Fans of Bethesda’s highly acclaimed Fallout game franchise have been counting down the days to Amazon Prime’s live-action Fallout TV series, finally coming to the small screen after years of development hurdles. Impressive trailers have showcased what we can expect during the adventures of lone wanderer Lucy as she makes her way through the nuclear landscape of former Los Angeles. It begs the question of where the Fallout TV show fits within the overall timeline of the franchise, and if you’re wondering the same, here’s our handy guide to explain where and when Lucy’s story takes place.
Is Amazon’s Fallout TV Series Canon?
The Fallout game franchise, initially created by Bethesda Studios, takes place in various regions of the United States, though in an alternate, retro-futuristic universe. The games have fostered an incredibly vast amount of lore, detailing a massive timeline with numerous historical events that intertwine with real-life history, up to a point.
That history culminates in a devastating nuclear catastrophe between the U.S. and China in the year 2077 that nearly wiped out humanity, and the only means of survival was by going underground into fallout shelters known as Vaults. Each of the Fallout games is situated within a different point of the aftermath of the nuclear holocaust.
Per Todd Howard’s own words, Amazon’s Fallout TV series has been declared canon, as it takes place within the same historical timeline as the game franchise and a number of locations and characters from those titles are set to make appearances.
When Does Amazon’s Fallout TV Series Take Place?
As for when exactly the show takes place, Fallout is set in the year 2294, which is about nine years after Fallout 4. The blue-suited protagonist this time is a young woman named Lucy, who decides to leave the safety of Vault 33 in Los Angeles in order to find and rescue her father, Hank.
Todd Howard also said that he wanted very much to not only stick to the canon, but pay a well-balanced homage to its entire universe. That’s definitely apparent as Lucy’s objective hearkens back to Fallout 3, where the Lone Wanderer set out to find their father across the ruins of Washington D.C.
This time, however, we’ll be watching Lucy traverse what’s left of southern California, where the very first Fallout game took place. It’s also not terribly far from the Mojave Wasteland setting of Fallout: New Vegas. Whether we’ll get an easter egg or two from that game, particularly about the NCR (New California Republic), remains to be seen.
The Fallout TV series premieres on Amazon Prime in just over a week, on Thursday, April 11. Be sure to check out all of our latest news regarding everything Fallout, including what we know so far about the upcoming Fallout: London mod.
