Fallout 4 Trailer Analysis: What We Know About the Game

Fallout 4 has officially been announced, and it’s coming for Xbox One, PS4 and PC — although, no release date has been revealed yet. Since Bethesda will be hosting their first ever press conference at E3 this year, expect to see plenty more of the game at the event.

In case you haven’t seen the trailer yet, it’s included below. Give it a watch before heading past the break, where we’ll dive in and strip it apart frame by frame.

Where Does It Take Place?

It is never expressly disclosed where Fallout 4 is going to take place, but we do get a hint of the next location in a few scenes which we’ll take a look at now.

Fallout 4 Vault 111

First things first, the player character needs to escape the vault where they’ve been hiding away for years. It looks like this time around we’ll be a proper resident of Vault 111 unless this is another vault opening in a later scene of the game. It doesn’t make sense that this would be a different vault because from what we can see this is a vault opening from the inside.

As for where Fallout 4 is going to take place, it’s definitely in Boston.

Fallout 4 Boston

You may not recognize that golden dome on the left if you’re not from New England, but that’s the Massachusetts State House which was built in 1798. Throughout the course of the trailer, we see several scenes of the city skyline, which are unmistakably reminiscent of Boston Massachusetts.

What Else Do We Know?

Now that’s settled, let’s work our way to the beginning of the trailer and pick it apart frame by frame.

Fallout 4 first reveal

Oh, what a glorious blast from the past. Take note of the Blast Radius board game on the table there,  that’s a nice little nod to the nuclear fallout that caused the desolation.

Fallout 4 Androids are back

Here, we see a shot of the Type-II Mister Handy, which in this screenshot is no doubt a civilian based model. We know this type of robot from Fallout 3 and New Vegas, or more importantly we know Mister Gutsy who was a militarized version of this robot.

Fallout 4 companions are back

Companions are back! I refuse to name my furry friend anything other than “Mr. Snuggles”.

Fallout 4 desolate wasteland

Here’s our first shot of the wasteland we’ll be exploring. It’s good to see the barren countryside in contrast to the high-rise city buildings we see later on. It’s clear Fallout 4 will have some diverse environments — as is canon for the series.

Fallout 4 war never changes

Ron Perlman is back, and so is his beloved narration! War never changes.

Update: If you pay attention during this scene, you can see people being denied access to the vault.

Fallout 4 player character waking up

That’s our player character climbing out of the vault for the first time and breathing in the grungy, open air. Leaving the vault in Fallout 3 was one of the most amazing experiences ever in the history of video games — the world was truly your oyster after that point — let’s hope Fallout 4 will give us the same sense of wonder and nostalgia.

Fallout 4 further Boston proof

In case you needed any more proof that Fallout 4 is set in Boston, that’s a shot of the Bunker Hill Monument. I wonder if anyone made a base there. Think it’s the Enclave?

Fallout 4 scavenger ship

That may well be the USS Constitution, repurposed into a scavenger outpost or town hub. It’s difficult to tell, considering we don’t see any inhabitants in this shot. What do you think?

Fallout 4 Memory Den screen cap

Here we are, finally in the seedy underbelly of Boston. Notice the Memory Den sign illuminated on the left, it’s likely a wasteland pub of some kind. On the unlit green sign, you can make out “Scollay” which is indicative of the Scollay Square in Boston.

Update: A reader (thanks for the tip VividChim) pointed out another interesting theory making the rounds. The shady character we see in the middle of the street might actually be the Mysterious Stranger.

In previous games, this unnamed character will appear if you have chosen the “Mysterious Stranger” perk, which results in a stranger — who looks a lot like the man above — appearing during battles to offer aid.

His left hand looks to be altered in some way. Perhaps it is some kind of augmentation or enhancement? The Mysterious Stranger is known to carry a unique .44 magnum. Maybe the enhancement has something to do with that, like improving his aim, for instance?

Fallout 4 antenna and Oxen

That antenna is most likely for a local radio broadcast.

Fallout 4 mutants of the wasteland

That’s a pair of super mutants, good to see they’ll make a return.

Fallout 4 wasteland scavenger

That view! Those graphics! My heart… it’s giving out due to excitement overload.

That’s a slightly updated Protectron robot created by the RobCo corporation.

Fallout 4 new enemy beast

What the hell is that thing? It’s some kind of new baddie, a mutated creature no doubt.

UPDATE: As several readers pointed out, this appears to be a redesign of the Deathclaw, which did appear in previous games. Thanks everyone!

