technical hiccups as part of the experience, and Fallout London is essentially a brand-new, entertaining game that takes the series to a cool new setting.
Even with Fallout London’s immense size and grandeur, it is sometimes simple to forget that it is a mod rather than a formal sequel. London itself is enormous—roughly the same size as Fallout 4’s Boston. In addition, there are a ton of intriguing places to visit, buildings to explore, and bandit dens to clear out. Apart from the metropolis, numerous individual boroughs have their zones, each featuring unique factions and styles.
I can not help but love the punk rock feelings of Camden’s Pistols over Westminster’s pristine but pretentious Gentry, even though it is dirtier and more chaotic. It is fascinating to visit one of the venues for the first time and learn what it is like, and the range of settings effectively conveys the idea that a metropolis the size of London is not a cultural monolith.
Even though I have never visited London, everything I have seen of the city on television and in movies is consistent with my expectations. The residential areas are made up of narrow streets packed with homes, unique stores, and plenty of bars. I was motivated to go to those locations to observe what would happen to famous landmarks like Big Ben and Tower Bridge after the end of the world.
And how many of us have not at least once or twice wished we could sneak around Buckingham Palace? It may not have Fenway Park, but it does have a rich medieval past complete with swords, maces, and armor, and that is fantastic. Modern Fallout games work best when the setting takes center stage, and London has plenty of that, whether it is the Capital Wasteland or New Vegas.
There is a great vibe throughout. Either the heavy and dreary weather or the beloved Fallout radio stations that play vintage music (including some very British songs), it is easy to just stand on a street corner and gaze at a double-decker bus while feeling drawn into what the present residents of London refer to as Old Blighty. The degree to which the Fallout 4 base—which, let us face it, was not exactly on the leading edge of graphical fidelity in 2015—seemed new to me was surprising, given that the game is set outside of North America.
Little changes, such as replacing the wrist-mounted PipBoy with the portable Atta-Boy, felt like endearing concessions and adaptations, while introducing new animals, such as radioactive foxes and badgers, disrupted the monotony that came with decades of combating radscorpions.
The novel benefits from the fact that it takes place outside of North America.
The narrative of Fallout London gains from its departure from North America. The plot is straightforward: you wake up in a lab and are ordered to find Mr. Smythe, the enigmatic figure who led you there, to exact revenge or get some answers. There are real surprises and mysteries to solve because you do not have to deal with the baggage of the Forced Evolutionary Virus, Super Mutants, Enclave, or Brotherhood of Steel. This makes for a compelling and significantly less predictable story than we have seen in this universe in a long time.
It is impressive how many different endings there are, each with branching paths. After a roughly 40-hour playthrough, I witnessed two versions of my ending that were as fantastical and theatrical as anything I have seen in the series. It piqued my curiosity to see what the other possible outcomes look like. While it lacked the emotional tug of Fallout 4, I still thought the tale was really good overall and that learning more about Mr. Smythe’s background and goals was just as fascinating as meeting President Eden in Fallout 3. I especially relished my tenure with the Vagabonds as a Peaky Blinders-style thug and gaining the admiration of their dirtbag-with-a-heart commander, Sebastian Gaunt.
The people who can accompany you all have interesting personality traits; for example, Kiera believes she is a skilled burglar. They have fascinating personal histories, and it is well worth building the confidence necessary for them to be candid. The adorable bulldog Churchill, sometimes known as Archie if you would rather have a street kid who is not much of a fighter but is excellent at picking locks for you, makes a fantastic Dogmeat substitute. There are about six to choose from, and each is unique and entertaining in its own Fallout fashion. I find it admirable that the London companions and non-player characters are skillfully played and presented. I felt more fully immersed in the experience since it sounded professional.
Verdict
Fallout London is amazing, especially when you take into account that it is a free mod rather than a legitimate game. It is a large RPG deserving of the Fallout name, and it does a really good job of breaking up the US-centric formula of the series with its utilization of the titular city. Apart from being sent out on pointless busywork, the main story’s twists and turns are engaging, and venturing off the beaten path to go on adventures with friends is just as much fun here as it is in any contemporary open-world Bethesda game. Nevertheless, you should be ready for the technical challenge of installing this mod, and even if you succeed, it has a good number of glitches and crashes. It is all worth it, though, if you have the fortitude to get beyond those difficulties and the sporadic stupid mission design. There is plenty of fun to be had in Old Blighty.
