The Fallout series may mostly be recognized as a series of first-person RPGs but one group of talent fans is dredging up the past with an astonishing remake of the franchise’s most underrated entry. Before Bethesda took over the post-apocalyptic series, developer Black Isle created the lore and world that most fans are familiar with today. While Fallout 2 may not be as popular as the original game or its genre-bending sequels, the charming isometric game is still worthy of love, evidenced by an incredible project to remake the whole experience for modern audiences.
Over on YouTube (via PCGamesN), a team of talented creators shared a video of Fallout 4: Project Arroyo, a ground-up remake of Fallout 2 built into the highly-customizable engine of the series’ fourth mainline installment.
The showcase spotlights a comparison view of the mod, highlighting locations as they appeared in the original game with a top-down perspective against the first-person view of reimagining. Plenty of small details like the sign for Rose’s Bed & Breakfast and the skeleton rotting a pool of radioactive material demonstrate the painstaking attention Project Arroyo is aiming to achieve.
When it comes to providing an authentic Fallout 2 remake, the team behind Project Arroyo is doing its best to give fans the experience they want. This includes re-recording all dialogue, adding in cut content alongside some new features created specifically for the mod, and even recreating the soundtrack, the original of which can’t be used for copyright reasons. Given the amount of time and energy needed to pull off something of this scale, it’s safe to say the Fallout 4: Project Arroyo mod won’t be released any time soon so the developers will provide updates whenever they can.
As for Fallout 2, the game is still available to play on most modern systems but it is admittedly a little dated. Despite its age, it’s still an excellent title that manages to be both familiar yet endearingly different as developer Black Isle Studios leaned more heavily into the zany aspect of the retro-futurist aesthetic. The community is divided on whether the emphasis on these sillier aspects was a good idea but even beyond this division, Fallout 2‘s core RPG mechanics allow for a substantial amount of player expression.
It may not have the sprawling cinematic appeal of something like Fallout 4 but Fallout 2 is definitely still worth checking out. Players who can look past the clunky controls and isometric view will be rewarded with an engaging experience that focuses on impactful decisions, compelling writing, and fun characters. Otherwise, it might be worth just holding out until Fallout 4: Project Arroyo drops but who knows when that’ll be.
Source: Fallout 4: Project Arroyo/YouTube, PCGamesN