• Obsidian Entertainment has cancelled an Avowed sequel and is now reportedly developing a new Fallout game
• The game is helmed by Fallout: New Vegas lead designer and project director Joshua Sawyer
• This comes as part of Microsoft's major Xbox "reset"

Obsidian Entertainment is reportedly working on a new Fallout game after scrapping plans for an Avowed sequel amid Xbox's restructuring strategy.

That's according to Bloomberg, which reports that the Avowed sequel and other unannounced projects were the studio's priority, but will now focus on a new Fallout game helmed by Fallout: New Vegas lead designer and project director Joshua Sawyer, in collaboration with Bethesda.

Sawyer was working on a different role-playing game (RPG) similar to Fallout, but it's unclear which one.

While Avowed 2 has been cancelled, a small team will continue working on the game in case the project is revived in the future; for now, Fallout is the new priority.

The report comes as part of Microsoft's major Xbox "reset," which recently saw thousands of layoffs, including 1,600 immediate cuts. It's said that Avowed 2 was to be announced within the next year, but Xbox CEO Asha Sharma didn't see it fitting into the company's new strategy.

Bloomberg said these layoffs included a quarter of Obsidian, with GameFile reporting that a WARN notice in California indicated it was 52 workers in total, including 43 in Obsidian's California offices and nine in-state remote workers.

Obsidian, which was acquired by Microsoft in 2018, released three games in 2025, including Avowed, The Outer Worlds 2, and Grounded 2. Bloomberg confirmed that the studio will continue developing content for the latter two titles.

• Fallout co-creator Timothy Cain says some players adopt their opinions from the influencers they watch
• Cain says players don't form their own opinion and "look to influencers to be told how to think about the games"
• The veteran developer adds that he's "concerned" about the future of video game discourse

Timothy Cain, the co-creator of Fallout and the co-developer of The Outer Worlds, has shared his opinion on online discourse and how some players can't form their own opinion about games anymore.

Speaking in a new video titled 'How The Internet Changed Game Design' on his own YouTube channel, Cain discussed how gaming critique has changed over the years in response to a subscriber asking how social media and live streaming have changed game design (via VGC).

The developer began by suggesting that some developers design their games with social media clips in mind, specifically how the big moments, like cinematics, would appear to the player who is streaming the game and the audience.

"Many designers like myself, we frequently thought: 'Well, how is a certain event in the game going to look like when someone’s playing it live or recording themselves playing it to put up as a stream?'" Cain said. "We thought about cinematics. We thought about end bosses. We thought about unusual weapons you could get.

"And because of that, we wanted it to look really good in video. And that was one reason particle effects became a big thing, because you didn’t just want to go 'boom'. You wanted a big explosion, and you wanted it to be pretty and colourful and all these things, especially in a clip because people will see that on some channel where someone’s talking about the game, and they see that clip, and now they really want to play the game."

Cain continued, saying developers are now thinking about their games like how they think about interviews with media, explaining that they would need to come up with sound bites for quotes that would generate interest in the game.

"When you went into an interview, you were like 'Okay, I got to have some sound bites ready, so when I get quoted, I want to make sure the sound bites are quoted'. Now it’s like ‘what part of our game would make good clips for influencers to show?’," he explained.

Cain went on to suggest that influencers, such as YouTubers, are no longer places people look for advice on games, and is concerned that some viewers are now looking to adopt opinions instead of forming their own.

"Now we’re in the 2020s, and many gamers don’t even look to influencers for reviews. They look to influencers to be told how to think about the games. So, people don’t form opinions from the online video. They’re handed an opinion from the online channel they’re watching," Cain said.

"What this means is I’ve seen reviews go from 'this game has less combat and more puzzles and dialogues for you to interact with than this other game' to 'this game is stupid and slow paced and made for casuals, I think you should skip it'.

"That’s a huge difference in how games are presented. But more people are going for that latter. They’re like, ‘I don’t have time. There are too many games. Just tell me whether I should buy it. Tell me if it’s for me.' So they find someone they just like, and then that person’s opinion becomes their opinion."

Cain said there can be a benefit to influencers who offer players advice on a game, which he calls a "positive side" for someone with the same preferences and a guide to find new games, but there are more examples nowadays of viewers repeating what influencers have said without thinking for themselves.

"That’s how I look for game reviewers myself," he explained. "I look at their reviews for games I already know. If they like the ones I liked and didn’t like the ones I didn’t like, then I will trust them going forward on reviews of games that I haven’t played yet.

"But the negative to this is more and more people seem to be abdicating their own judgment to that of people they see online. It’s like 'I don’t want to think about it, you tell me what I should think about it.' And I see that sometimes on this channel, when I get multiple nearly identical comments from people, and I realize they’re just quoting an online influencer. Sometimes it’s a meme, but more often it’s 'oh, this influencer person said this thing about this, and now they're just quoting without any attribution in a comment.' Sometimes even when it doesn’t apply, which just makes me go 'are they understanding why the person said that?'"

The veteran developer added that he's "concerned" about the future of video game discourse and doesn't know what the 2030s are going to look like, but it will go "one of two ways because the pendulum always swings."

He concludes that either things will "become even more tightly controlled in bubbles," suggesting these players will stick to watching one or a small group of influencers, "and all of their thoughts will be guided by these people," or "maybe the next generation is going to get tired of that. Get tired of all the labeling and tired of all the placing things in a box."

"'I defined a box, and this game is in this box, and I’m not going to view it any other way,'" he said.

"I’m curious where that goes. The internet basically allows the pendulum like that to swing really far and really fast. So, I don’t know where the 2030s are going to go, but that’s what's happened with game design and online influencers and social media over about the last 4-5 years."

• Former Obsidian creative officer Chris Avellone says Bethesda doesn't have the "engineering know-how" to create a Fallout: New Vegas remake
• Avellone says the studio doesn't have the source code
• He adds that they may have "aspects of the code" but "they had no idea how to reassemble it"

Obsidian Entertainment co-founder and former creative officer Chris Avellone has said a Fallout: New Vegas remake may not be possible because Bethesda lacks the "engineering know-how."

In a recent interview with YouTube channel TKs-Mantis, Avellone, who also wrote for New Vegas, said he doesn't think the company would be able to create a modern version of the 2010 role-playing game (RPG), like last year's The Elder Scrolls 4: Oblivion Remastered, which was co-developed by Bethesda and Virtuos (via GamesRadar).

"Just really simply, I don’t think Bethesda has the engineering know-how to make a remaster of New Vegas at all," Avellone said, adding that he knows people "enjoyed some of the visuals" of Oblivion Remastered, but overall it seemed the reception was kind of negative."

TKs-Mantis brings up the rumors about a Fallout 3 remake, suggesting Bethesda once again use the game's Gamebryo engine and Unreal Engine 5 for visual enhancements, like Oblivion Remastered, and that fans want the same for New Vegas.

Avellone explained that "just pragmatically, it would make more sense to try out that process with Fallout 3 before going to New Vegas, just to see what all the problems and issues are as a result," but there is "one reason" it would be impossible.

That reason being, he claimed, was that the studio head, Feargus Urquhart, didn't give Bethesda the game’s source code after development ended.

"The very last milestone for New Vegas was ‘please deliver all the source code and the ability to make the build, and we’ll pay you, like, $10,000 for that milestone,’" Avellone said. "Now, what that milestone really meant was if all those assets are given to Bethesda, that means they can recreate the game at any time. So, for reasons unknown to me, but I have suspicions, Feargus decided not to cash out that milestone and did not deliver it."

He continued, saying, "It’s not a strange decision if you feel, which would not be out of the realms of possibility, that he felt that the New Vegas experience cheated him out of X amount of money, in which case cutting off the revenue stream from that product for a time would be a possibility. I could certainly see that, and I’m not saying that’s the case."

When asked to clarify if Bethesda has the source code, Avellone said, "They may have aspects of the code, but everyone that I talked to after that period of time said they had no idea how to reassemble it."

In September 2023, it was reported that Microsoft court documents showed plans to remaster Oblivion and Fallout 3. While Oblivion Remastered did in fact turn out to be true, Bethesda has yet to announce any new remake projects.

Oblivion Remastered, although leaked ahead of time, was shadowdropped, so if a Fallout 3 remaster is in the works, there's always the possibility of that happening again.

For now, the studio is developing The Elder Scrolls 6, which was announced back in 2018. Fallout 5 is also expected to launch after The Elder Scrolls 6.

Tim Cain, the revered creator of Fallout and The Outer Worlds, has posted a video on his YouTube channel outlining his take on the future of generative AI. He speaks about the impact of the technology on various aspects of life, including games development, and offers up some interesting potential use cases.

He seems quite optimistic about the controversial technology, pointing to its potential to radically alter how various forms of entertainment are created and consumed. Aside from voicing some concerns about regulation and royalty payments, Cain appears to see all this as an improvement.

He has some experience in the field, having worked towards a PhD in AI in the late eighties and early nineties. But are his views realistic, and is the picture he paints one we’d actually like to see come true?

Tim’s crystal ball

According to Cain, generative AI will eventually hand a lot of control to the consumer. He envisions a scenario where you’ll be able to change the content of film and TV as you’re watching it. If you don’t like certain characters, jokes, or even the story, you’ll be able to use AI tools to change all that.

With respect to games, Cain thinks people could create their own mods using generative AI tools. He also sees a potential application in VR and AR, although he thinks these are further down the line.

Many of us already know the ways in which generative AI can be used in game development, from creating art and assets to programming entire titles.

