Classic Games Database
ClassicGames DB

Fallout

Review
Also known as
FO1 Fallout: A GURPS Post-Nuclear Adventure Fallout: A Post-Nuclear Role-Playing Game Fallout: Ein postnukleares Rollenspiel Vault 13: A GURPS Post-Nuclear Adventure 異塵餘生 辐射

This post-apocalyptic RPG challenges you to find a water chip in 150 days using deep character skills and perks.

Fallout was originally released for MS-DOS/Windows in 1997 by Interplay Productions, making 1997 the earliest commercial release year for both the DOS version and the original game.

About Fallout

Fallout is a role-playing game set after a global nuclear war has turned the Earth into a sparsely populated wasteland. The player controls a survivor from an underground Vault who must venture into this dangerous world to find a critical water purification component, under a strict time limit.

Character progression is governed by the S.P.E.C.I.A.L. system, which defines core attributes. These are further developed through a wide array of skills, which cover combat, environmental interaction, and social activities. Players also select traits, which offer mixed benefits and drawbacks, and earn purely beneficial perks at regular intervals, allowing for deep customization of the protagonist's capabilities.

The world is open for exploration from the beginning, with a main plot supported by numerous optional quests. A Karma system records the moral consequences of the player's choices. The design emphasizes player agency, permitting problems to be solved through dialogue and stealth, making it possible to avoid combat entirely, or conversely, to pursue a violently destructive path.

When combat occurs, it is turn-based, using an action point economy for movement and attacks. A notable feature is the ability to target specific enemy body parts. The player can be accompanied by AI-controlled companions who fight in the party but cannot be directly customized.

Fallout Screenshots

10 images
Main menu
The intro is rather short and sparse, but very atmospheric
You can select one of the three pre-generated characters...
...or create your own one. This will also be your character screen in the game. Note the different ratings for attributes and their descriptions
The overseer of your Vault is sending you on your first quest: obtain the water-purifying chip
This is the starting location of the game. You are outside of your Vault for the first time in your life. What lies ahead?..
Looting a corpse to give you a bit of an edge at the start
You begin to explore the wilderness. Travel to known locations or walk anywhere on this map and discover places on your own
You can stop and explore any part of the desert. Here, you are ambushed by a group of cave rats. You attack with your knife
The fearsome scorpion guards an entrance to this shack. I wonder why?..