Bethesda said remaster—not remake
After years of rumors, Bethesda has finally said it. Its July 17 studio roadmap confirms that Fallout 3 and Fallout: New Vegas remasters are in development. There is no date, platform list, price or studio assignment for either one.
The important word is remaster. Bethesda never calls them remakes and does not define how much the 2008 and 2010 games will change. They may follow The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion Remastered, but that is only a possibility for now. Nothing has been promised about rebuilt graphics, redesigned combat, new content or mod support.
Bethesda Game Studios made 2008's Fallout 3, which moved the series into a first-person open world. Obsidian Entertainment followed with New Vegas in 2010. The screenshots on this page come from those original releases; Bethesda has not published any image from either remaster.
Obsidian is back too, but do not call it New Vegas 2 just yet
The New Vegas remaster is not Obsidian's only return. Bethesda also confirmed a new Fallout collaboration with the studio. It is tempting to call it New Vegas 2, but the roadmap lists it separately and gives the new project no title, date or genre.
Todd Howard told Windows Central that both studios had been looking for the right opportunity to work together. He would not identify the engine or platforms. For now, there is a remaster of the 2010 RPG and a separate new Fallout from Obsidian. Everyone wants to know whether they will eventually share more than a setting.
Fallout 5 exists, but The Elder Scrolls VI comes first
The same roadmap places Fallout 5 at a very early stage. Bethesda is building it on Creation Engine 3, its new shared technology platform, but describes the sequel as a long-range destination. The Elder Scrolls VI is the studio's primary focus and has most of the team behind it. Fallout 5 is official; it is not Bethesda's next major release.
Creation Engine 3 is named only for The Elder Scrolls VI and Fallout 5. The announcement does not connect it to either remaster or Obsidian's project. Assigning that technology to any of those three games would add a promise Bethesda never made.
Fallout 76 is the only game in the announcement with a firm year attached. Raven Rock, a 2027 expansion, will tell a prequel story connected to Fallout 3. Bethesda has not named a month, although the Washington and Enclave setting gives the publisher a new story to pair with the return of its 2008 RPG.
Bethesda now has four Fallout fronts open: keep 76 alive, start Fallout 5, revive two classics and collaborate with Obsidian. There is a lot of Fallout in production, even if almost all of the new work remains undated.
Everything we still need to know before paying
Bethesda has not said whether the remasters are coming to PC, Xbox, PlayStation or Nintendo. We also do not know whether they include every expansion, preserve saves and mods, ship on disc or offer an upgrade path for existing owners. Fallout 3: Game of the Year Edition and Fallout: New Vegas remain on Steam, but their current listings do not mention the new versions.
The expansion question matters. Fallout 3 has five—Operation: Anchorage, The Pitt, Broken Steel, Point Lookout and Mothership Zeta—while New Vegas adds Dead Money, Honest Hearts, Old World Blues, Lonesome Road and more. A complete remaster should bundle the lot, but Bethesda has not promised it.
Game Pass also looks likely because Bethesda belongs to Xbox, but it remains unconfirmed. Our current service guide only includes games with known dates and plans.
The good news is that both games are coming back. The bad news is that we still do not know when, where or in what shape. Bethesda has opened the door; now we wait for the first trailer. We will track it in INSERT FUTURE's Gaming channel.
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