Fallout London creator talks British humour and making 'Fallout 4.5'

The fan-made game Fallout London has been released, and Dean Carter, the lead developer, talks about the inspiration behind the project and why American players might find it surprising.

Five years after Dean Carter first thought of creating Fallout London, and after facing various challenges and setbacks, the ambitious Fallout 4 mod has finally been launched.

GameCentral has already interviewed Carter before the release, where the project leader explained the importance of Fallout London's success, stating, 'If the launch is unsuccessful, we might just call it a day and go to bed.'

Carter has given a detailed explanation about the reasoning behind calling it Fallout 4.5, their choice to incorporate British humor, and the origins of it all back in 2019.

This all began as a simple thought about switching up the buses and imagining how the royal family might appear in the game.

However, the extent of the development has increased significantly. It can now be seen as similar to Fallout 4.5.

Fallout London is a fan-made project that has grown incredibly large, with a map roughly equivalent in size to Fallout 4. It features condensed versions of famous London areas like Westminster, Hackney, and Camden Town. The team has also drawn inspiration from other Fallout games to add depth and detail to their project.

Carter explains that the game is a blend of the storytelling style of Fallout: New Vegas and the gameplay mechanics of Fallout 4. While New Vegas' gameplay hasn't stood the test of time, and Fallout 4's storyline may not be as strong, the team has combined the best elements of both games to create something new.

Even though it started as a mod, Fallout London grew into a massive project, with nearly 100 volunteer developers from the community contributing to it over time. In addition, the mod included around 100 to 130 voice actors, such as Neil Newbon, who voiced Astarion in Baldur’s Gate 3; and John Bercow, famous for his loud calls for 'order!' in the UK House of Commons.

The project began with a basic question that Carter and a friend discussed while he was traveling the world with just a backpack.

We were wondering how it would all begin. It got us thinking and planning, especially when waiting at the airport or bus stop. I started jotting down ideas, and when the pandemic came, we finally started making our ideas a reality.

Although the concept was first introduced in 2019, actual progress did not start until 2020. Unfortunately, the project got off to a rocky start and almost a whole year was wasted.

This project started from the bottom up. When Covid hit, we found ourselves with a lot of free time and no idea what to do. We were brainstorming and trying to figure out how to make the most of being stuck in lockdown.

We often jokingly call it our "crayon-eating year," a time when everything is unfamiliar and you're navigating new systems and working with strangers for the first time.

"Then we decided to completely abandon our previous work and begin anew because we understood that we hadn't established a solid base and truly didn't comprehend what we were doing, and it was terrible. So, after discarding our past year of work, the current one we have is the result of our efforts from 2021 onwards," Carter explains.

While dark humor played a significant role in the original Fallout games before Bethesda took over, it is not as prominent or effective in Fallout 3 and 4. However, Fallout London is intentionally designed to be a more humorous game.

Carter and his team decided to add a British touch to their work, acknowledging that Americans might be surprised by the change.

Many Americans were eagerly anticipating... We have received numerous comments expressing the desire for an Americanized version or subtitles. Some jokes may not be easily understood because they are deeply rooted in British humor.

"We really think we've captured the essence of British culture with this caricature. The whole series revolves around this theme. It's usually centered on Americana, but now we're focusing on Britishism," he explains, chuckling.

After five years of brainstorming, Fallout London is finally a reality. The team spent three years revamping the original idea and now Fallout 2.0 is available for all to enjoy.

Fallout London offers something new for fans of the Fallout series who are looking for a story set outside of the United States. Todd Howard, the head of Bethesda and the director of the last two games, has stated that the franchise will always remain centered in America.

Carter mentioned that the Bethesda incident was a difficult challenge to face. The developer released an update for Fallout 4 shortly before the planned launch of Fallout London, causing the fan project to be postponed because it rendered the mod unplayable.

The community-driven project has faced some challenges, but Carter stands by it and has no regrets.

All our team members are unpaid volunteers who have a deep love for Fallout and creating games. Their commitment is truly motivating.

Creating Fallout London has been an amazing adventure filled with imagination, collaboration, and determination. It has been a project we have poured our hearts into, bringing together a group of skilled people connected by their love for the Fallout world.

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There are some Fallout 4 fans who are requesting Bethesda to stop making updates to the game because it is causing mods to become unusable once again.

In a recent incident, a Fallout 76 player launched a nuclear attack on Phil Spencer's virtual camp in the game after hearing about layoffs at Xbox.

Additional: Hardcore Fallout: New Vegas enthusiasts joke with beginners by guiding them into perilous situations.

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