OG Fallout Developers Initially Thought the Name “Fallout” Was “Too Obvious”

Co-creator Leonard Boyarsky added that he and lead artist Jason Anderson were particularly attached to the Vault 13 idea. “We were really sold on it,” Boyarsky admitted. “But looking back, that would have been a terrible choice for a long-running series. It would have restricted every future story to that one specific vault. At the time, though, we just thought it sounded cool.”

Tim Cain, another key co-creator, shared that “Fallout” was buried on a brainstorming list but was initially dismissed. “We thought it was too on the nose,” Cain explained. “I even remember someone pointing out that because the game is set 80 years after the war, the literal fallout would have already settled.”

The turning point came when Fargo took a build of the game home for the weekend. After spending some time immersed in the world, he returned with a conviction: “I told the team, ‘I think I’ve found our name: Fallout.'”

Cain’s initial reaction was tepid. “My first thought was, ‘Eh…’ but I pitched it to the rest of the group and it started to grow on everyone. It just made sense on multiple levels.”

Fargo observed that naming a project is always a delicate process because internal disagreement is inevitable. “You have to live with a title for a while to see if it truly sticks,” he said. Years later, Cain has come to appreciate Fargo’s branding instincts, admitting, “I’ve realized over time just how good Brian was at finding the right names for these games.”

Read more: Fallout: New Vegas lead recalls it took five years for fans to fully embrace the RPG.