Fallout 5 is officially in the works, confirmed by Bethesda a few years ago. The team is said to be working on the game, and the project is labeled “active development”. That doesn’t give us much to go on, although we do know that Fallout 5 will be a follow-up to two other Bethesda projects.
Starfield is Bethesda’s first game to be released before Fallout 5, and thankfully, it’s not far off. Plus, we have The Elder Scrolls 6 to look forward to, but this game is even further ahead. We most likely won’t see Fallout 5 for many years to come, depending on how these other projects develop.
Thanks to a few rumors and developer comments, we know a bit about Fallout 5. First, it will be developed using an updated engine, the same one used in Starfield.
While we wait for more information about Fallout 5, you can find all the latest news and rumors on this page. As more information becomes available, this page will be updated.
Fallout 5: get to the point
- What is this? The next installment of the Fallout series
- When can I play it? to be confirmed
- What console will it be on? Probably not a PlayStation
Fallout 5 release date and platform
While there is currently no confirmed release date for Fallout 5, there is a lot of speculation. We’ve seen optimistic predictions, but with Bethesda definitely focusing on Starfield and The Elder Scrolls 6, never mind the game hasn’t even been revealed, we’re not expecting it for a long time.
Right now, we’re expecting Fallout 5’s release date to be many years off, which will really extend the previous seven-year gap between Fallout 3 (2008) and Fallout 4 (2015). Right now, 2025 or later seems more realistic.
It depends on how far Bethesda teams are in each game. However, given that in a November 2021 interview with IGN, Todd Howard said the studio has “a one-page article on Fallout 5” – a broad overview of what they want it to be – we think it’ll be a while before we hear more.
Moreover, talking to IGN (opens in a new tab) in June 2022, Howard confirmed that Fallout 5 would be a Bethesda project after The Elder Scrolls 6. Given that this game is still in pre-production and is likely to be released in a few years, we imagine we can wait a long time for the next Fallout.
Platforms for Fallout 5 have not been confirmed, but we’ll likely see the next Fallout for Xbox Series X, Xbox Series S, and PC. If we’re not looking at next-gen consoles at this point, that is. The PS5, however, is a different matter.
It’s understandable that Microsoft and Bethesda will make this an exclusive due to the former’s purchase of the latter. However, Xbox has said that exclusivity deals for new Bethesda games will be determined on a case-by-case basis, so it’s hard to be sure. At the very least, we should expect Fallout 5 to be an Xbox Game Pass title.
Given that a console’s lifecycle typically lasts around seven years, it seems likely that Fallout 5 will arrive on these systems before next-gen systems are introduced.
Fallout 5 location and setting: where can it be set?
If you’ve ever played a Fallout game, you know how much the American setting of nuclear-ravaged annihilation is loved. All Fallout games have been set in the US state, so it seems obvious that this aspect will not change. For example, Fallout 3 was set in Washington, D.C. while Fallout 4 took place in Boston.
It’d be nice to see Fallout explore different parts of the world, but it might change the game too much and alienate longtime fans who particularly like the setting. You don’t have to look far to see fans discussing and fantasizing about where Fallout 5 will take place.
Here are the most rumored places we’ve heard about so far:
New Orlean
Rumors that the new Fallout game will be set in New Orleans arose after a trademark application forFallout New Orleans (opens in a new tab)was spotted online in 2016. In the end, this list yielded nothing more than five years later, but it could all be a clever bait and swap.
We’ve already visited swampy areas in Fallout, but a game set entirely in the deep south would certainly be an interesting approach.
Chicago
This one is a bit more “out there” in terms of importance. The Windy City game is speculated about only because Fallout: New Vegas fans remember there is a clue to an Enclave outpost in Chicago.
Anywhere else in the world
There’s never been a Fallout game outside of the US, so could Fallout 5 be the one to break that trend? Having a game set in Korea, China, Russia or elsewhere would be a great way to change the look of the entire map and locale. The new installment is a great opportunity to give the franchise a fresh aesthetic.
Fallout 5 multiplayer: will it have?
Multiplayer and online co-op
Every major Fallout game has been single-player only. Fans have probably always loved the idea of wandering around an apocalyptic wasteland with friends, but when Fallout 76 tried to do that, it didn’t go over very well.
Fallout 5 would likely have been created purely as a single-player experience, given how the Fallout 76 team is constantly updating and trying to improve the multiplayer experience on its online service. Given 76’s tumultuous history, Fallout 5 is likely to suffer too much from the “bad” multiplayer. It looks like Bethesda might want to avoid it now.
That doesn’t mean there won’t be some social features. There may be a social system, like we’ve seen in games like Dark Souls and Bloodborne, of leaving messages for other players to give them tips (or troll), but that might be out of place in the world of Fallout.
Fallout 5 news and rumors
Fallout 5 comes after The Elder Scrolls 6
In an interview with IGN (opens in a new tab)Todd Howard has confirmed that Fallout 5 will be Bethesda’s next project after The Elder Scrolls 6.
“Yeah, Elder Scrolls 6 is in pre-production and then we’ll be doing Fallout 5, so our roster is pretty full for a while,” Howard told the publication. “We also have a few other projects that we look at from time to time.”
Work has begun… sort of
Work has begun on Fallout 5, but don’t hold your breath to see it any time soon. speak to IGN (opens in a new tab) in November 2021, With the release of The Elder Scrolls 5: Skyrim Anniversary Edition imminent, Bethesda studio director Todd Howard revealed that a “one-page” design document for Fallout 5 was ready and represents a very early blueprint for what the studio has planned for the game.
Being a “one-page document”, the design document is a high-level outline and therefore not much to share. With Starfield and The Elder Scrolls 6 coming first, it’ll be a while before we hear more about Fallout 5.
As to whether Obsidian – the studio behind the development of the Xbox 360 era Fallout: New Vegas – could have been involved, Howard said: “We’ve been collaborating with other people from time to time. I can’t tell what will happen… If I could wave my hand and have [Fallout 5] out… you know, I’d love to find a way to speed up what we’re doing, but I can’t really say or commit to anything today that’s going to happen when, outside of our tenure, there’s Starfield and then Elder Scrolls 6.”
Fallout 5 new engine
Bethesda has confirmed that they have updated their engine which was previously used to create The Elder Scrolls 4: Oblivion, Fallout 3, Skyrim and even Fallout 4. As we all know, the engine used in these games, the Creation Engine, has been… janky at best. It was full of many animation issues and there was something wrong with all the character designs and movements.
According to Bethesda, this new engine, simply named Creation Engine 2, is being used to create Starfield and The Elder Scrolls 6. According to GameRadar (opens in a new tab)the new engine brings new renders, lighting, animations (hallelujah), landscape system and photogrammetry.
Todd Howard spoke about the engine after Microsoft’s 2021 merger announcement, saying “this has led to our biggest overhaul of the engine since Oblivion, with all the new tech powering our first new franchise in 25 years, Starfield, as well as The Elder Scrolls 6” .