Cain does have concerns in this department. He says regulation is needed to ensure contributors to AI datasets are appropriately compensated, including voice actors whose unique tones might be replicated in generative outputs.

But he still seems quite sure that this issue will work themselves out, comparing it to the initial disruption digital sales caused industry professionals, before contracts were amended to account for them. And those aforementioned AI-generated mods would require a license if players actually wanted to sell them, rather than keep them for personal use.

AI dystopia or utopia?

Unsurprisingly, many viewers weren't exactly on board with Cain. At the time of writing, the top two comments on the video are “New title: Tim describes a horrible artless dystopia with a smile on his face” and “Art is not supposed to adjust and change to me. Art is supposed to change me.”

Being the quixotic type, I largely agree with these sentiments. I like my art authentic, even if that means it's a little messy and rough around the edges; hell, that just makes it even more human. And given the backlash over Nvidia’s new DLSS 5 technology, it’s clear to see many gamers feel the same way.

That being said, I certainly see the potential and temptation for studios to use it to speed up development. I can’t say that I was particularly on board with the furor surrounding its use to generate certain assets in Crimson Desert and other titles like Call of Duty: Black Ops 7.

Yes, the publishers in question should’ve been more transparent about using the technology, but as long as they’re largely insignificant to the game’s overall aesthetic, I’m happy to look the other way, especially if it means saving some poor developer from being crunched to make them manually.

Also, it does seem that generative AI is better deployed in games than other artforms. Unlike music or film, it’s easier to argue that a game can be objectively good or bad when you only consider its mechanics, and so can be objectively improved upon with the use of AI tools.

Granted, there are those endearingly janky titles that I wouldn't wish to see get even the mildest of remasters, but there are plenty of games that are simply broken and thus ripe for AI to fix.

But there’s a problem here, too. AI datasets of the future would contain lots of code for game mechanics, including mediocre examples. A model’s resultant output might be similarly mediocre, and if models end up feeding on their own outputs to further train themselves, we’ll end up in a slop-ridden landscape.

Worse still, we might end up losing idiosyncratic games altogether. Instead, we’ll be left with mechanics that no longer delight or surprise us, turning the whole medium into a bland, homogenous slop. This problem existed to some degree before AI came along, with modern AAA titles getting the blame in its place, but AI could make the situation even worse.

Besides, there are other issues with using AI to speed up development. Chiefly, the fact that at this point in time such AI tools make too many mistakes to rely on them without supervision and manual verification, which of course takes time as well. Even tasks that are relatively basic, such as translating in-game text, are hard enough for AI to achieve without erring.

Then, of course, there are those concerns we’re all too familiar with at this point: the absurd environmental impact of data centers, the thorny issue of copyright, and, of course, the threat to industry jobs.

It’s no surprise that big studios are keen on using the technology, from Level-5 and Capcom to Take-Two Interactive and possibly even Remedy. But it’s perhaps surprising to see Tim Cain, of all people, being so effusive about generative AI. After all, this is the man responsible for games with strong anti-corporate, anti-capitalist themes. He’s right when he says AI can’t be bottled up now it’s been let loose, and I hope he’s also right that the technology's main sticking points will be resolved, but I’m not so hopeful it’ll create the kind of games we’d actually like to see.

• Bigfoot is being added to Fallout 76 in the game's next free update
• He is just one of many possible "Uninvited Guests" that may spawn at the end of a public event
• The update drops on March 3, 2026

The irradiated world of Fallout 76 is about to get even deadlier thanks to the arrival of a fearsome new foe.

Bigfoot is coming to Fallout 76 as part of the game's upcoming The Backwoods update, which is set to launch on March 3, 2026. He is just one of the 'Uninvited Guests' that will have a small chance of spawning at the end of successful public events.

A four star Legendary enemy, defeating Bigfoot offers the chance to secure some valuable exclusive loot. In a preview event attended by TechRadar Gaming, Fallout 76 creative director Jon Rush revealed that the desire to add Bigfoot originated from playing Campfire Tales, one of the game's public events.

"The idea for Bigfoot actually originally came from playing Campfire Tales at night and finishing that and thinking, 'God, it'd be so cool if Bigfoot just came out and smashed my face,'" he said. "That's sort of where the initial thought came from."

Other possible Uninvited Guests include a fearsome line-up of Fallout baddies like the Scorchbeast, Deathclaw Matriarch, Wendigo Colossus, Mirelurk Queen, and lightning-spewing Storm Goliath.

A successful public event won't necessarily result in the appearance of an Uninvited Guest, so those eager to face them all and get their hands on all the available loot will need to spend quite a bit of time in the wasteland.

The update also introduces a wealth of quality of life upgrades, with numerous changes to public events to make them more engaging. Like past Fallout 76 updates, it will be entirely free for existing owners.

If you're interesting in diving in to the game, it's available now for PC, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One, or PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X and Series S via backwards compatibility.

• Todd Howard has spoken about the Fallout franchise in a new interview
• He mentioned the "anxiety" surrounding the next instalment, and said "we do like to wait"
• Fallout 5 is expected to release after The Elder Scrolls 6

Bethesda Game Studios' Todd Howard has spoken about the "anxiety" surrounding the upcoming Fallout 5, and reassured fans that some Fallout projects are still in development.

Speaking to Game Informer as part of the outlet's 'oral history of Fallout', Howard began by reflecting on the ongoing development of Fallout 76. "The game obviously didn’t launch in a great state, but it had an audience, even then," he said. "We had moments where you saw the quality of the game and what it could do, these big jumps, but also a lot of small jumps every quarter for six or seven years now."

"We want each of them to feel different," he explained. "My favorite thing about the Fallout franchise now is the online debates about your favorite. It should be a debate! 'Well, I like Fallout 1.' 'Nope. Fallout 2!' Fallout 3, 4, New Vegas, 76… not a whole lot of people vote for Shelter!

But we want them all to be different. I think it’s great that you can, if you’re a fan, return to each one in some way, and they have something unique to say."

On the future of the franchise, he said that "looking at 76, we’ve never stopped developing Fallout. We’ve had a full team on it for a long time, so Fallout, as a franchise, is the one that we’re still doing the most work in, above anything. Now, the majority of our internal team is on The Elder Scrolls 6. We are doing other things with Fallout that we haven’t announced."

"I get the sort of anxiety from fans," he added. "We do like to wait."

On the subject of waiting, The Elder Scrolls 6 was announced all the way back in 2018 with a brief trailer. We also know that Fallout 5 is in the works, and that it will release after The Elder Scrolls 6 - so it's undoubtedly still a long way off.

• HBO has announced what its next videogame adaptation will be
• It's making a TV follow-up to Larian Studios' award-winning title Baldur's Gate 3
• Development will be led by one of The Last of Us show's co-showrunners

HBO has revealed that it's making a TV sequel to the critically-acclaimed video game Baldur's Gate 3 (BG3).

Per Deadline, the celebrated US TV network has announced that it's making a direct follow-up to Larian Studios' multi-award-winning title. Craig Mazin, one of the co-creators of HBO's The Last of Us TV adaptation, will lead development on the project. HBO will produce the series alongside Wizards of the Coast and the latter's parent company, Hasbro Entertainment

For those unfamiliar with Baldur's Gate 3: it's a role-playing game (RPG) set in the world of Dungeons & Dragons (D&D) in which you create your own character, and can play through its 100 hour+ story alone or with friends.

Released in late 2023, it was met with universally positive reviews by fans and critics alike (read our Baldur's Gate 3 review to see if we agreed with the general consensus). Given the praise that it received, it's little surprise that BG3 dominated numerous videogame award ceremonies before the end of 2023 – the RPG picking up multiple prizes at The Game Awards, Gold Joystick Awards, and D.I.C.E Awards.

In a statement accompanying the reveal, Mazin said: "After putting nearly 1,000 hours into the incredible world of Baldur’s Gate 3, it is a dream come true to be able to continue the story that Larian and Wizards of The Coast created.

"I am a devoted fan of D&D and the brilliant way that Swen Vincke and his gifted team adapted it. I can’t wait to help bring Baldur’s Gate and all of its incredible characters to life with as much respect and love as we can, and I’m deeply grateful to Gabe Marano and his team at Hasbro for entrusting me with this incredibly important property.”

Opinion: HBO's Baldur's Gate 3 TV show is going to divide fans, whether it means to or not

As mentioned, unlike its retelling of the story that plays out across Naughty Dog's The Last of Us duology, HBO's take on BG3 won't be a direct adaptation of its story. Indeed, it'll pick up after the latter's world-changing finale, which means its TV depiction will be a direct continuation of the tale that unfolded in Larian's RPG.

On the one hand, that's great news for Mazin and everyone else associated with Baldur's Gate 3's TV show. Because they aren't beholden to retelling the game's story, they'll have full creative freedom to take it in whatever direction they please. When Baldur's Gate 3's small-screen adaptation eventually releases on HBO Max and more of the world's best streaming services, then, it'll tell an original tale, which should please new and established fans alike.

And I say "should", because there's no guarantee that BG3 fans will like what they see. As it's an RPG, every Baldur's Gate 3 player's story will have played out differently to everyone else's. That means that the ending of their game will be unique to them. However, by adapting BG3, HBO runs the risk of alienating and/or upsetting long-time fans by making a specific BG3 ending canon via its TV adaptation.

The 'canon ending' issue is one that Prime Video also ran into with Fallout season 2. Ever since we learned that this show's latest season would spend time in New Vegas, aka the main location of the Obsidian-developed Fallout: New Vegas game, fans debated which of its multiple endings would be deemed canon by Amazon's TV adaptation. The short answer? None of them, which only served to confuse and frustrate viewers who have played Fallout: New Vegas, and earned an ending that's been their headcanon for years.