Fallout 4 transport vehicle

That’s a Brotherhood of Steel transport, and just a couple scenes later we see a member in power armor looking out upon the Boston skyline.

Galaxy News Fallout 4

Update: A reddit user pointed out that in the scene where the Brotherhood member is looking out of the transport, you can see the Galaxy News logo. I didn’t catch this the first time around. Previously, it was called Galaxy News Radio (GNR), but here the logo is GNN — that’s because GNR is a subsidiary of the Galaxy News Network.

This could also mean that Three Dog will make a comeback. He’s the radio host and DJ of GNR in Fallout 3.

Fallout 4 mutated humans

Mutants — yes those are Ghouls — will be just as much a problem in Fallout 4 as they were in previous games.

Fallout 4 Fenway Park

That’s Fenway Park and it’s been converted into a base of some kind. Notice the statue of a baseball player off to the right?

Fallout 4 Town hub

This is our first glimpse of a major wasteland town hub outside of the city. It looks just like some of the sprawling towns we encountered in Fallout 3 and New Vegas.

Update: I didn’t notice this before, but this place is called Diamond City. It’s most likely been named so because it’s sitting right next to Fenway Park which you can see in the background if you look close enough. Those are the stadium lights hovering in the distance. That also means, this probably isn’t that far outside Boston.

Fallout 4 blimp

That’s a Brotherhood of Steel airship flying over the city.

Oh, and that statue is Paul Revere immortalized for his infamous midnight ride. If you don’t know your history, he’s the guy that is said to have shouted the message “the British are coming.” Here’s an interesting note from a history buff, he didn’t actually shout that during his ride. In case you haven’t figured it out by now, I’m originally from New England.

Moving on.

Fallout 4 Nuka Cola machine

Nuka-Cola machines are back!

Fallout 4 power armor and vault bot bobble

There’s the Brotherhood of Steel power armor they are known for, and off to the left you’ll notice a Vault Boy bobblehead. This garage seems to be some sort of base, perhaps it’s a customizable player home? Wouldn’t that be something? Notice all the weapons attached to the pegboard, and you can see the barrel of a chaingun sticking out from underneath that cloth on the left.

Update: As a reader pointed out (thanks Steven), the set of armor we see isn’t actually the full set of power armor. It has elements of the standard T-47 set, but the left leg and arm are different. This could have something to do with augmentations or enhancements, the armor might have been repaired using available scraps or possibly we’ll be able to customize our own armor.

Fallout 4 Pip Boy

Update: A new Pip-Boy! You’ll notice that even though it’s upside down here the buttons are on the right side of the screen this time. It doesn’t include the same labels as the Pip-Boy 3000. Is this a militarized version of the device or has it just been updated?

Fallout 4 into the wasteland

Finally, we close out with the all familiar shot of the player character and his furry companion heading out into the wasteland. You can just make out the Boston skyline in the distance.

I’m officially hyped for this game. What about you?

 

Did you catch any juicy goodies that I didn’t? Feel free to point them out in the comments!

34 Comments

  1. I’m almost certain 111 is the vault. It says 111 on his outfit at the end.

    Also, has anyone read the claims by the ex Bethesda employee from a yr ago. Spot on…and that means if she was 100% right, she gave a ton of info Bethesda still hasn’t released…like that it’s voiced, and you can only be a male during the story portion. The map is 3x bigger than Skyrim.

    The strangest bit of info was that it’s coming to ps3 and 360 at a later date, and that there’s a spinoff coming next yr. The next gen version uses a new engine, but last gen uses F3 engine and assets. Who knows?

    1. I have seen the claims. It’s possible some of the things she mentions have changed since then. That said, the player character clearly speaks at the end of the trailer. The PC is a male here. Finally, the scenes are pretty diverse indicating there might be a few different environments or areas to explore so the map could be big.

      Guess we’ll see. Hopefully, we see enough of the game at E3 to answer a lot of these questions.

      Thanks for the comment!

  2. Diamond City is built INSIDE the baseball stadium, it’s on the pitch! Hence the name, ‘diamond’ city, this is noticeable because behind the tall shacks toward the left/center of the Diamond City skyline, you can see a second floodlight.

    In the shot of the workshop at the end, the wall doesn’t have weapons hanging from it, it has a laser rifle and what look like several attachments; sights, scopes, etc.

