Todd Howard “borrowed” his brother’s Fallout game early in his Bethesda career and never returned it, captivated by the RPG’s atmosphere.

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Before he became the head honcho at Bethesda Game Studios, Todd Howard was a producer at the company, where he first discovered the allure of Fallout’s post-apocalyptic world—thanks to a copy he borrowed from his brother.

In a recent interview, Howard shared that he was introduced to Fallout in 1997, not as a Bethesda title but as a game developed and published by Interplay Productions. His brother, a fan of the RPG, urged him to give it a try. “I was at Bethesda when [Fallout] came out. My brother played it first,” he recalled. “He said, ‘Have you played Fallout?’ I replied, ‘I haven’t had the chance yet.’ He insisted, ‘You’ve gotta play it.'” True to form, Howard did what any sibling might do: “I actually stole his disc and never gave it back.” It’s a funny story, but it also marked the beginning of Howard’s deep appreciation for Fallout. “I loved the vibe of that game,” he noted.

Howard elaborated on how Fallout distinguished itself from other post-apocalyptic RPGs, mentioning influences like Gamma World and Wasteland. “I’ve always been fascinated by the rules of a world, and the way the game played, along with the world’s vibe, was just brilliant and unique.”

He wrapped up by praising the iconic Vault Boy from the original game, admitting he “played it to death.” It makes you wonder if his brother ever asked for that copy back—especially now that the story is out in the open. Both of them likely have plenty of Fallout games in their collections now that Bethesda has the franchise and Howard has been at the helm since Fallout 3, but still, it’s the principle of the thing.

Bethesda knows that putting Switch 2’s Indiana Jones on a physical cartridge is a bold move, but it still can’t resist locking Fallout 4 and Oblivion Remastered to code-in-box launches.