Fallout 4 release date rumours: Fallout 4 countdown timer started
Update 2nd June: Bethesda has started a countdown on its website which will end at 3pm tomorrow (3rd June) which looks like it will be the Fallout 4 reveal. Keep an eye on this page for all the details as it happens. The only snag is that there's a small chance the announcement could be for remastered versions of the existing games for next-gen consoles.
As with many games which have multiple releases as part of a series, there is a story behind the Fallout titles. Fallout hasn't been officially announced but there is plenty of rumour and speculation on the game to look at. See also: Fallout New Vegas: Dead Money review
The first two Fallout games were created by Interplay Entertainment and developed by Black Isle Studios. They were released way back in 1997 and 1998 respectively. Skip forward to 2004 and Bethesda Softworks licensed the rights to create and publish three Fallout games from Interplay Entertainment - Fallout 3, Fallout: New Vegas, and Fallout 4.
In 2007, Bethesda purchased the entire franchise and there was a legal dispute over Fallout Online (Project V13) with Interplay which is now settled and we will leave there. But what happened to Fallout 4
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Well, in 2008, Bethesda's Pete Hines said: "The whole reason we went out and acquired the license and that we now own Fallout is that we clearly intended to make more than one." He also added: "This is not something we're going to do once and then go away and never do it again. When that will be or how long that will be God only knows, but we acquired it specifically because we wanted to own it and develop it and work on it like we do with The Elder Scrolls."
The website 'Survivor 2299' got a lot of people talking about Fallout 4 but we later revealed to be a hoax. However, slightly more concrete evidenced has been obtained by Kotaku in form of casting documents (below).
They reference a project code-named 'Institute' and although Fallout isn't mentioned by name, there are references to settings and locations. Possibly most important is the inclusion of the words "War. War never changes", which is the classic introduction to previous Fallout titles.
Not only does this confirm the next game is in development, but it also includes the fact that Fallout 4 will be set, at least in part, in Boston. The script describes a mission in which a character called Preston Garvey requests you find a fusion core from a museum in the Commonwealth.
Although it seems fairly certain that Fallout 4 is in development, it's unclear as to when it will actually launch. This year seems like a good bet since Bethesda is likely to have been working on Fallout 4 since the completion of The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim back in 2011. We're putting our money on the second half of 2014 and expect to see it launch on at least PS4 and Xbox One.
If we hear more then we'll let you know so keep an eye on this page for further updates.
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