In many instances of video game adaptations, the source material that gamers played through is taken straight from the original game and brought to life on the screen. This strategy has been employed in certain video game adaptations, including last year’s The Last of Us television series on HBO.
The newly released Fallout series on Prime Video, however, tells a completely original story set entirely within the franchise’s existing universe. If you’re looking for one of your favorite Fallout games to take on a new look in TV form, you won’t get that, but you’ll still get a really strong adaptation of everything that makes Fallout, Fallout. Plus, if you’re experienced with the Fallout franchise, you should immediately recognize some of the namedrops and Easter eggs that are littered all throughout the show’s universe.
How the Fallout TV series adapts the post-apocalyptic video game universe
The plot of the new Fallout TV series on Prime Video is not adapted from any existing Fallout game. But fans of the franchise will immediately recognize elements from the Fallout universe in the show.
References to every Fallout game are made in some way or another throughout the series. In the opening moments of the show, a newscast can be heard mentioning the events of Fallout 3’s Operation Anchorage DLC, while the flags of the New California Republic from Fallout New Vegas are shown, as well. A subplot surrounding Vault 33’s struggling water system can also invoke memories of the original Fallout title’s main story, as well as the Project Purity quests from Fallout 3.
While Fallout on Prime Video is not directly based on one of the games, the original story is strong enough on its own, and will likely make many fans of the franchise want to go back and dive into the games, anyway. The show is canon and fits in seamlessly with the Fallout universe. It takes place just a few years after the events of Fallout 4, in the year 2296.
