I was just curious, does anyone else think that Fallout universe is pretty damn weird?
I mean, everything looks like the world got stuck in the 50/60's, but the bombs went off in 2077 or something like that.  

So, was the world stuck in one era for 100 years? No new songs (songs from the 50's/60's on the radio)? And some of the tech looks out of place... 
I mean, they have advanced power armor and strength/percepcion implants and robots, but look at the tv's in that world! 
Am I suppose to just... take that in as it is? Suspension of disbelief and all that?  

I know they were trying to create a world that looked like all of those "The World of The Future Today!" type exhibitions from the 50's and whatnot. 
But it is kind of ridiculous, isn't it?

I was always wondering about the Fallout universe. It is weird.

Admittedly still playing songs from the 50s was weird (perhaps modern disks and the like did not survive the radiation meaning Three Dog and other have to play old vinyls?). The reason the tech is fucked is because in the Fallout universe, miniaturisation of electronics did not happen.

It's ridiculous, yes, but it's where a lot of the charm comes from.  Every aspect of the Fallout mythos is derived from the early Sci-Fi of the 1950s, primarily the idea of nuclear-power being the be-all-and-end-all of technology with it powering everything from childrens' toys to automobiles. The universe is pulp Sci-Fi through and through and they stick to that through thick and thin. 
 
And yes, in the Fallout universe, America never moved on culturally from the 1950s and never developed the microprocessor; hence all the artwork, the design of the Energy Weapons and robots, the giant computer terminals, and most notably the constant Red Scare (only this time against the Chinese instead of the Russians.)

I think the reason behind the 50's aesthetic is that there was a war that practically "froze" the US in the culture of the 50's, or something along those lines. 
 
That meant that the technology they developed was more focused on fusion and things like that, instead of electronics like in our universe. 
Therefore they didn't invent smaller electronic components, and therefore still have those wierd TV's. 
 
So the split from our universe happened in the 50's, and after that the Fallout universe kept evolving along the 50's vision of the future until the Apocalypse happened in 2077.  

Well, it went something like that, I don't remember exactly...

The reason with the 50's "WORLD OF TOMORROW" aesthetic is very deliberate. The earliest public propaganda/information regarding nuclear weapons obviously was disseminated in American culture during the 50's. The Leave-it-to-Beaver attitude (Example: Vault Boy), regarding nuclear weapons is a deliberate satirical take on the gravity of the idea of nuclear war. (Where as in the 50's it was regarded as something less naive as we perceive it today.) 
 
It should also be noted that the Fallout world is drastically different from out own. If you are on-top of your Fallout lore you know that between 1945 and the 1960's, the U.S. is apparently broken-up into commonwealths. The Soviet Union is still around untill 2077 too.  
Oh, and we annex Canada in 2072... Sorry Canada.

As far as alt-history sci-fi goes, the Fallout world may be a bit tongue-in-cheek, but it's hardly all that strange.

It's retro-futurism, the projection of futuristic elements into a past setting. And it's not weird at all. Remember The Flintstones? Yeah, that.

It's a "retro-future." Everything that the 50's thought would be in the future is there... Including nuclear war. I think it's a great setting.

I think the reason behind the 50's aesthetic is that there was a war that practically "froze" the US in the culture of the 50's, or something along those lines.  That meant that the technology they developed was more focused on fusion and things like that, instead of electronics like in our universe. Therefore they didn't invent smaller electronic components, and therefore still have those wierd TV's.  So the split from our universe happened in the 50's, and after that the Fallout universe kept evolving along the 50's vision of the future until the Apocalypse happened in 2077.  Well, it went something like that, I don't remember exactly...

I think it makes more sense if you think of it as the future as imagined by someone in the 50s. The confusion comes in when you see it in the context of having been created 40 years after that.

@TwoLines said:

Ohh, okay. So at least they're justifying it somehow. Cool. I don't like loose threads in the mythos, so I'm glad they sewn that back in.

Something makes me think you have not played Fallout and Fallout 2. The franchise does not start with Fallout 3, as amazing as it may sound.

@JoeyRavn said:

@TwoLines said:

Ohh, okay. So at least they're justifying it somehow. Cool. I don't like loose threads in the mythos, so I'm glad they sewn that back in.

Something makes me think you have not played Fallout and Fallout 2. The franchise does not start with Fallout 3, as amazing as it may sound.

I played a ton of both (probably a minimum of 100 hours each) and never beat either. I was pretty young when they came out so the later parts where impossibly hard and I didn't really care about any of the story. Just because someone played those games doesn't mean they know the deep fiction from them and I'm sure a lot of people are in the same boat as me.

Also, I hate to say it because I loved those games, but time has not served them well and they are all but impossible to go back to now for the story.

It's a retro-futuristic game that has an alternate timeline that drifts apart from ours at one point. Imagine if the 50's-60's America was set in 2077, that's basically it.

