Bethesda Games Studios admits that it would rather keep the development of the Fallout series in-house than farm it out to other companies. Despite the success of Obsidian’s fan-favorite Fallout: New Vegas, it doesn’t sound like Todd Howard will let anyone near the Wasteland in the near future.
Starting under Interplay Entertainment with Fallout back in 1997, Bethesda purchased the rights of the apocalyptic RPG and has taken the franchise from strength to strength since Fallout 3 in 2008. While the series is very much Bethesda’s baby, let’s remember that the likes of Fallout: New Vegas have shown what Vault Boy can do when not confined under the Bethesda umbrella.
Shattering dreams that Obsidian could develop a Fallout: New Vegas 2, Howard told The Guardian that he is reluctant to let outside influences into the nuclear battlefield, “I wouldn’t say never. [But] now that our company is so big, it’s always better to keep stuff internal … it becomes less likely, but I could never say never.” While it isn’t a definitive no to someone like Obsidian working on another Fallout game, Howard isn’t rushing to offer them the franchise. That being said, he had nothing but praise for the New Vegas team as he admitted, “I thought the Obsidian guys did a fabulous job.”
As Bethesda Softworks concentrated its efforts on The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim, Obsidian made sure that the Fallout name continued to cash in on the success of Fallout 3 while everyone waited for Fallout 4. With Bethesda now bigger than ever and announcing titles like Starfield and The Elder Scrolls VI at this year’s E3, the studio could be accused of taking on too much. Franchises like Wolfenstein have been farmed out to developers at MachineGames, but Howard seems particularly protective over Fallout.
Importantly, Bethesda’s increased workload goes hand-in-hand with having more staff these days. Where Bethesda might have once struggled to juggle so many big IPs, the opening of a studio in Montreal back in 2015 and the rebranding of Austin’s BattleCry Studios to Bethesda Game Studios Austin has undoubtedly taken the pressure off. As E3 showed gaming fans, Bethesda means business with one of the expo’s best presentations.
Before Bethesda announced upcoming MMO Fallout 76, fandom went into overdrive that a New Vegas sequel was in the works. Obsidian may be sidelined for now, but as Bethesda promises Fallout 76 content for years to come and at least another main series entry with Fallout 5, the Wasteland is getting bigger by the day. Screen Rant has already covered why the franchise needs to go back to the Mojave Desert for Fallout: New Vegas 2, but it seems that it will be a long time before Bethesda is willing to take a gamble on the slot machines again.
More: Fan-Made Fallout 4 Mod Is Bigger Than Official DLCs
Source: The Guardian