How will HBO, Mazin, and company approach BG3's TV sequel, then? Do they risk the wrath of its fanbase by selecting one of its many endings as the definitive canon ending? Or do they follow Prime Video's lead and sidestep an issue that'll both please and annoy fans? We'll find out once Baldur's Gate 3's TV show arrives years down the line.

In the meantime, get the lowdown on everything we know so far about The Last of Us season 3. Alternatively, read my breakdown of Fallout season 2's ending and then what we know so far about Fallout season 3.

Fallout season 3 is officially in development, sugar bombs. Indeed, work is already underway on another installment of the popular Prime Video show, so there'll be more adventures across the Wasteland to be had in the future.

How long we'll have to wait for it, though, is a mystery – but, then again, so is everything else. Nevertheless, I've rounded up what we actually know thus far about Fallout's next season, including its likely cast, plot threads that need to be picked up and/or resolved, and my launch date prediction for the show's next installment. So, read on to learn more, Vaultie!

Fallout season 3 release date prediction

Amazon's popular dystopian drama doesn't have a set return date yet. However, Fallout season 3 was officially announced last May, so it's been in development for at least eight months.

Speaking to IGN last December, executive producer Jonathan Nolan revealed that principal photography might begin on the Fallout TV show's third season in mid-2026, too, before adding that he wants to get the series "back on the air as soon as we can". It sounds like the cast and crew don't want to make us wait three years for it, then.

When could we see it, though? Season 1 took seven months to shoot, while its follow-up was filmed in just five months. From a post-production perspective, season 1 launched 14 months after filming wrapped, while season 2 arrived just seven months after its shooting schedule ended. If – and it's a big if – season 3 follows in the latter's footsteps, it's not outlandish to suggest it could premiere sometime in mid-2027.

Fallout season 3 trailer: is there one?

No and there won't be one for a long time yet. Once a trailer is unveiled, I'll update this section.

Fallout season 3 cast: confirmed and rumored

Full spoilers follow for Fallout season 2.

Based on how last season ended, here are the major players we expect to see in Fallout season 3:

• Ella Purnell as Lucy MacLean
• Aaron Moten as Maximus
• Walton Goggins as The Ghoul/Cooper Howard
• Moises Arias as Norm MacLean
• Frances Turner as Barbara Howard
• Teagan Meredith as Janey Howard
• Johnny Pemberton as Thaddeus
• Annabel O'Hagen as Stephanie Harper
• Leslie Uggams as Betty Pearson
• Dave Register as Chet
• Rodrigo Luzzi as Reg McPhee
• Leer Leary as Davey
• Xelia-Mendes Jones as Dane
• Michael Cristofer as Quintus
• Justin Theroux as Robert House
• Macaulay Culkin as Lacerta Legate
• Rachel Marsh as Claudia

I expect other supporting characters to be back for more post-apocalyptic drama, too. Dale Dickey's Ma June, Edythe Jason's Barv, and Barbara Eve Harris' Captain Rodriguez have had bit-part roles to play throughout Fallout's TV adaptation. There's no reason why they wouldn't feature again next time around, then.

Fallout season 3 should also continue including flashbacks centered around Cooper and Barbara Howard. If it does, we could see Dallas Goldtooth's Charles Whiteknife, Clancy Brown's unnamed US President, and Michael Emerson's Siggi Wilzig return, too.

Considering that Kyle McLachlan's Hank MacLean has been a prominent figure throughout the show's first two seasons, you might be wondering why I haven't mentioned him so far Well, there's no guarantee he'll return. Sure, a de-aged McLachlan could continue to appear as a younger Hank in the aforementioned flashbacks I mentioned above. However, given what happened to him in last season's finale, we might have seen the last of Hank in the present.

Fallout season 3 story speculation

Major spoilers follow for Fallout season 2.

Fallout season 3's story brief hasn't been released yet. However, considering what went down in its predecessor's finale – read my Fallout season 2 ending explained article for a full breakdown of what happened – we can make assumptions about where things will go next.

Let's start with Lucy and Maximus. The pair were finally reunited in last season's finale, titled 'The Strip', but new problems await them in New Vegas.

Not only are they smack-bang in the middle of a potential war between Caesar's Legion and the New California Republic for control of the city, but I'd be surprised if they aren't roped into helping Robert House at some stage. We know his digital consciousness is still alive, and that House has a way of manipulating people to suit his agenda. I wouldn't be shocked, then, if the duo become embroiled in whatever nefarious scheme he's cooking up.

As for The Ghoul, he's heading off to Colorado to track down his family. I suspect his latest Wasteland sojourn will be interspersed with more pre-Great War flashbacks, too, which should show us the fallout of Cooper Howard (i.e., The Ghoul's human identity) being arrested after he took the fall for the un-American actions that the Cooper family have taken throughout season 2.

There are plenty of other storylines that need addressing and/or resolving in Fallout season 3. We need answers about where Norm and Claudia are going next, what Phase Two of The Enclave's plan is – you know, the one that Steph initiated using the black Pip-Boy – and how it'll affect the residents of Vault 32, whether the Brotherhood of Steel will succeed in reviving the Liberty Prime superweapon program, and more on what The Enclave's endgame is.

Then there are big questions that last season's eighth and final episode threw up when it debuted on one of the world's best streaming services.

With the revelation that Hank and Steph were secretly married, is Lucy and/or Norm's real mom actually Steph? If either or both are her offspring, how would them being half-Canadian impact their sense of self and, more importantly, the overarching narrative?

Next, with The Ghoul heading to Colorado, will we see any elements of Fallout Tactics: Brotherhood of Steel, a somewhat obscure real-time strategy title that's part of Bethesda's beloved videogame franchise, referenced in season 3?

As for Norm and Claudia, will the latter look at the former differently after he chose to save himself, rather than help her during the radroach attack? How will they find Claudia's home vault? If they can't, what's their plan to survive on the surface? And will Norm ever find out the truth about his dad?

Lastly, with The Enclave becoming a more prominent part of Amazon's TV adaptation, will the series finally pull back the curtain on what it is and how it operates to those who haven't played any of the Fallout games? Or will it continue to operate in the shadows until later in the TV series' lifecycle? I guess these final two queries depend on whether more seasons get made. Speaking of which...

Will there be a fourth season of Fallout?

We don't know. However, considering how successful Fallout has been, it's more likely than not that a fourth season will be developed.

Ahead of season 2's final episodes airing, Deadline reported that Fallout's sophomore outing was on track to be the fourth-best-performing returning series on Prime Video. Its second season is also the sixth most-watched in the streamer's history, with only Fallout season 1, Reacher seasons 1 through 3, and The Rings of Power's first two installments being viewed by more people.

Add in comments made by Aaron Moten at Liverpool Comic-Con 2025 (per The Gamer) that it could last for five or six seasons, there's no reason to suspect that Amazon will be calling time on the successful TV series anytime soon. Expect more adventures across the Wasteland post-season 3, then.

For more Prime Video TV show coverage, read our guides on The Rings of Power season 3, Reacher season 4, The Boys season 5, and Invincible season 4.

Fallout season 2 episode 8 is out now on Prime Video – and, while it isn't as much of a *ahem* bombshell finale as the first season's was, it still delivers enough entertainment value while teasing where its various storylines could go next.

In this article, I'll go over everything that happens in the Amazon TV show's latest chapter, titled 'The Strip', and look ahead to what plot threads it appears to set up for season 3. Full spoilers immediately follow for this season's eighth and final episode. Turn back now if you haven't watched it yet.

Does Lucy destroy the mainframe in Fallout season 2 episode 8? And what happens to Hank?

Picking up where season 2 episode 7 left off, 'The Strip' reunites us with Lucy MacLean entering the control chips' mainframe room.

Once again, we're reminded that the severed head of Diane Welch – aka the US Congresswoman who advised Cooper Howard to give the cold fusion diode to the President – is what's powering the mind-control devices Hank has experimented with throughout this season.

Approaching the seemingly still head, Lucy is startled when it comes to life. Clearly in pain, Welch's decapitated head repeatedly asks Lucy to kill her and end her suffering, which a reluctant Lucy eventually does with a well-placed crowbar strike to Welch's skull.

A visibly upset Lucy leaves the facility to comprehend what she's done, but the Prime Video's shaken protagonist doesn't have time to dwell on it. The reason? Her sinister father Hank, who's somehow escaped being handcuffed to a stove by Lucy last episode, appears and, after being questioned by an outraged Lucy, tells her that Welch was chosen as the control chips' 'power source' because of her placid demeanor.

As for what Hank's endgame with the control devices is, he explains it was creating a small enough version to insert into a person's neck. He also reveals that Lucy is going to be the guinea pig for this new miniature edition of said chip because, well, Hank is tired of her having autonomy and railing against him. In his words, he "just wants his little girl back."

And he'd have succeeded if it wasn't for Cooper Howard/The Ghoul's intervention. I'll discuss his season 2 finale journey later on but, for now, all you need to know is The Ghoul rescues Lucy by killing Hank's lackey who was subduing Lucy to allow for the chip's insertion, and then shoots Hank to incapacitate him. From there, The Ghoul says it's up to Lucy to decide Hank's fate.

A few scenes later, we learn that Lucy has inserted the chip into Hank's neck before leading him at gunpoint back onto the surface.

There, during an emotion-laden chat between dad and daughter, Hank drops another tease that he's a member of The Enclave. Oh, and the real experiment that the clandestine US faction has been conducting all along is the surface world itself, not the social/scientific test being conducted in the underground bunkers that Vault-Tec built. That's the only new information we get out of Hank, too, before he uses his own secret activation device to turn on the chip in his neck, thereby wiping his memory and stopping Lucy from learning anything else.