@TwoLines said:

Ohh, okay. So at least they're justifying it somehow. Cool. I don't like loose threads in the mythos, so I'm glad they sewn that back in.

Something makes me think you have not played Fallout and Fallout 2. The franchise does not start with Fallout 3, as amazing as it may sound.

@TwoLines: Even though just about everyone here answered your question, I think this short interview by Tim Cain (one of the designers for the original Fallouts) will help shed some light. He gives a small explanation in there somewhere. Also, it comes in two parts. Well worth a listen if you're a big fan of the series.

@TwoLines said:

I was just curious, does anyone else think that Fallout universe is pretty damn weird?I mean, everything looks like the world got stuck in the 50/60's, but the bombs went off in 2077 or something like that. So, was the world stuck in one era for 100 years? No new songs (songs from the 50's/60's on the radio)? And some of the tech looks out of place... I mean, they have advanced power armor and strength/percepcion implants and robots, but look at the tv's in that world! Am I suppose to just... take that in as it is? Suspension of disbelief and all that? I know they were trying to create a world that looked like all of those "The World of The Future Today!" type exhibitions from the 50's and whatnot. But it is kind of ridiculous, isn't it?

You're the guy that's the cause of all those books and websites trying to figure out how phasers and lightsabers work aren't you. Quit it.

@TwoLines said:

I was just curious, does anyone else think that Fallout universe is pretty damn weird?I mean, everything looks like the world got stuck in the 50/60's, but the bombs went off in 2077 or something like that. So, was the world stuck in one era for 100 years? No new songs (songs from the 50's/60's on the radio)? And some of the tech looks out of place... I mean, they have advanced power armor and strength/percepcion implants and robots, but look at the tv's in that world! Am I suppose to just... take that in as it is? Suspension of disbelief and all that? I know they were trying to create a world that looked like all of those "The World of The Future Today!" type exhibitions from the 50's and whatnot. But it is kind of ridiculous, isn't it?

You're the guy that's the cause of all those books and websites trying to figure out how phasers and lightsabers work aren't you. Quit it.

@TwoLines said:

@NeverDave said:

@TwoLines said:

I was just curious, does anyone else think that Fallout universe is pretty damn weird?I mean, everything looks like the world got stuck in the 50/60's, but the bombs went off in 2077 or something like that. So, was the world stuck in one era for 100 years? No new songs (songs from the 50's/60's on the radio)? And some of the tech looks out of place... I mean, they have advanced power armor and strength/percepcion implants and robots, but look at the tv's in that world! Am I suppose to just... take that in as it is? Suspension of disbelief and all that? I know they were trying to create a world that looked like all of those "The World of The Future Today!" type exhibitions from the 50's and whatnot. But it is kind of ridiculous, isn't it?

You're the guy that's the cause of all those books and websites trying to figure out how phasers and lightsabers work aren't you. Quit it.

Nah, that's like the fourth level of crazy, I'm... let's say one-ish. ...Okay, maybe around two.

You know what explanations bring, man? Midichlorians.

I have always loved the Fallout universe. So much that after beating the two first games at least four times each, I managed to dig up the Fallout Bible. I read all of it. And now I want to read it again, as I am playing New Vegas myself at the time.

Sure, things are pretty weird in that universe, but all of it makes sense.

Honestly, the Fallout universe is one of my favourites in gaming. Just so many interesting places, people, events, etc. that have happened throughout the series. And I love the whole "future-retro" idea combined with the post-apocalyptic wasteland. 
 
Read up a bit on the Fallout wiki (http://fallout.wikia.com/wiki/Fallout_Wiki). Tons of good articles on the backstory of the Fallout universe and why the world is the way it is (and was before the Great War). Basically, it's the future as paranoid Americans in the 1950's envisioned it would be like. Little green aliens, laser rifles and energy pistols, nuclear war, evil communists, futuristic cars, etc. It's pretty cool, imo.  
 
Like others have said, after WWII, the world as we know it in our universe no longer existed (the United States was divided into 13 commonwealths, among other things that diverge from the history of our own world). 
 
Time and technology marched on past 1950's/early 60's America, but general culture, entertainment and ideals did not. What Inkerman posted about miniaturization not happening in the Fallout universe is the main reason behind the different sort of rapid technological advancements that you see in the games, but I'll agree that some of the cultural stuff like the retro soundtracks and whatnot are a bit harder to explain. I just sort of go with it since I really like that old school sci-fi stuff.  
 
I've heard before that the games are basically saying that things such as the retro music were the latest and greatest before the Great War due to the stagnation of American culture that started in the 50's.

I appreciate all these novel theories but guess what, old songs don't have royalties that have to be paid out when they're used. And that's why Fallout uses them.

I appreciate all these novel theories but guess what, old songs don't have royalties that have to be paid out when they're used. And that's why Fallout uses them.