    Also in the same shot, notice the board on the right of the armor set? This looks like it has the game’s perks displayed on it. (Eg: The ‘Grim Reaper’ perk is shown in the bottom left of the board.

    Again also in the same shot, notice the skill magazines? we can see Grognak the Barbarian and the others aren’t distinguishable but I thought I’d point it out.

    Thanks for reading!

  3. There’s a good chance imo that the “Memory Den” is what allows you to play in the pre-fallout world and relive its last moments. We already know this technology exists from Fallout 3.

  4. I’m also pretty sure I saw a Mirelurk in the trailer, in what looks like a beach/boardwalk scene. I’ll have to look at it again.

    I’m from New England as well. I’m 46 years old, and I have never felt this way about a video game announcement before. FO3 and NV are my two favorite games and I love anything post-apocalyptic. How lucky am I that I’m going to get to walk though a Fallout game that takes place in my old stomping grounds of the Back Bay??

    Just psyched beyond words.

  5. I’m pretty sure that the repair shop will be a player home. Just go to fallout4.com, download the photo with the button that’s below the pre-order link, zoom in and you can see some serious shit. There’s a PipBoy on the left, lots of guns and ammo, food and other crafting material (eg. Abraxo Cleaner), a workbench plus a bunch of skill magazines, a bed, a dog bowl next to the Nuka Cola vending machine. There’s a safe behind the ammo boxes too. And the Brotherhood of Steel Power Armor is clearly a work in progress, you can see the left leg armor on the floor in front of the minigun.

  6. The armor is T-47 and the arm augmentation appears to be an intergrated powerfist. Not sure about the leg at all. since this is the common wealth the guy near the streetlight could be many things up to including an android or a regular human with a cybernetic limb. Just thoughts. At the end of the day I’m just guessing and hoping it comes out soon. I need my fallout fix. I’m currently playing TTW to pass the time.

    1. Thanks for sharing!

      You mignt be right about the mysterious guy since the game takes place in Boston they’re probably going to play up the Android side of things especially since MIT is their birthplace.

  7. It’s not coming out before 2016. I think Bethesda is now polishing the game. 3rd pic from last, Dogmeat’s eyes coming out of socket. But at the end of the day, graphics, glitches, nothing matter. It’s FALLOUT and I’m ready to pay whatever it takes to play the game. 🙂
    Thank You Bethesda, thanks for hearing the echoes of fallout fans.

      1. I think it will be out by Xmas. Todd Howard has stated he wouldn’t drag out a release. Also they’re not porting it to old consoles, so no time wasted there. Obviously we can see they didn’t move to some great new graphics engine, while the areas look great, the people are still kind of bland and blocky moving, perhaps made with basically the Skyrim engine. Just from the trailer, they don’t seem to be veering far from the fallout 3 world, which is fine, but they probably don’t need another whole year to fine tune it.

        1. A Christmas release would be sweet.

          It definitely looks like the Skyrim Creation engine, which I don’t believe is a bad thing. I know I’ve seen a lot of people harping on the graphics and visuals already via social media. Let’s hope it’s not as buggy as the Gamebryo engine, which — if it is the Creation engine — there’s no reason why it should be.

          Edit: Yes, I’m aware Creation is like an updated version of Gamebryo.

  8. A lot of people seem to believe that the man in the light by the “Memory Den” is the Mysterious stranger @PulpCultured on Twitter noticed something which I found interesting is that if you look, he has a mechanical hand. some kind of augmentation/enhancement option maybe possible, just a thought

    1. Thanks for the comment! That is an interesting theory. You get the feeling from that scene that he does have some significance in the world other than being shady.

  9. “What the hell is that thing? It’s some kind of new baddie, a mutated creature no doubt.”

    Uh, no, that is definitely a Deathclaw.

  10. As everyone else mentioned, that monster is a Deathclaw. The mutants are Ghouls. The power armor in the player base is a T-47 but with different left leg and left arm (perhaps from another power armor, perhaps being repaired).

    The new rifle outside the player base…… looks like a combination of a rifle and a laser rifle being mounted on top of the rifle body. Strange but cool idea.

  11. I think it’s a deathclaw in one of the pics.
    And that the player has spoken lines creates all kinds of dreamy hope!

    1. Thanks for the comment! It certainly does, though it’s obvious that character is a placeholder. I wonder what kind of customization options we’ll have this time?

  12. That “thing” was a Deathclaw, former terror of the wastes, one of the most feared creatures in the Fallout Universe. Has this guy ever actually played Fallout?

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