Forum:Why is Fallout in a 50's setting?

Because those who made Fallout 1 decided to set it in such a setting. :p TestECull 16:25, April 12, 2010 (UTC)

Well yeah but why?Tezzla Cannon 16:27, April 12, 2010 (UTC)

You'd have to email the guy that wrote the story behind Fo1 to figure out why he chose the setting he chose. I couldn't tell you that, as a matter of fact I've never actually played the first two games.TestECull 16:35, April 12, 2010 (UTC)

Because they wanted too... The only proper answer really. I For one like tha campyness of the jargon and music from the 50's.Azzaman 06:07, April 13, 2010 (UTC)

Because 1950s America can almost be seen as a utopian society, with the working father, the stay-at-home mother, and the 3.2 children and all the fancy new gadgets. Imagine seeing the relics of a utopian society in a post-apocalyptic wasteland, and now you have the setting for Fallout. --MadDawg2552 20:36, April 22, 2010 (UTC)

I wouldn't say it was a utopian society by any means. In fact, I think that's part of the reason it's so interesting is because it posed itself as a utopian society and the culture was extremely innocent, but there were numerous problems that were simply swept aside or hidden. For example, America was in the midst of the Cold War, and many people blatantly bought into the anti-communist propaganda fed to them by the government and media. The Cold War Era was also the period that nuclear war seemed to be a very real threat. Many were convinced that Russia could simply nuke the U.S. if provoked enough. I can't say exactly why this was the period chosen by Fallout, but I think the sheer innocence of the culture combined with the very real threat of nuclear warfare fits what they were trying to do with the game. It's sort of as if to say, "What if the Cold War had ended with nuclear warfare?" Of course, they had to sub the Chinese for the Russians since the Russians aren't communist anymore (though they were the commies in the game, Wasteland). And many characters still retain this sort of innocence coupled with the war propaganda mentality from before the Great War. Vault Boy is an innocent-looking corporate mascot that essentially exists to calm all fears about a nuclear apocalypse, and it gives the game a really dark mood when you see any sort of image of Vault Boy doing something violent, such as the "Bloody Mess" perk, because he's not as innocent as he appears. It also gives the game some originality and particularly Fallout 3 did a great job of using the '50s music to sometimes give either a very lonely feel to the game or to make it a bit creepy like something out of a survival horror series (something similar has been done in the movie, Jeepers Creepers, for instance). --Josh2077