Emotionally devastated by everything that's happened, Lucy leaves her amnesiac father as she tries to decide what to do next. Finally, though, a ray of sunshine appears through the gloom, as Maximus – more on him later, too – calls out to her. Reunited for the first time since the Fallout TV show's season 1 finale, they embrace.

But, there's no time to catch up, because the remnants of Caesar's Legion, who are now led by Lacerta Legate, march on New Vegas with the aim of taking it for themselves.

As Lucy and Maximus watch their arrival from Robert House's penthouse at the top of the Lucky 38 casino, Lucy questions if she made the right decision to destroy the mainframe, especially as a new war for control of New Vegas is about to erupt. Maximus consoles her by holding her right hand with his left before the screen cuts to black.

Does Cooper Howard/The Ghoul find his family in the Fallout season 2 finale?

No, but hope springs eternal for Cooper Howard/The Ghoul as he learns his family is still alive.

Again, picking up where last episode left off, The Ghoul and Robert House – or, rather, the latter's consciousness that he uploaded to a supercomputer – agree to form to an uneasy alliance. The Ghoul will leave the cold fusion diode, which he came into possession of again in season 2 episode 7, with House if House helps The Ghoul locate his family in the management-only vault that sits under the Lucky 38.

Guided by House via a Pip-Boy, aka one of Fallout's iconic wrist-mounted devices, The Ghoul eventually arrives at the same facility where Lucy and Hank are. There, he stumbles upon the pair's latest familial reckoning and interjects himself into proceedings by helping Lucy – something The Ghoul didn't have to do after, you know, she left him for dead in this season's fifth chapter.

Anyway, after leaving Lucy and Hank, The Ghoul locates the biorepository chamber where Barbara and Janey, aka his wife and daughter, are.

At his behest, House opens their cryochambers... to reveal that they're empty. However, as a dejected Howard listens to House babbling some hollow words, he spots a 'Greetings from Colorado' postcard in Barb's chamber. Picking it up and turning it over, he sees that she's written "Colorado was a great idea" on the back. Remember, the pair discussed starting over in Colorado earlier this season, so this is not only a clear call-back to that moment, but also suggests that Barb and Janey are somewhere in that state.

Despite House's protestations that he works for House now, The Ghoul removes the Pip-Boy and leaves the facility.

The final shot we see of Howard is him overlooking a vast desert area – don't worry, Dogmeat is with him – as he prepares to embark on yet another long trek across The Wasteland to find his loved ones.

Does Maximus defeat the Deathclaws in Fallout's season 2 finale?

He does, but he gets more than a helping hand along the way.

With the pack of New Vegas-based Deathclaws having broken through one of the Freeside barricades last episode, Maximus realizes he's the only one standing between the survival of its townsfolk and them becoming the beasts' next meal.

As Thaddeus leads the Freesiders to safety, Maximus mounts a one-man stand against the Deathclaws. However, while he kills a number of them with the occasional help from Thaddeus, the NCR Power Armor suit Maximus is wearing soon malfunctions due to the damage inflicted upon it by the Deathclaws.

Exhausted but inspired by his final memory of his father, Maximus exits his power-suit, grabs a nearby sword and shield (read: pool cue and blackjack table top), and prepares to fight the remaining Deathclaws to protect the Freeside people.

Just when it seems like Maximus is a goner, though, two more Deathclaws are taken out not by Thaddeus, but a New California Republic (NCR) ranger. NCR captain Rodriguez, who we've intermittently reunited with throughout Fallout season 2, has rocked up with a squad of soldiers and, after telling Maximus they'll deal with the rest of the Deathclaws, he heads off to find Lucy, which he duly does.

Does Norm survive in the final episode of Fallout season 2?

Yes, but only just. Frog-marched through Vault-Tec's headquarters by the junior executives of Vault-33, it seems Norm is on borrowed time. That's until Claudia, the only executive who's on his side, tries to intervene, is pushed aside by the group's defacto leader Ronnie, and falls back onto an elevator call button.

Seems innocuous, right? Well, remember when the group came across Ma June and Barv, and were warned that the elevator shafts had been barricaded because of the radroaches? Yeah, well, that.

Long story short: the radroaches fly out of the shaft and attack the group. Norm manages to fight one off before rescuing an executive from another radroach. However, when the duo try to gain access to an office that the others have taken shelter in, Ronnie pushes Norm aside and seemingly leaves him to become radroach food. Luckily, Norm finds a table to hide under and, with their attention drawn to the terrified executives in the aforementioned office, the radroaches break in and continue their lethal assault on their human prey.

Waiting long enough until the coast is clear, Norm emerges from his hiding spot and, entering the office, is met with a scene of bloody carnage. But, wait, someone's alive – it's Claudia! Helping her to her feet, Norm vows to get her home. Where home is and how they plan to get there, though, is unclear. The last we see of them, Norm is pulling a seemingly injured Claudia on a makeshift gurney. We'll have to wait for season 3 – more on that shortly – to find out how they plan to traverse the Wasteland with few rations and no sense of where they are.

What happens in Vault 32 in Fallout season 2 episode 8?

Reuniting us with those who live in Vault 32, we catch up with its overseer Stephanie, who's locked herself in her office after Chet revealed to the rest of the group that she's Canadian, not American. As Vault 32's dwellers bang on her office door and chant for her death – the latter of which a clearly uncomfortable Chet doesn't agree with – Steph uses her last-resort card.

Opening the box (one owned by Hank MacLean, don't forget) that Betty gave to her in this season's penultimate episode, we learn that it contains a jet black-colored Pip-Boy. Activating it, Steph uses its intercom feature to contact – yep, you've probably guessed it – The Enclave.

Once the line is connected, she tells The Enclave that she's another of Hank's wives. It turns out she was Hank's secret beau – the pair having met all the way back in 2077 after Steph helped an unconscious Hank back to his hotel room after Cooper had drugged him. So, while Hank was also married to Lucy and Norm's mom, he had another wife in Steph. You sly dog, Hank...

Anyway, using The Enclave's secret communications frequency, she ominously tells them to "initiate Phase Two". Unfortunately, we're given no indication as to what this part of The Enclave's plan entails. Does it have something to do with a big fan theory about Vaults 31, 32, and 33 that was confirmed in this season's sixth chapter? We'll have to wait for season 3 (don't worry, we're getting to it!).

Does Fallout season 2 episode 8 have a mid-credits or post-credits scene? And what is Liberty Prime Alpha?

Yes, like its forebear, Fallout season 2 has an end-credits scene.

This time, it shows us the *ahem* fallout from the battle between the Brotherhood of Steel's various factions that Maximus and Thaddeus inadvertently caused in season 2 episode 4.

Reunited with Maximus' friend Dane, we see them deliver something to Elder Cleric Quintus, who tells Dane that "Quintus the Unifier is dead" and, in his place, "Quintus the Destroyer" has risen. As the camera pans down, we see that Dane has given Quintus a series of blueprints for something called the Liberty Prime Alpha suit.

So, what is it? For the uninitiated, Liberty Prime is a giant combat robot that the US army originally built as a superweapon to try and win the Sino-American War that it waged with China. However, because a suitable power source was never located for it, it was never used in battle.

Now that the Brotherhood is in possession of its blueprint, plus the fact that cold fusion – an unlimited energy source – exists, though, I wouldn't put it past Quintus trying to track down the diode, which we know is in New Vegas, and using it to power his version of Liberty Prime. That'll likely be one of many storylines that next season will focus on. Speaking of which...

Has Fallout season 3 been announced yet?

Yes! Amazon renewed Fallout for a third season in May 2025, so we've known about it for a while now.

Unsurprisingly, Fallout season 3 doesn't have a release date yet, but executive producer Jonathan Nolan has said (via IGN) that he hopes filming will begin in mid-2026. It's not impossible, then, that we could be reunited with Lucy and company in late 2027 or early 2028.

Want more details on the show's next chapter? My Fallout season 3 guide will tell you everything we know so far about it, so head on over for more details on its possible launch date, likely cast, and possible storylines.

• Bethesda just gave us a new Fallout trailer
• It doesn't confirm the rumored Fallout 3 remaster
• Fallout Season 2's finale airs this week

If the internet is to be believed, the finale of Fallout Season 2 – the Prime Video hit based on the iconic video game series – won’t leave us wanting for more Wasteland adventures for long, as Bethesda is apparently gearing up to shadow-drop a remaster of Fallout 3, Fallout New Vegas, or both.

And it did just drop a brand new trailer for both games… but it was also an advert for the series as a whole. Starring Aaron Moten (who plays Maximus in the show) and Vault Boy in a creepy-meets-funny sketch where the duo revisit various entries in the series – including Fallout 3 and Fallout New Vegas, as well as more recent entries like Fallout Shelter and Fallout 76.

While the 2:25-minute skit does a great job of selling the different entries in the series, it’s obviously not what many players had been hoping for. And while it doesn’t outright confirm a rerelease of two Fallout classics, it doesn’t dispel my hopes yet either.

Need some addictol for my copium problem

So why do many believe in the shadow-drop speculation?

Well, it wouldn't be the first time. Fallout 4 was made official and then released only a few months later, which was much quicker than typical industry norms at the time, but 2023’s Hi-Fi Rush and last year’s Oblivion Remastered were both proper instant surprises when they made their debuts.

And according to developer comments, Bethesda wants to do more shadow-drops going forward (via FRVR).

