Over the course of nearly 28 years, theFalloutfranchise has changed drastically in terms of its gameplay, graphical design, and RPG mechanics. For instance, the transition from original developer Interplay Productions to Bethesda Game Studios sawFalloutgo from a turn-based, pixelated, isometric series to a first/third-person, action-packed franchise. Even Bethesda’sFalloutentries changed from a dark, grimy aesthetic to a more colorful, comedic design seen inFallout 4andFallout 76. However, oneDoommod is striving to blend Interplay’s classicFalloutgameplay and narrative design withDoomand modernFallout’s first-person direction:Fallout: Bakersfield.
Fallout: Bakersfield Explained
Created by Alexander ‘Red888guns’ Berezin and Denis Berezin,Fallout: Bakersfieldis currently being built usingDoomWAD files from id Software’s original 1993Doomand 1994Doom 2and GZDoom, a source port of the originalDoomtitles featuring updated mapping and scripting for modern hardware and software.Fallout: Bakersfieldwas initially announced on Berezin’s YouTube channel Saur X in September 2022 with a brief teaser trailer showcasingFallout 1’s classic isometric gameplayseamlessly transitioning intoDoom/Fallout 3first-person style gameplay. The trailer depictsFallout 1’s protagonist, the Vault Dweller, eliminating a couple of Ghouls with a pistol, brass knuckles, and a double-barrel shotgun with a HUD based onDoom’s but in the style ofFallout 1’s Pip-Boy 2000 interface.
Fallout: Bakersfieldisn’t a one-to-one reinvention ofFallout 1in its entirety but is rather a first-person recreation of one location from the firstFallouttitle: Bakersfield, home to Vault 12 and otherwise known as Necropolis and the City of the Dead. Vault 12 was designed to intentionally not seal itself when the bombs dropped in 2077 to see how radiation would affect its residents, eventually turning all survivors into Ghouls.InFallout 1, the Vault Dweller travels to Necropolisto recover Vault 12’s water chip for his home, Vault 13, with the city later being attacked by Super Mutants and forcing surviving Ghouls to flee into the radioactive wasteland.
The Framing and Gameplay of Fallout: Bakersfield’s Official Trailer
Starting in 2023, Berezin began posting blogs, screenshots, and clips of his work onFallout: Bakersfieldon the blog website Bootsy and the portfolio website ArtStation. Here, Berezin explained that his goal with Bakersfield was to “… transfer the original atmosphere [ofFallout 1] to first-person mode.” Eventually, these updates culminated in Berezin releasing an official trailer for Bakersfield in the same style asFallout 1’s iconic introin July 2025. The trailer eventually transitions to the Vault Dweller exploring and attacking hostile Ghouls in Necropolis with a knife, SMG, “Big Frigger” power fist, plasma pistol, flamer, and more before encountering, conversing with, and attacking the Super Mutant Harry.
Fallout: Bakersfield’s Potential Influence on Bethesda
Despite the alluring appeal ofFallout: Bakersfield’s recreation ofFallout 1in a first-person style, fans will have to wait a bit longer to play the mod on their own as it’s only 60% complete, but Berezin has confirmed that the mod will be released before the end of the decade. However,Fallout: Bakersfieldis already proving to be highly popular amongFalloutfans, with the mod’s most recent trailer gaining nearly 500,000 views in two days and receiving 47,000 likes. With this much support for Bakersfield, it might cause Bethesda to view the mod and evaluate its rumored direction towards reestablishing olderFalloutgames for modern audiences.
For several years now, multiple rumors and supposed leaks have claimed that Bethesda has been working on remastering severalFallouttitles for modern platforms, namelyFallout 3andFallout: New Vegas. With the recent release andsuccess ofThe Elder Scrolls 4: Oblivion Remastered, remasters ofFallout 3andNew Vegasseem all the more likely, butFallout: Bakersfield’s popularity could cause Bethesda to potentially invest in remakingFallout 1and2.
Both of Interplay’s originalFalloutgames are still playable today, but isometric games are fairly niche in the modern gaming world. With many fans praising Bakersfield for its preservation ofFallout’s original aesthetics, Bethesda couldremake bothFallout 1and2in first-person while retaining their original grimy look instead of remaking them inFallout 4’s design.
