Bethesda Game Studios: Embracing Fun Over Realism in Fallout Development

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While crafting the post-apocalyptic world of Fallout 3, Bethesda Game Studios discovered that strict adherence to realism doesn’t always lead to enjoyable gameplay.

In a retrospective chat, longtime Bethesda designer and writer Emil Pagliarulo shared that the studio initially envisioned a fully underground metro system for Fallout 3’s Washington DC map.

“We realized it was just too sprawling. It was too big,” he noted. “We had to cut down sections, and it’s a lesson we’ve learned over the years: that being realistic sometimes isn’t fun. Realism can be enjoyable depending on the game, but navigating endless underground subway stations is realistic, but not very fun.”

Unless you’re diving into a simulation where realism is key, traversing a 1:1 replica of the real world can be quite tedious. Fortunately, by the time Fallout 3 was in development, Bethesda had become adept at discarding ideas that didn’t fit, helping to prevent feature creep.

There’s been plenty happening in the wasteland lately, too. Bethesda has mentioned it’s “looking into” adding cross-play for Fallout 76, though it seems this feature won’t arrive anytime soon. Remasters of Fallout 3 and New Vegas are reportedly still in the works. Plus, we now know that Fallout season 3 will explore a location previously seen only in Fallout Tactics: Brotherhood of Steel.

As a fan of every Fallout game, here are the best NPCs I hope to see in the upcoming Amazon show.