How do fingers point towards Fallout 3 and New Vegas, then? Well, both of these games – especially New Vegas with the most recent season – have been a significant inspiration for the TV show. However, the games unfortunately show their age, which doesn’t make them easy for Fallout’s newer, more casual fans to pick up.

We also have court documents from Microsoft confirming a Fallout 3 remake is in the works. These same documents also spoiled the Oblivion remaster.

Remaster speculation hasn’t been helped by posts like this on Reddit, which suggested Steam had teased the remakes by saying the Fallout series had 12 entries, but only showed 10 games in the collection; however, fans pointed out it’s because of regional variants, not secret remasters.

Or this other post highlighting that several trailers were recently removed from the Fallout 3 Steam page – something which also happened just before Oblivion’s remaster landed.

However, as is true for all leaks and speculation – doubly so for releases fans are unbelievably excited for – it’s hard to tell where legitimate spoilers end and desperate hoping begins.

I’m very much a believer that at least one Fallout 3 or New Vegas will be updated soon, though I’m not expecting any Remaster to land later this week. Hopefully I’m proven wrong on that, but either way we have the Season 2 finale to look forward to – and after last episode’s ending it can’t come soon enough.

It's almost time to say goodbye to Fallout season 2. The hugely popular show's latest eight-part installment ends this week with its eighth and final episode, so you'll want to know when it'll premiere on Prime Video.

Below, I've outlined the exact release dates and launch times you need to be aware of for Fallout season 2 episode 8. So, stop dilly dallying, Valutie, and read on to find out more!

What time can I watch Fallout season 2 episode 8?

As I covered in last week's Fallout season 2 episode 7 release date article, the final two chapters on the series' latest season – those being episodes 7 and 8 – will drop earlier than anticipated.

For North and South American viewers, that means the Fallout TV show's next entry will premiere on Tuesday, February 3. Meanwhile, the rest of the world will need to tune in on Wednesday, February 4.

Those dual dates mean that this season's finale will air on Amazon's streaming service at different times, too. Read on to see when it'll drop where you live:

• US – Tuesday, February 3 at 6pm PT / 9pm ET
• Canada – Tuesday, February 3 at 6pm PT / 9pm ET
• UK – Wednesday, February 4 at 2am GMT
• India – Wednesday, February 4 at 7:30am IST
• Singapore – Wednesday, February 4 at 10am SGT
• Australia – Wednesday, February 4 at 1pm AEDT
• New Zealand – Wednesday, February 4 at 3pm NZDT

When will new episodes of Fallout season 2 come out?

They won't. If you skipped to this part of my article, you'll have missed me mentioning that episode 8 is the final episode of Fallout's second season.

This doesn't mark the end of its TV adaptation on one of the world's best streaming services, though. Last May, Amazon announced that it had renewed Fallout for a third season, so we'll be reunited with Lucy, Maximus, The Ghoul, and the rest of the series' colorful cast of characters a ways down the road.

It's almost time to wave goodbye to Fallout season 2, sugar bombs. Indeed, there are only two more chapters to go of the hugely popular Amazon TV Original's latest installment, so you'll want to know when they'll drop where you live.

Below, I'll tell you the exact date and time that you'll be able to stream it. A full episode release schedule can be found towards the end of this article, too, so you can see when this season's finale will make landfall.

What time can I watch Fallout season 2 episode 7?

Thought the penultimate episode of Fallout's sophomore season would make its worldwide Prime Video debut on the same date? Think again.

As the X/Twitter post confirmed today (January 26), season 2 episode will drop earlier than expected. Indeed, it'll come out on Tuesday, January 27 in North and South America, and Wednesday, January 28 everywhere else.

The upshot of this last-minute release date change is that its launch time has also been revised. Here's when this season's seventh entry will drop where you live, then:

• US – Tuesday, January 27 at 6pm PT / 9pm ET
• Canada – Tuesday, January 27 at 6pm PT / 9pm ET
• UK – Wednesday, January 28 at 2am GMT
• India – Wednesday, January 28 at 7:30am IST
• Singapore – Wednesday, January 28 at 10am SGT
• Australia – Wednesday, January 28 at 1pm AEDT
• New Zealand – Wednesday, January 28 at 3pm NZDT

When will the final episode of Fallout season 2 come out?

As I alluded to earlier, this season's finale is the only episode that'll air on one of the world's best streaming services after this week's chapter.

Like this week's installment, though, Amazon has pulled a fast one and also decided to release season 2 episode 8 earlier than expected. That means this season's finale will drop next Tuesday in the Americas, but will still arrive next Wednesday everywhere else.

Here are those all-important dates for the Fallout TV show's season 2 finale that you need to know about:

• Fallout season 2 episode 1 – out now
• Fallout season 2 episode 2 – out now
• Fallout season 2 episode 3 – out now
• Fallout season 2 episode 4 – out now
• Fallout season 2 episode 5 – out now
• Fallout season 2 episode 6 – out now
• Fallout season 2 episode 7 – January 27/28
• Fallout season 2 episode 8 – February 3/4

Fallout season 2 is approaching its endgame. Last week's episode delivered some story shockers and spawned some new theories among viewers, and many are hoping that its follow-up – titled 'The Other Player' – will pick up directly after episode 5's ending, and confirm if any of those fan theories are true.

So, when will this season's sixth episode drop on Prime Video? Here are all of the key details you need to know.

What time can I watch Fallout season 2 episode 6?

'The Other Player' will debut on Amazon's streaming platform on Wednesday, January 21. Barring this season's premiere, that's when every other episode of the show's sophomore installment has aired, so its midweek arrival is to be expected.

It's nailed on that this week's chapter will be released on one of the world's best streaming services at the same time as all but one of its season 2 forebears, too. If you're new around these parts, here's a quick reminder of the launch times you need to be aware of:

• US – 12am PST / 3am EST
• Canada – 12am PST / 3am EST
• UK – 8am GMT
• India – 1:30pm IST
• Singapore – 4pm SGT
• Australia – 7pm AEDT
• New Zealand – 9pm NZDT

When will the rest of Fallout season 2 come out on Amazon Prime Video?

Unless Amazon makes a last-minute change to its release schedule, the final two episodes of the Fallout TV show's second season will make their bow on the next two Wednesdays.

Want to know the exact dates that they'll release? Check out the Fallout season 2 release schedule below:

• Fallout season 2 episode 1 – out now
• Fallout season 2 episode 2 – out now
• Fallout season 2 episode 3 – out now
• Fallout season 2 episode 4 – out now
• Fallout season 2 episode 5 – out now
• Fallout season 2 episode 6 – January 21
• Fallout season 2 episode 7 – January 28
• Fallout season 2 episode 8 – February 4

We've officially hit the halfway mark of Fallout season 2. Four episodes are already out on Prime Video and four more are due to be released in the weeks ahead. So, consider this your midpoint warning that the series will soon depart our screens once more.

That's a worry for another day, though. You're here because you want to know when season 2 episode 5, titled 'The Wrangler', will debut on Amazon's streaming service. Delay no longer, then, and learn everything there is to know about its release date and launch time.

What time can I watch Fallout season 2 episode 5?

The next chapter of Fallout's TV adaptation is set to arrive on Wednesday, January 14. It's a date many expect it to drop on, too, with all but one of this season's episodes airing on Wednesdays.

But I digress. Here are the all-important launch times you need to know about for 'The Wrangler':

• US – 12am PST / 3am EST
• Canada – 12am PST / 3am EST
• UK – 8am GMT
• India – 1:30pm IST
• Singapore – 4pm SGT
• Australia – 7pm AEDT
• New Zealand – 9pm NZDT

When do new episodes of Fallout season 2 come out?

Apart from the Fallout TV show's season 2 premiere, which made its bow on one of the world's best streaming services on a Tuesday (in North and South America, anyway), every new episode has been released on a Wednesday.

Unless Amazon makes a last-minute call to drop 'The Wrangler' and/or the three remaining installments earlier than anticipated, they'll get midweek launches, too. Here's a quick rundown of the dates you need to be aware of for season 2's final four entries:

• Fallout season 2 episode 1 – out now
• Fallout season 2 episode 2 – out now
• Fallout season 2 episode 3 – out now
• Fallout season 2 episode 4 – out now
• Fallout season 2 episode 5 – January 14
• Fallout season 2 episode 6 – January 21
• Fallout season 2 episode 7 – January 28
• Fallout season 2 episode 8 – February 4

Full spoilers immediately follow for Fallout season 2 episode 4.

Fallout season 2 episode 4 has arrived on Prime Video – and a seemingly throwaway line of dialog has sparked a major new fan theory about the ongoing mystery surrounding Vaults 31, 32, and 33.

Titled 'The Demon in the Snow', Fallout season 2's latest chapter is full of surprises. From the long overdue arrival of an iconic Fallout monster in the Deathclaw, to that revelation about Vault 32's recently-installed overseer Steph and more besides, it's certainly an incident-packed installment.

It's a moment in the Norm-fronted storyline, though, that's set tongues wagging among viewers after season 2 episode 4's release. And, as I hinted at above, it's one that may hold the key to solving the enigma of the aforementioned underground shelters.

Around 19 minutes into the Fallout TV show's latest entry, we're reunited with Norm MacLean, who originally hails from Vault 33, and Bud's Buds. The latter group are trainee Vault-Tec managers who were cryogenically frozen in Vault 31 before The Great War, and who were reawakened by Norm after he was trapped in Vault 31 by Bud Askins – a junior Vault-Tec vice-president – in last season's finale.

