Fallout 5 was first mentioned back in 2021 with Bethesda studio director Todd Howard revealing there was one page design document. Since then, Howard has gone on to say that the studio plans to work on the next rad-filled adventure after the developer's other's highly anticipated project, Skyrim sequel The Elder Scrolls 6, which means we can expect to be in for a long wait until we see this upcoming Bethesda game arrive.
While we won't see the next Fallout game arrive anytime soon, at least we have the launch of The Elder Scrolls 4: Oblivion Remastered to satiate us while we wait for Bethesda's new adventures, along with the shiny current-gen upgrade for Fallout on PS5 and Xbox Series X/S, or the Fallout 4 conversion mod, Fallout: London - both of which came our way back in 2024.
Even though it's early days, there's already a lot of excitement surrounding the prospect of Fallout 5, which has already become one of the biggest new games in the works. And with some little hints out there about its direction, along with interviews with Howard that we can't help but unpick, we've brought together everything that's been said and what we glean about Fallout 5 below, along with our own wishlist for the direction of the RPG.
Fallout 5: What we know so far
Fallout 5 release date speculation
It's unlikely we'll see a Fallout 5 release date anytime soon, but with Fallout 5 confirmed, we can at least speculate its release window. Currently, all signs point towards a 2030 release at the very earliest.
Right now, Bethesda is firmly set on The Elder Scrolls 6 as its next major port of call. This comes off the back of Oblivion Remastered's shadowdrop launch on April 22, 2025, which was made in tandem with Virtuos Studios.
During a 2024 interview with Variety, Todd Howard also told fans that it takes a good five years to make a new Fallout game. "Games take a good five-ish years," he explained. "So, we’re in plans for future games in this series, and nothing to talk about right now, but we’re always planning."
With that in mind, Fallout 5 is unlikely to come out before 2030 since Elder Scrolls is only aiming to be completed sometime (very optimistically) in 2026. While that seems like a long way off, it will at least give us all the time to replay the best Fallout games in preparation for the new title.
Fallout 5 platform speculation
Previous Fallout games have landed on PC, Xbox, and PlayStation consoles across the board, with Fallout 4 being treated to a standalone VR version for the HTC Vive, Windows Mixed Reality, and Valve Index.
Whether or not this broad support will apply to Fallout 5 in the long term remains to be seen. But the new Fallout game should follow in the footsteps of its immediate forerunners - Starfield and The Elder Scrolls 6. This means we suspect that it'll first arrive on Game Pass, Xbox Series X, and PC.
Keep your eyes on this page as we keep you updated. In the meantime you can read our Fallout 4 review and see if you fancy replaying it.
Fallout 5 development
In late 2021, director and executive producer Todd Howard said Bethesda has a "one-pager" for Fallout 5, but it's still a while off. It wasn't much, but it was enough to set the rumor mill alight, with the series' fans speculating en masse about Fallout 5's potential setting, story, and gameplay features.
In a conversation with IGN during E3 2022, Howard also said: "Yes, Elder Scrolls 6 is in pre-production, and, you know, we're going to be doing Fallout 5 after that, so our slate’s pretty full going forward for a while. We have some other projects that we look at from time to time as well... [these games] do take a while. I wish they came out faster, I really do, we’re trying as hard as we can, but we want them to be as best as they can be for everybody."
In other news, executive producer of the Fallout TV show Jonathan Nolan teased that the hit Amazon Prime series is like Fallout 5 itself. Now, obviously, the show and the upcoming game aren't connected directly, but Nolan has had conversations with Howard, and we assume that the stories won't be overlapping. This means that we are guessing that Fallout 5 will stay far away from any themes and plot threads shown in Fallout season 2.
Interestingly, though, Howard is also said to have stopped some Fallout 5 ideas from appearing in the show, but the showrunners are, of course, keeping those ideas under wraps. We'll keep you posted as more details head our way!
Fallout 5 setting speculation
Since it's still very much early days, we won't know where Fallout 5 will take us for quite some time, but Howard has said that Fallout 5 and future games in the series will mostly be set in the United States. Previous entries have historically taken us to post-apocalyptic versions of cities in the US, from the likes of Boston in Fallout 4, to Washington DC in Fallout 3.
The next RPG looks set to continue down this path, with Howard saying in a Kinda Funny interview that, "my view is — part of the Fallout shtick is on the 'Americana naivete'. And so for us right now it's okay to sort of acknowledge those other areas. But our plan is to predominantly keep it in the US."
The Fallout series has covered quite a bit of ground in the US so far, but there are so many possibilities when it comes to prominent cities Fallout 5 could take place in should it bring us to a new location — which seems likely.
Fallout 5: What we'd love to see
Okay, so everything above is what we know about Fallout 5 at this stage. Everything below is what we want from Bethesda's next foray into the post-apocalypse - all informed by what we feel worked best in previous games, as well as some new additions we think would fit well with the tone and context of the games to this point.
1. Bring back the Karma system
The Karma system has been a mainstay feature in the Fallout series since Fallout 1, but it was one element that didn't make its way into Fallout 4. The karma system really makes you feel like your choices actually have an effect on the world around you. If you go about murdering everyone, you'll get yourself a nasty reputation, and people will view and treat you differently as a result.
It helps to add a deeper level of immersion to the RPG aspect of the series and makes you think twice about the choices you run with. Without Karma, it felt like every choice you made in Fallout 4 only served to change the way your companions view you, which felt a little hollow in comparison to the best RPGs in the series.
2. Keep multiplayer out and bring co-op in
Fallout 76 does have a lot of things things going for it, but The Fallout game series has always been a strong single-player offering. With so many multiplayer games finding their way onto the market, it's hard not to hope Fallout stays true to its roots. Since Howard has already said it will likely be single-player focused, we shouldn't have to worry too much, but it would be great to see co-op play introduced alongside single-player a la Dark Souls 3.
3. A polished and more refined building system
Building settlements in Fallout 4 was a great new feature that finally gave all that junk you find lying around a purpose, but it'd be nice to have this polished and refined so it's a little less clunky in places - although some of the best Fallout 4 settlements have overcome the quirks. Placing big sheets of metal into just the right spot with a controller could sometimes be a bit of an ordeal. While settlement building is a lot of fun, the mechanics and interface could use some fine-tuning to make it less awkward to control come Fallout 5.
4. Give us more dialogue options
Variety is the spice of life, as the saying goes, so we're all for more choice in the new Fallout game. As fun as the sarcastic option could be, the choice of just four options to reply with sometimes felt a little thin in Fallout 4, and while a similar amount of choice was offered in previous titles, it'd be good to see the next offer up an extra helping. Having more choice can't hurt, and it'll just add to the feeling that you're in control of how you want your character to be.
With Starfield returning to the dialogue we've seen in Bethesda games past, there's every chance Fallout 5 will follow suit.
5. Give us a whole new setting to explore
As interesting as the Commonwealth was, we hope Fallout 5 will continue the series trend of introducing us to a new setting. Having a new setting keeps everything feeling fresh and exciting, and it's always interesting to see a new location with Fallout's retro-futuristic flare. From Washington DC in Fallout 3 to New Vegas in Fallout: New Vegas, right up to Boston in Fallout 4, the thought of being able to explore what a new location has to offer makes the thought of the next Fallout all the more enticing.
We can't help but wonder where it might take us next, but from what Howard said it, it looks like we'll be venturing to another part of the US.
Can't wait for the new Fallout game? Check out our list of all the games like Fallout to play while you wait for the next entry in the series.
