Original Fallout Developers Aspired to Reacquire IP, But Bethesda’s $6 Million Bid Left No Chance: “They Would Have Laughed at Our Offer”

The journey of the Fallout series is quite intricate, but it was Bethesda’s hefty $5.75 million bid that secured its role as the franchise’s guardian, regardless of the aspirations of its original creators.

Initially, the Fallout intellectual property was owned and developed by Interplay, with Fallout 2 crafted by its internal team at Black Isle Studios. However, as Interplay faced severe financial difficulties in the mid-2000s, it had to offload assets to keep its workforce paid. Brian Fargo, co-founder of Interplay, noted that “the only asset they really had to sell was Fallout.”

In a conversation, Fargo revealed that a lawsuit tied to these financial woes compelled Interplay to transfer all Fallout rights to Bethesda. Yet, there was a glimmer of hope for a different outcome. Leonard Boyarsky, Fallout’s art director who later co-founded Troika Games, attempted to secure the rights before they fell into Bethesda’s hands. “We got some possible investment interest,” Boyarsky recounted, “but we never even got a chance to make an offer.” Ultimately, Bethesda’s reported payment of $5.75 million sealed the deal. Previously, Cain had indicated that he, Boyarsky, and Anderson had been “outbid” for the chance to create Fallout 3, but Boyarsky hinted at a harsher reality: “It wouldn’t have mattered if they heard our offer or not, because they would have laughed.”

The rest is well-documented. Bethesda has maintained a strong grip on the Fallout franchise, collaborating with Obsidian for New Vegas and Amazon for the upcoming Fallout season 2, while Fallout 5 looms on the horizon after The Elder Scrolls 6. Meanwhile, two of the original trio are still closely tied to the Fallout universe, with Tim Cain rejoining Obsidian to work on a secret project teased after The Outer Worlds 2, a game that Boyarsky contributed to as creative director.

Bethesda’s design director has expressed a desire for Fallout 5 to be an expansive experience, potentially offering up to 600 hours of gameplay, reflecting the studio’s commitment to crafting immersive worlds.