After Norm deceives Bud's Buds into helping him escape Vault 31 in this season's second chapter, he's now leading them across the Wasteland under the guise that he's part of a "race of super-managers" who've been genetically engineered over the past 200 years in order to lead Vault-Tec. That way, Norm can continue to trick them into working for him as he continues to try and determine what's really going on between the three Vaults.

That takes us up to the Prime Video show's latest episode and what's suddenly got its audience all worked up. During a conversation with Ronnie McCurtry, Bud's personal assistant, Norm – and, by proxy, us – learn of a new Vault-Tec program called Future Enterprise Ventures. Or, to shorten it to its primary initials, F.E.V.

Why is that important? Those are the same initials that stand for another hugely significant thing in the Fallout universe: the Forced Evolutionary Virus.

What is the Forced Evolutionary Virus in the Fallout franchise?

I won't get into the weeds of Fallout's extensive lore but, essentially, the Forced Evolutionary Virus is an artificial contagion that was created prior to The Great War.

Developed by the NBC Division of West-Tek, a major US defence contractor and research organization, it's a biological weapon that, as its name implies, has the ability to force-change the genetic makeup of organic matter.

Indeed, the virus has been used as a superweapon by numerous antagonists throughout the Fallout franchise, including the Master, aka the leader of the Unity, who created super mutants using it. The Enclave, a recurring and clandestine villainous faction in Bethesda's videogame series, also utilized it for genocidal purposes. In case you'd forgotten, the Enclave is the faction that Siggi Wilzig defects from early on in Fallout season 1 and sets one of the show's primary plots – the one based around cold fusion technology – in motion.

Now, none of this is a guarantee that the Master, the Enclave, or super mutants will appear in the Amazon TV Original's second season. It's also possible that the Forced Evolutionary Virus and Future Enterprise Ventures just share the same primary initials.

Comment from r/Fallout

Plenty of Fallout fans don't think the latter is a coincidence, though. A quick scan of threads on Reddit pages such as r/Fallout and r/Fotv, plus a season 2 thread on the ResetEra forums, are full of comments from viewers speculating on the prospect that the two are related.

If that proves to be the case, it might solve the mystery about the experiments being conducted between Vaults 31, 32, and 33. We already know that the trio are part of an ongoing experiment whereby, every so often, one of Bud's Buds exits cryosleep to laud it over Vaults 32 and 33, and breed with the general populace to create future Vault-Tec managers.

What if there's a secondary goal that the triumvirate's dwellers must achieve – that being, the creation of the FEV to recreate said virus for nefarious reasons – though? Vault-Tec is nothing if not a sinister, omnipresent megacorporation hell-bent on ruling the planet, so I wouldn't be surprised if we eventually learn that the FEV has something to do with restarting the Forced Evolutionary Virus program to create the "super managers" that Norm mentions in this season's second episode. Let's hope we learn more soon.

Fallout season 2's journey across the wasteland continues apace this week with the release of its fourth episode. Titled 'The Demon in the Snow', the hit Prime Video show's next chapter will be with us in just a couple of days, so you'll want to know when you can watch it.

Below I'll outline what date and time it'll air where you live, and at the end of this article you'll find a full release schedule for the Amazon TV Original's second season, so you can plan your schedule around the launch of new episodes.

What time will Fallout season 2 episode 4 come out on Prime Video?

The Fallout TV show's forthcoming entry will make its debut on Wednesday, January 7. That's a worldwide release date, too, so viewers in the US and Canada won't be able to stream it earlier than everyone else.

As such, episode 4's launch time won't differ from episodes 2 and 3. If you need a quick reminder about the exact hour that it'll air on one of the world's best streaming services, though, read on:

• US – 12am PST / 3am EST
• Canada – 12am PST / 3am EST
• UK – 8am GMT
• India – 1:30pm IST
• Singapore – 4pm SGT
• Australia – 7pm AEDT
• New Zealand – 9pm NZDT

Fallout season 2 full release schedule: when will new episodes be released?

Unless Amazon releases future episodes of Fallout's second season earlier than anticipated, the final four installments will make landfall every Wednesday. That'll be the case until the finale drops on February 4.

For a full rundown of the all-important dates you need to know, check out the list below:

• Fallout season 2 episode 1 – out now
• Fallout season 2 episode 2 – out now
• Fallout season 2 episode 3 – out now
• Fallout season 2 episode 4 – January 7
• Fallout season 2 episode 5 – January 14
• Fallout season 2 episode 6 – January 21
• Fallout season 2 episode 7 – January 28
• Fallout season 2 episode 8 – February 4

It's hard to believe that 2025 is nearly over. But, before we wave goodbye to the year that was, Prime Video will release one more episode of Fallout season 2 for you to enjoy.

If you plan on watching it before engaging in whatever New Year's Eve festivities you might have lined up, you'll want to know what time it'll air. Here, then, is everything you need to know about season 2 episode 3's release on one of the world's best streaming services. Oh, and as I won't see you again until 2026, Happy New Year!

What is the launch time for Fallout season 2 episode 3?

If it wasn't clear by now, chapter 3 of the Fallout TV show's sophomore season will drop on Wednesday, December 31, aka New Year's Eve. That'll be the case worldwide, too, unless Prime Video decides to release it the evening before in the US and Canada, which is what happened with Fallout season 2 episode 1.

It's set to premiere on Amazon's streaming platform before you get ready for your final party of the year, too. Well, unless you live in Australia or New Zealand, because I imagine you'll be celebrating by the time it drops in those countries. But, enough waffling – here are the exact launch times you need to know about for this season's third entry:

• US – 12am PST / 3am EST
• Canada – 12am PST / 3am EST
• UK – 8am GMT
• India – 1:30pm IST
• Singapore – 4pm SGT
• Australia – 7pm AEDT
• New Zealand – 9pm NZDT

When do new episodes of Fallout season 2 come out?

Considering Fallout's live-action adaptation only made its debut on December 17, there'll be more entries to enjoy in the early weeks of 2026.

Each new installment will be released on a Wednesday, too, so read the list below to see what dates you can catch new episodes of one of the best Prime Video shows' second season.

• Fallout season 2 episode 1 – out now
• Fallout season 2 episode 2 – out now
• Fallout season 2 episode 3 – December 31
• Fallout season 2 episode 4 – January 7
• Fallout season 2 episode 5 – January 14
• Fallout season 2 episode 6 – January 21
• Fallout season 2 episode 7 – January 28
• Fallout season 2 episode 8 – February 4

Prime Video has given us a pre-Christmas 2025 present with a new episode of Fallout season 2.

Indeed, with the most festive holiday of the year almost upon us, one of the world's best streaming services has come bearing the gift of this season's second chapter. If you're planning to watch it before Santa delivers even more presents for you and yours, you'll want to know when it'll air. So, what are you waiting for? Read on for more details – and Happy Holidays!

What is the launch time for Fallout season 2 episode 2?

Fallout's next entry is set to premiere on Wednesday, December 24, aka Christmas Eve.

Considering Fallout season 2 episode 1 arrived on Tuesday, December 16 (in North and South America, anyway), viewers in those regions might have expected its follow-up entry to do the same.

However, the Fallout TV show's season 2 opener was originally supposed to debut worldwide on Wednesday, December 17. At the time of writing, there's no indication that this season's remaining entries won't be released globally every Wednesday, either. Therefore, I still expect episode 2 to take its bow in two days' time.

As for the exact time that the Amazon TV Original's latest installment will make its Prime Video debut, here's when it should air:

• US – 12am PST / 3am EST
• Canada – 12am PST / 3am EST
• UK – 8am GMT
• India – 1:30pm IST
• Singapore – 4pm SGT
• Australia – 7pm AEDT
• New Zealand – 9pm NZDT

When do new episodes of Fallout season 2 come out?

As I mentioned in the section above, you'll be able to enjoy new episodes of Fallout's sophomore season every Wednesday. That'll remain the case until its eighth and final chapter airs on February 4.

Want to know what dates you'll need to tune into Amazon's streaming platform to watch one of the best Prime Video shows' forthcoming entries? Read on:

• Fallout season 2 episode 1 – out now
• Fallout season 2 episode 2 – December 24
• Fallout season 2 episode 3 – December 31
• Fallout season 2 episode 4 – January 7
• Fallout season 2 episode 5 – January 14
• Fallout season 2 episode 6 – January 21
• Fallout season 2 episode 7 – January 28
• Fallout season 2 episode 8 – February 4

It's time to schedule some pre-holiday season time in front of your TV. With the festive break now in full effect for most of us, I suspect you'll be loading up one or more of the world's best streaming services to watch the latest new movies and shows that have arrived.

There's lots to choose from, too. From returning hit shows and the streaming debut of a recent Universal Pictures film, to a comedy special and another live sports event on Netflix, you're spoiled for choice this weekend. So, grab some food, throw on your sweatpants, and relax after another busy year of work, school, and more. – Tom Power, senior entertainment reporter

Fallout season 2 (Prime Video)

It's time to head back into the Wasteland, Vaulties. Fallout season 2 has finally emerged from its underground bunker on Prime Video and, just like its forebear, its premiere has already set the stage for another banging installment of the hugely popular show.

Reuniting us with Lucy, Maximus, The Ghoul, and Dogmeat, the Fallout TV show's sophomore season will explore more of the franchise's wacky and dangerous dystopia.

Indeed, from introducing characters like Mr. House, trips to iconic locations including New Vegas and Novac, and more besides, season 2 of Amazon's adaptation of the Fallout videogame series looks like it'll be another slice of unmissable television. Before you stream its first episode, read up on everything we know about Fallout season 2. – TP

• Watch Fallout season 2 on Prime Video

Emily in Paris season 5 (Netflix)

Does Emily in Paris season 5 really live up to its namesake, or are we about to stream Emily in Rome season 1?

