Fallout 3 Remastered seems almost inevitable now, but still a long way off

Modern Bethesda likes to take its time. Starfield was in active development for eight years before it was able to disappoint cosmic explorers. The Elder Scrolls 6, meanwhile, was announced way back in 2018, didn't enter active development until 2023, and won't launch until 2026 at the earliest—and let's face it, it's gonna be a lot longer.

The chances of us getting a brand new Fallout this decade, then, are pretty slim. But you know Todd and his buds are desperately trying to figure out how to capitalise on the series' popularity, especially in the face of the ongoing Amazon TV show, which is gearing up for its second season.

Sure, Fallout 76's live service format means it will continue to grow, bringing in new players and more cash, but it's no replacement for a new Fallout game. So what's the solution? I'd be willing to bet a case of Nuka Cola on Bethesda trying to replicate the already significant success of Oblivion Remastered. And it's an incredibly safe bet, given the mention of a Fallout 3 remaster in the same leaked FTC documents that confirmed Oblivion Remastered was coming.

It makes a lot of sense. Even if Bethesda was up for getting another studio to develop a new Fallout, like Obsidian and Fallout: New Vegas, that would still take forever to appear. A remaster, though? That seems more feasible. Something that another studio could do without needing too much from Bethesda, while it works on TES6.

Feasible, but not immediate, mind you. We first heard about Oblivion Remastered in 2023, which was a year after it was meant to have come out—at least according to the leaked FTC document. We don't know how long it was in active development for, but a remaster of this scale doesn't just magically appear.

If Bethesda's using Virtuos again, then it seems unlikely active development on a Fallout 3 remaster would have kicked off until very recently. But if it's not Virtuos, that opens things up a bit. The leaked document isn't particularly helpful here, unfortunately, since it seemed pretty speculative. And it was from a 2020 presentation. It took three extra years for Oblivion to come out. It had Fallout 3 Remastered down for 2024, and obviously that never happened.

Going on Oblivion Remastered's timeline, we might be looking at a 2027 release. That's the predicted release date plus three years. At least that's still this decade. But without knowing when active development began (if it's already begun), it's hard to predict a realistic timeline.

Still, yesterday's (kinda) surprise drop of Oblivion Remastered is reassuring. Because the dates in the FTC leak were completely off, it seemed like both remasters could have been shelved. Even clearly legit leaks like this should be taken with a grain of salt because companies pivot all the time, and countless games get cancelled long before they're announced.

But Oblivion Remastered is finally a tangible thing we can actually play, which makes Fallout 3 Remastered all the more likely. Prolific leaker Nate the Hate is also still convinced it's coming, too, though he reckons it will "be a while" before it appears.

I do wish it would hurry up, though. The show has reinvigorated my love for the series, and while I've had fun with Fallout 76, especially now that I can finally play as a ghoul, it's simply not as good an RPG as Fallout 3. The survival nonsense and focus on crafting and multiplayer means it's not even trying to be. It's a small-scale survival MMO, and there are already far too many of them.

Mind you, I'd much rather live in the universe where Bethesda wanted to remaster my favourite games rather than the runner ups. Oblivion ain't no Morrowind, and Fallout 3 sure as hell ain't Fallout: New Vegas. But we can't have it all, I guess.