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Xbox and Bethesda's legendary Fallout series is one of the biggest and most popular RPG franchises of all time, but one of its major titles isn't actually an RPG at all. That game is Fallout Shelter, a fan-favorite, free-to-play construction and management simulator that's been running since 2015 — the same year Fallout 4 launched.
Fallout Shelter has been available on the mobile platforms iOS and Android since release, with Xbox, PlayStation, and PC versions coming later. The console versions don't get patches anymore, and neither did the PC one for a long time. Now, though, both the Steam and mobile versions have been updated with Viva New Vegas — the first of many "Seasons" Bethesda has planned for this 10-year-old title.
Inspired by the setting of Season 2 of the Fallout TV show (now debuting a day early) as well as Obsidian Entertainment's acclaimed 2010 entry in the series Fallout: New Vegas, Viva New Vegas is a seasonal content update that tasks you with building, maintaining, and upgrading an entirely new Vault in the iconic early-game New Vegas location Novac.
Notably, the Vault in Novac is completely separate from your main one, and as you build it, characters from the TV series like Lucy, Maximus, and The Ghoul will visit and "bring you new challenges and quests to revitalize New Vegas." Completing these will net you "weapons, outfits, recipes and more," with rewards also available through progression of Viva New Vegas' Season Pass. These will transfer to your main Vault, also.
Rewards can also be won from Lucky Spins, a feature added "in true Vegas fashion" with which you can spin a wheel using Poker Chips earned as quest rewards or found as random loot during quests. Depending on what the wheel lands on, you can win Bottle Caps currency, supplies for the Vault Dwellers you send out on expeditions, and other rewards.
Bethesda first announced Fallout Shelter Seasons in October, noting that they're "Inspired by the definitely not highly unethical experiments Vault-Tec performed on the different Vaults," and that they're special limited-time adventures players can embark on to take on challenges and earn rewards as they progress.
"In the past ten years, we’ve seen so much content that people have created online for Fallout Shelter," commented the game's production director Veronique Bruneau. "People sharing their ‘perfect layouts’ and tips and tricks for other players. Even I’ve gotten some unexpected advice from players online. I’m really looking forward to seeing what you’ll do with all the new stuff we’re going to be adding to the game!"
The developer notes that additional Seasons announcements are planned "over the coming months," making it clear that Viva New Vegas is the first of many. It's unclear when it's scheduled to end right now, but I'm sure Bethesda will let fans know in well in advance of that date.
As for what future Seasons will entail and be themed around, I wouldn't be surprised to see content inspired by other Fallout games like Fallout 3 or Fallout 76, and perhaps some of the unique stories of the Vaults that you can come across in those games, too. Note that all of these titles are playable through Xbox Game Pass on either Xbox or PC.
Considering that Fallout Shelter has had a staggering 230 million players since its launch in 2015, it's good to see that Bethesda is still supporting the title with new content. It's also nice that the PC version has been updated to have parity with the mobile ones, and hopefully the console versions get patched in a similar manner soon.
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