Lily Collins' titular character has planted roots in the Italian capital, heading up the Italian division of Agence Grateau. However, this doesn't mean she's free from drama because her budding relationship with Marcello (Eugenio Franceschini) isn't the fairytale ending she was hoping for, and representing his family brand Muratori is like jumping through endless PR hoops.

Frankly, I'm welcoming the change of scene, and Marcello to boot. We definitely haven't seen the last of Gabriel (Lucas Bravo), but I really want this Italian getaway to work out. – Jasmine Valentine, entertainment reporter

• Watch Emily in Paris season 5 on Netflix

One Battle After Another (HBO Max)

Sometimes, sitting down to watch an 142-minute movie is a shock to the system, but occasionally, it's worth the effort. Awards season alone will tell you that One Battle After Another , which is out now on HBO Max, is one of the rare few that cannot be missed, with director Paul Thomas Anderson's black comedy taking the industry by storm.

Leonardo DiCaprio stars as Bob, a once-upon-a-time revolutionist who's now solely fuelled by paranoia. When daughter Willa (Chase Infiniti) goes missing, Bob has to confront his tainted past to get her back.

Loud, off-the-wall, and extreme in every possible meaning of the word, One Battle After Another is truly one of this year's best movies. It even manages to make dissecting ongoing culture wars feel fresh, but that's just a day in the life for Anderson. – JV

• Watch One Battle After Another on HBO Max

Him (Peacock)

Jordan Peele is back with divisive new movie Him (to be fair, he's only produced it!). Considering he's had hits with Get Out and Us, this film's 30% Rotten Tomatoes score might shock you. Still, if you've been meaning to watch it, it's out now on Peacock.

Him follows a rising football star as he's invited to train at a legendary quarterback's isolated compound. While there, he discovers a cult-like world of obsession and sacrifice.

It sounds like a novel concept, but you'll be the judge of whether or not it fumbles the proverbial ball. – Lucy Buglass, senior entertainment writer

• Watch Him on Peacock

Counting Crows: Have You Seen Me Lately? (HBO Max)

Music lovers, listen up. Counting Crows: Have You Seen Me Lately? does exactly what it says on the tin, charting the rise of the synonymous band. HBO claims it'll be one of the most intimate behind-the-scenes portrayals we've ever seen and I think we can see that from the trailer.

Indeed, we'll be treated to sit-down interviews with present and former bandmembers, plus music contemporaries, alongside rare archival footage and personal photographs. Personally, I'm looking forward to learning more about the story behind their breakout hit 'Mr. Jones'.

There's a mix of personal and professional battles peppered throughout their entire story, and I think it could be one of the streaming service's strongest musical documentary releases to date. – JV

• Watch Counting Crows: Have You Seen Me Lately? on HBO Max

Kumail Nanjiani: Night Thoughts (Hulu/Disney+)

After a long week, an hour's worth of stand up comedy is just what the doctor ordered. If you're in the mood to switch off and laugh at the storytelling prowess of Kumail Nanjiani, then I've got the perfect pick for you following its Hulu and Disney+ debut.

Nanjiani returns to Chicago after a decade away, a city that's special to him as that's where he got his start in stand up. You may be familiar with his work on Silicon Valley, The Big Sick, Eternals, and various other movies and shows, and he's just an entertaining when it's simply him and a microphone.

Here, he discusses themes like anxiety, the perils of buying drugs pre-legalization, and finally, cat medication. You know, as you do. – LB

• Watch Kumail Nanjiani: Night Thoughts on Hulu (US) and Disney+ (internationally)

Jake Paul vs Anthony Joshua (Netflix)

Live from the Kaseya Center in Miami, Florida, Netflix is whipping out the boxing ring once more to bring us the highly-anticipated fight between it's Jake Paul and Anthony Joshua.

Preliminary rounds begin at 1:45pm PT / 4:45pm ET if you want to watch the whole thing but, if you'll just just tuning in for the main event, it'll start at 5pm PT / 8pm ET.

Regardless of what Netflix plan you have, it'll be available to all. It's set to be a fascinating match-up, too as World Boxing Association–ranked cruiserweight Jake Paul takes on the two-time unified heavyweight world champion in Joshua. Will it be viewed by more people than Paul's last bout? We'll have to see. – LB

• Watch Jake Paul vs Anthony Joshua on Netflix

• Call of Duty: Black Ops 7 and Warzone are getting a crossover with Amazon's Fallout
• A new video has teased Lucy Maclean, The Ghoul, and Maximus as Operator skins
• The crossover will be added to Season 01 Reloaded

Microsoft has announced a new Fallout crossover that will see the Amazon TV series characters added to Call of Duty: Black Ops 7 and Warzone.

In a new video shared to social media, seemingly to celebrate the release of Fallout Season 2, Activision has teased a new collaboration with the live-action series that will add characters Lucy Maclean, The Ghoul, and Maximus to Season 01 Reloaded.

The video shows the trio's silhouettes against a bright backdrop, carrying unidentified weapons, with Maximus wearing his Power armor from the show. The sign for Nuketown, one of Call of Duty's iconic maps, can also be seen behind them, suggesting the event will take place on this map. Fitting, eh?

Though Activision hasn't said the characters will be released as Operator skins, it's hard not to put two and two together considering the studio's other collaborations.

If so, they'll either be part of a premium event pass or as bundles in the shop. Event passes typically cost 1,100 CoD Points ($10) while Operator packs are priced at 2,800 CoD Points ($25) each.

There's also no release date for the collaboration just yet, but we'll keep you updated.

In other related news, Todd Howard, director and executive producer at Bethesda Game Studios, has confirmed that Fallout 5 will be influenced by the events of the Fallout TV series.

• Todd Howard has teased what we can expect from Fallout 5
• The director says the Amazon Fallout TV series and its events will influence Fallout 5
• "Fallout 5 will be existing in a world where the stories and events of the show happened or are happening," he says

Todd Howard, director and executive producer at Bethesda Game Studios, has teased the next Fallout game, confirming that it will be impacted by Amazon's Fallout TV series.

Speaking to BBC Newsbeat amid the release of Fallout Season 2, Howard, who has served as a director on Fallout 3 and Fallout 4, as well as Oblivion and Skyrim, touched on what we can expect from Fallout 5.

"In short, yes," Howard replied when asked if the events of the Amazon live-action series would influence the game. "Fallout 5 will be existing in a world where the stories and events of the show happened or are happening. We are taking that into account."

Though Howard didn't dive into the heavy details, we know that the Fallout TV show takes place after the current Fallout games, meaning whatever Lucy Maclean, The Ghoul, and Maximus are getting up to in Season 2 and beyond will have a rippling effect on the next entry in the role-playing game (RPG) series.

For now, there's no Fallout 5 release window, but we know that it's being worked on at Bethesda and will likely arrive after the studio's next game, The Elder Scrolls 6.

However, the next Elder Scrolls game was announced back in 2018 and still doesn't have a release date, with Howard recently confirming that the game is "still a long way off", suggesting Fallout 5 won't be launching any time soon.

• Fallout 76 is entirely free to play this week to celebrate Fallout Season 2's arrival
• Progress made here will carry over to the full game next week
• Simply head to your console store of choice to download the game for free

In a bit of a Fallout mood this Christmas period? You're in luck, as Fallout 76 is entirely free-to-play this week!

To celebrate the arrival of Fallout Season 2 on the Prime Video streaming service, Bethesda is hosting a Free Play Week for Fallout 76 from now until December 23, 2025. Better yet, all progress you accrue during this free-to-play period will carry over to the full game should you choose to purchase it after the fact.

That means you have about a week to play the popular multiplayer title without cost. Better still, this Free Play Week includes pretty much all content updates released for the game, including the most recent Burning Springs expansion that features Walton Goggins' character, The Ghoul, as an interactable quest giver.

So how do you get started? That's easy. Simply head over to the PlayStation Store on PS5 or PS4, or the Microsoft Store for Xbox Series X|S or Xbox One, go to Fallout 76's store page, and download the game. Yes, it's that easy. No annoying hoops to jump through; the game is simply free to download and play for the entire week.

Lucy (Ella Purnell) and the Ghoul (Walton Goggins) are heading to New Vegas. Fallout's opening season earned rave reviews – including a trio of Emmy Award nominations – despite having to apply most of its energies towards world building, which sets hopes sky-high for season 2. Now that we all know each other, who's up for exploring the Mojave Wasteland and meeting the local factions? If we're lucky, we may even run into a Deathclaw...

You can watch Fallout season 2 online from anywhere with a VPN and potentially for free.

They're on the trail of Hank (Kyle MacLachlan), Lucy's father, who escaped to New Vegas with stolen Brotherhood of Steel power armor after being unmasked as a former executive at Vault-Tec, the corporation that instigated the apocalyptic nuclear war in its lust for an ever greater share of control.

The revelation prompted an explosive disclosure in turn from the Ghoul: his wife Barb (Frances Turner) was one of Vault-Tec's top power-brokers.

On their quest they'll have run-ins with the various factions warring for control over the Mojave, including the New California Republic (NCR), Caesar’s Legion, the Kings – who have been reimagined as Elvis-impersonating Ghouls – as well as the wasteland's various delightful creatures, such as radscorpions and stingwings. Season 2 will also grant a proper introduction to Mr House (Justin Theroux), the ruler of New Vegas. Lucy and the Ghoul may need to think creatively to evade capture.

