Ahead of the last episode’s release, the strange little clock on the Fallout show’s site has hit zero. The reveal? A room with a view. It’s the Lucky 38’s penthouse in 3D, and that’s all it is. No surprise remaster drops, no surprises at all, just marketing material.
It doesn’t mean that remasters are off the table, after all Bethesda has had a Fallout 3 remaster on the books for years, but for now, the hype train has stalled.
Bethesda has removed the countdown from the official Season 2 website and replaced it with access to a new interactive 3D location tied to the show. The update confirms what dataminers had already uncovered: the timer was not leading to a game reveal, remake confirmation or any major news from Bethesda Game Studios. Instead, it unlocked a browser-based environment that functions as promotional world-building connected to the series.
A TV Tie-In, Not a Game Tease
If we’re all being real, the chances that their little tie-in website was going to drop some of the biggest gaming news of the year were slim. Slim to none. The countdown was tiny, and labelled the Lucky 38 “Location 4”, like we didn’t know what the location was already.
All it has unlocked is a cute way to explore the Lucky 38 Penthouse. The countdown was just to avoid spoilers. Chances are, Bethesda had nothing to do with it at all, it was probably Amazon’s marketing team. That said, all the hype might’ve been enough to wake Bethesda up to the call for remasters, and put Fallout 3’s all-but-confirmed remaster higher on the to-do-list.
All That Hype For A Crashed Browser
Not only is the reveal disappointing, it’s a little broken too. Anyone who actually wanted to see the 3D location might just crash their browser (it’s ultra RAM-heavy). If you’re willing to try your luck, here’s the link:
https://fallout-s2.amazonstudios.com/#/penthouse
Where the Remaster Rumours Stand Now
They’re not off the table, promise. There’s just no official word, or even hints about them. The Fallout: New Vegas Remastered rumour is even less likely, since at least the Fallout 3 remaster was leaked via court documents. The only thing a New Vegas remaster has going for it is the fact that it shares a lot of code and assets with Fallout 3.
If we look at the one piece of evidence we have, it’s possible that a Fallout 3 remaster will release this year. Oblivion Remastered dropped two years after it was supposed to (FY22 to FY24. Even then, it looks like it won’t be until the second half of this year (and then it’ll be competing with big names like Fable and GTA6, so it could be delayed).
Dev Rumours and Insider Reports
Todd Howard, Bethesda’s big boss, has said that he knows fans want the remasters. He’s also said, that they’re “working on a whole bunch of stuff” and he’s looking forward to saying more. Confirmation or not, he’s not denying anything, and at the very least, we can assume that there’s something in the pipeline for fans.
Release Timing and Shadow Drop Speculation
Insiders have been firing off rumours and speculation left and right about when a remaster could drop. That said, it appears to be all fluff. Insider Jez Corden has said resolutely that nothing is “imminent”.
And since nothing has dropped with the tv show, we have no clear dates to expect a drop (after all, Oblivion dropped without announcement on April 22).
Conclusion: No News, But No Bad News Either
Like the Stranger Things countdown from last month, this one has turned out to be nothing at all. That doesn’t mean Fallout 3 and New Vegas remasters are off the table, Fallout 3’s is as close to a sure thing as we ever get in gaming rumours. Either this year or next we’ll likely see it, then a New Vegas remaster soon after (expect at least a year between the two, so the two don’t compete for sales).