Modders Remove Police From Fallout Over Trauma Fears
Even in a nuclear-ravaged wasteland, we still need some sort of structure to stop us from descending into becoming flesh-hungry ghouls. Yes, Bethesda's grim depiction of the human race's future in the Fallout series has the police, or at least, it used to.
Since Interplay brought the first Fallout game to PC in 1997, we've seen the franchise evolve more than most modern series. Going from simplistic RPG to full-blown action-adventure RPG under Bethesda, the police have always been a presence in Fallout. But now, modders are removing them amidst fears of trauma.
Why Has Someone Removed The Police From Fallout?
Click to enlargeDespite Bethesda looking ahead at the confirmed Fallout 5, players are seemingly looking backwards. It's no secret that 2018's Fallout 76 wasn't exactly the hit the developer hoped for, meaning a lot of fans would rather play classics like Fallout 3 and Fallout: New Vegas. Going all the way back to 2008, a new Fallout 3 mod scrubs the police from the Wasteland. The same also goes for Obsidian Entertainment's New Vegas from 2010.
As spotted by PCGamesN, a gamer called UnrealSeptim has a slew of new "No Police Gear" on Nexus Mods. The idea is to make Fallout "more comfortable" for those who have "very real trauma and discomfort regarding police." Explaining why they made the mod, UnrealSeptim said, "I personally harbour no ill will or animosity towards police, however, there are many people who have very real trauma or discomfort regarding police, and for very valid reasons.
"It was for the sake of those people that I created my mods, not because they couldn't play the game without it, but because they might feel more comfortable with it, and I think we all deserve to feel comfortable when we play games. That’s the beauty of mods. We can use them to change the game however we want, until we have the experience that is most desirable to us."
When Will Fallout 5 Release?
Times have changed a lot since these games came out, and especially in the wake of the George Floyd protests, there's more animosity toward the police. Still, the OP says they harbour no ill will toward the police. It will be interesting to see how things play out in Fallout 5 and whether there's a backlash or there's simply no form of police authority - after all, they've hardly been a major part of the franchise's past.
As for the million-dollar question of when will Fallout 5 release, you might be waiting a while. Bethesda has already warned that it'll start working on Fallout 5 when it's finished The Elder Scrolls 6. The latter is confirmed to be a long way off, so it'll be even longer before the developer decides to open the vaults and fire up the Pip-Boy.
