In recent years, game developer Bethesda Softworks has released some of the most beloved role-playing games in the industry. Franchises like The Elder Scrolls, Dishonored, DOOM, Prey, and Fallout have all garnered massive followings and provided a healthy return to the company. Among these, one of the most recognized (and at time controversial) series is Fallout, the post-apocalyptic RPG series that began two decades ago in 1997.
With open-worlds to explore, compelling characters to engage with, and unique missions to complete, there have been plenty of opportunities to experience unique and hilarious moments in the Fallout games. Some of these moments have become so ingrained in the Fallout community that they’ve become memes unto themselves. Additionally, Bethesda and its partner developers seem to be well aware of these memes and find fun and unique ways to incorporate them into new games and community discussions.
We collected some of the most unique and interesting Fallout memes that are sure to cause a chuckle among Fallout fans. And for those who haven’t yet played the series, these memes might be enough to drive a play through of the Fallout franchise novel moments.
Here are 19 Hilarious Fallout Moment Only True Fans Will Understand.
Choosing Low Intelligence
At the beginning of each Fallout game, players have the opportunity to choose the characteristics they want most for their in-game character. Players can choose characteristics like Strength, Perception, Charisma, Luck, and Intelligence. The game options and experience can change dramatically based on which perks players decide to place the most points in.
One of the funnier options is to select everything except intelligence, and let the character play through the game (at least the early parts) with low intelligence.
Doing so leads to some rather comical dialogue exchanges, where players can look like total fools to the people they speak with, which in turn leads to funnier conversations. Naturally, as players progress through the game, they will usually increase their intelligence along with the other stats, which improves the quality of the conversations, but it’s still a fun experience for new and veteran players.
Deathclaw Territory
One of the most frightening and tough enemies in the Fallout series is the Deathclaw, a large, agile mutant creature that can often take out players in a couple swipes. The monsters can take a lot of damage and require players to be strategic with their efforts. When players are able to eliminate a Deathclaw, the rewards can be great.
To aid players as they make their way through the Fallout games, the developer has built in a weapon targeting method called V.A.T.S. (Vault-Tec Assisted Targeting System) that allows players to slow down time and aim for the exact part of an enemy's body that will do the most damage. So, as every Fallout player knows, when a Deathclaw appears, it’s time to spam the V.A.T.S. button and get as many shots off on the Deathclaw with the character’s most powerful weapon as possible before the Deathclaw charges the player.
The Path Less Taken
Like many other open-world games, players in Fallout can take nearly any path they choose as they traverse the landscape to fulfill missions. To make the environment interesting, the developers build in large mountains, wide valleys, and numerous natural outcrops for players to enjoy.
While such a large environment is fun to explore for a while, after a time players prefer to get from point A to point B as fast as possible, which usually means heading in a straight line.
The challenge with that is sometimes there’s a mountain in the way. And instead of going around, players will often try to scale the mountain and go over it, even if it ends up taking longer in the end. Sometimes players don’t want to give in, even if they know they’re wrong and there’s an easier way.
No Running Vehicles
Fallout offers players a unique post-apocalyptic world that’s part futuristic technology and part degraded wasteland. Interestingly, despite the fact that there are tons of impressive technological advancements in Fallout (i.e. nuclear bombs that can be shot from a shoulder cannon or high-tech laboratories), the game is conspicuously lacking working vehicles.
It’s almost comical that players can use all kinds of amazing machines and devices to aid their journeys, but can’t find a single working vehicle to cruise around in.
Instead, players are forced to walk or run around the gigantic maps. While this may be a simple design choice by the developers, it’s a notable one that has caused at least a few Fallout players frustration as they trudge across the blank landscape to complete their quests.
Removing the RP from the G
One of the most compelling aspects to the Fallout series is the role-playing experience, where players get to live the life of a post-apocalyptic man or woman in dangerous times. As with most role-playing games (RPGs), much of the fun comes from the story and experience gamers get while playing.
However, many have criticized Bethesda of phoning it in with some of the Fallout (and other title) stories and role-playing mechanics. Games like Fallout 4 and The Elder Scrolls Online have provided mediocre storylines and boring side quests that are often copies of other missions or experiences in the game. Some have speculated that Bethesda has done this to cut back on costs of developing the game or to make it easier for new players to enjoy, but there’s no denying that it removes much of the immersion. Hopefully Bethesda will make the necessary corrections and improvements going forward.
Napping - The Best Medicine
Like any other RPG title, the Fallout games offer players simple ways to improve their health after taking damage in fights with enemies. Players can use medicines they find around the world, or they can simply take a nap.
Obviously, not everything in an RPG game can be realistic or much of the fun would be lost.
But it’s still funny to think that all a player has to do to relieve themselves of the pain that comes with a broken leg or gunshot wound is to lie down for a quick nap. That said, Fallout isn’t the only game that has silly mechanics attached to its health regeneration actions. Other titles have players wrap their arm in a bandage even when they’ve been shot in the leg or pull out an arrow after getting shot by a sniper rifle. So maybe taking a nap to recover from a broken limb isn’t such a bad strategy after all.
Only Bullies Invited
The opening moments of Fallout 3 are unique in that players get to live through the infancy, childhood, and adolescence of their character before kicking off the bulk of the game as an adult. One of the scenes that plays out for the player is a birthday party where the character’s dad has invited a bunch of kids from the underground vault where the player is living.
For some reason, the kids invited to the birthday party aren’t very nice to the player’s character and make the birthday party a bit of a drag. One has to wonder why the character’s dad invited only bullies to the party when there were other, nicer kids in the vault who could have attended. At least it was a character-building experience, right?
Sims Simulator
One of the features introduced in Fallout 4 was the ability for players to build their own town from the scraps and materials they find around the world. For some players, this world-building aspect became the most enjoyable and engaging part of the game.
Some gamers pointed out that they or their friends became so enveloped in building their town that they referred to Fallout 4 as a “$60 Sims Simulator.”
While some may laugh or scoff at the fact that some players preferred the world-building over the actual story of the game, it’s actually a testament to Bethesda for creating an experience that appeals to many different types of gamers. Hopefully it’s something the developer will continue in the future, as long as it doesn’t come at the expense of the core features that made the series so beloved.
Another Settlement Needs Your Help
Shortly after Fallout 4 released in 2015, a new meme surfaced that focused on one of the game’s main characters: Preston Garvey. Early in the game, players meet Garvey and the Minutemen, a civilian militia hell-bent on saving the Commonwealth from thieves and raiders. For the next few hours, Garvey will send players on numerous missions to help settlements around the map, always with the same line about how “another settlement needs your help.”
Naturally, something so repetitive and at times frustrating will become a meme in the gaming world. To make it more ridiculous among gamers, it seems Garvey and the rest of the Minutemen were incapable of doing anything more than send the player on every settlement-saving quest. The good news was those missions provided plenty of experience points and a handful of fun weapons to use against future enemies.
Let’s Eat the Plague Rats
In the Fallout games, players take on a range of creatures and monsters in the post-apocalyptic world. One such creature is the rat, which carries all sorts of diseases and plagues around the Commonwealth. Naturally, one would want to avoid these pests as much as possible, or shoot them on site and leave the area at once.
But sometimes when times are bad, one must do crazy things to survive.
That seems to be the mentality of some in the Fallout games as they cook up those disgusting rats and eat them. Maybe they are hoping to cook out the plague or figure any kind of meat is better than going hungry, but it’s still enough to make one’s stomach churn as they look at the nasty creatures cooking over an open flame.