Kumail Nanjiani and Macaulay Culkin's characters suggest civil war in both the Brotherhood of Steel and Caesar’s Legion ranks, while Maximus (Aaron Moten) makes his mark with the aid of a mysterious cold‑fusion device.

The show itself is Fallout canon, but in order to avoid endorsing any particular ending as canon, season 2 is set 15 years after Fallout: New Vegas, and hints at every possible outcome.

Read on as we explain how to watch Fallout season 2 online from anywhere.

How to watch Fallout season 2 in the US, UK, Australia and Canada

How to watch Fallout season 2 from anywhere

If you're keen to watch Fallout but you're away from home and access to the show is geo-blocked, you can always use a VPN to access it (assuming you're not breaching any broadcster T&Cs, of course). You may be surprised by how simple it is to do.

Use one of the best VPNs to watch Fallout season 2 from anywhere:

Fallout season 2 – Need to Know

We test and review VPN services in the context of legal recreational uses. For example:1. Accessing a service from another country (subject to the terms and conditions of that service).2. Protecting your online security and strengthening your online privacy when abroad.We do not support or condone the illegal or malicious use of VPN services. Consuming pirated content that is paid-for is neither endorsed nor approved by Future Publishing.

Fallout season 2 is ready to emerge from its underground bunker. The hugely popular Amazon TV Original's sophomore chapter will be released in a couple of days, so you'll want to know when you can watch it.

Below, I'll tell you the exact date and time it'll launch where you live. Towards the end of this article, you'll also find a full release schedule for this season, which will come in handy as you plot out your streaming-based journey through the Wasteland.

So, delay no longer, Vaultie – read on to see when Fallout season 2 episode 1 will arrive.

What is the launch time for Fallout season 2 episode 1?

The Fallout TV show's second season was originally set to make its worldwide Prime Video debut on Wednesday, December 17.

However, as the above X/Twitter post confirmed today (December 15), it's not set to arrive in North and South America on Tuesday, December 16. Due to the time difference between the Americas and the rest of the world, episode 1 will still premiere on December 17 everywhere else.

As for when it'lll drop in the country you reside in, here are the revised launch times you need to be aware of:

• US – December 16 at 6pm PST / 9pm EST
• Canada – December 16 at 6pm PST / 9pm EST
• UK – December 17 at 2am GMT
• India – December 17 at 7:30am IST
• Singapore – December 17 at 10am SGT
• Australia – December 17 at 1pm AEDT
• New Zealand – December 17 at 3pm NZDT

Fallout season 2 full release schedule: when will new episodes come out?

It's currently unclear if new episodes Fallout's second season will follow the above release format. For now, then, we expect new chapters to air on one of the world's best streaming services every Wednesday. That'll be the case until the season 2 finale is released on February 4.

Here's a quick rundown of, according to the information we have as of December 15, when every entry will join Prime Video's library:

• Fallout season 2 episode 1 – December 16/17
• Fallout season 2 episode 2 – December 24
• Fallout season 2 episode 3 – December 31
• Fallout season 2 episode 4 – January 7
• Fallout season 2 episode 5 – January 14
• Fallout season 2 episode 6 – January 21
• Fallout season 2 episode 7 – January 28
• Fallout season 2 episode 8 – February 4

For more ahead of the show's return, find out everything we know so far about Fallout season 2.

• Fallout 4 Anniversary Edition has been announced and will include all six expansions and over 150 Creation Club items
• A Nintendo Switch 2 Edition of the game is coming in 2026
• Fallout 76 is coming to PS5, Xbox Series X, and Xbox Series S in 2026

Fallout Day is here, and Bethesda is celebrating with a slew of new game updates and announcements that include a Fallout 4 Anniversary Edition, Fallout 76 for current-gen consoles, and more.

It's been 10 years since Fallout 4 launched, and to mark the milestone, a new Anniversary Edition that compiles the base game and all six expansion packs and over 150 Creation Club items is set to launch on November 10, 2025.

A Nintendo Switch 2 Edition has also been announced and is set to arrive in 2026.

In addition to a new version of the game, Creations are also coming to Fallout 4, which means more downloadable content is coming to the game, thanks to a new Creations menu that will be added to the console and PC versions.

Fallout 76's next major expansion, Burning Springs, releases in December, and Bethesda has shared a brand new trailer detailing the content set to star actor Walton Goggins' the Ghoul from Amazon Prime's Fallout.

The expansion will also feature some nods to Fallout: New Vegas as the game celebrates its 15th anniversary, which players will be able to discover across the wasteland.

While players can currently play Fallout 76 on PC, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One, or PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X and Series S via backwards compatibility, Bethesda has also announced that a native version of the game will be released for PS5, Xbox Series X, and Xbox Series S in 2026.

In addition to some Fallout Shelter updates, Bethesda is also releasing a Fallout: New Vegas 15th anniversary bundle, which includes a physical copy of the Ultimate Edition on PC, a Victor statue, Vault Boy Pin, Evaluation Cards, and some cool-looking patches.

The next Fallout 76 update will be one of the largest yet, expanding the online game’s already massive Appalachia map with a whole new region set in a post-apocalyptic alternate history version of Ohio.

Titled Burning Springs, it’s the very first time that the series has ventured into the area, and production director Bill LaCoste argues that this presents the team with a unique opportunity to expand its lore. “We've always said as a team that the main character of this game is the world,” he begins. “Ohio was a blank slate. There are maybe four or five references to Ohio in all of Fallout, so this was a good opportunity to build on something and add something to the Fallout universe.”

Creative director Jon Rush echoes a similar sentiment. “We've never really talked much about what happened to Ohio post-war,” he says, “so that seemed like a fun place to explore.”

Movie magic

The update will coincide with the second season of the successful Amazon Prime Fallout TV show, which is set to premiere in December and returns to the fan-favorite setting of New Vegas. The developers of Fallout 76 are very keen to imbue the Ohio wasteland with the key characteristics of that Vegas locale.

“We saw where Season One ended. It ended in the desert of Vegas. You got Vegas in the background, you’ve got a big Deathclaw skull, and when we saw that we decided we wanted to make a new region,” Rush reveals as he explains that the team distilled everything down into “three pillars” so that the map expansion would be “very much in line with the tone that people experience in Fallout 3 or Fallout: New Vegas.”

“We want there to be a lot of desert, we want there to be a lot of Deathclaws, and we want there to be a lot of raiders,” he continues. “Desert, Deathclaws, and raiders - those were the three guiding factors in shaping this new region. Even though geographically, it is a different part of the United States, tonally it's going to remind people very much of those earlier games.”

The influence of the show extends further than just the map, though, with one of its major characters appearing as a non-player character (NPC) in one of the new cities. Voiced by actor Walton Goggins, The Ghoul is an integral part of the update’s new bounty hunting mechanics, and players will frequently need to visit him in order to collect these highly repeatable quests. Nailing the feel of his dialogue was something of a two-way process, requiring input from both the actor and the writing team.

“He's an absolutely wonderful actor and he's great to collaborate with,” says Rush. “We had writers on the game side who were writing the dialogue for the character, and we had a writer on the show side doing dialogue for the character as well. Then, when presented with those dialog options, of course, Walton, being The Ghoul, had adjustments to make on his side, too, but then once he was in the booth, he became The Ghoul and just knocked it out the park. It was pretty amazing.”

“I don't think those scripts should ever be looked at as a blueprint,” he adds. “It's more of a suggestion, and the real magic happens when an actor like Walton Goggins comes in and makes it that character; that's when it truly comes to life.”

Just getting started

Bounty hunting quests involve tracking down a certain NPC somewhere on the map, drawn from a large roster of potential targets. “What's randomized is the location,” Rush explains. “We do have a roster [of targets], and what's great about that feature is that it's been made to where we can expand upon that pretty easily, both in terms of the targets that you're hunting and the locations you're doing them in. So we already have more plans for bounty hunting down the road with that in mind.”

Aside from these tasks, players will also have two new live events to contend with: Sinkhole Solutions and Gearing Up. Both have been designed to be repeatable and give players the chance to obtain rare legendary items with each run. “As fans of the game and avid players of 76, when we're testing these new features we're always asking ourselves, ‘Why would I want to do this again? What's going to keep me coming back?’” says Rush.

This is all on top of some new story content, countless fresh locations for those eager to go wild with the expansive building mechanics, and plenty of hidden secrets waiting to be uncovered. It’s a gigantic heap of content, but after years of steady new additions, the developers show no signs of slowing down.

“Seven years in, I feel like we're just getting to the point where it's a base game,” remarks LaCoste. “We’ve got all the systems in place now, we've redone a lot of the combat, we’ve rebalanced the perks because systems that worked back at launch sometimes need to be revamped to fit the mood of the current vibe of the game.”

The result is a robust experience that’s just waiting to be rediscovered by lapsed fans or those hot off the heels of the show. “I think Fallout 76 is a great place to start,” declares Rush. “You can hop in and play it solo, or if you want to team up with other people or your friends, you're more than welcome to do that. There's hundreds and hundreds of hours of awesome Fallout storytelling, a huge map to explore, and there's never a shortage of things to do while you're in there.”

If you’re keen to give Fallout 76 a try in the build-up to the Burning Springs update, the game is available now for PC, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One or PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X and Series S via backwards compatibility.

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• A new enemy, the Radhog, is coming to Fallout 76
• Players will also be able to get a friendly one for their camps
• This was partially inspired by the creative director's own childhood pet

The upcoming Fallout 76: Burning Springs update will add a new Radhog camp pet with surprising real-world inspirations.

These large mutant pigs will be present in the game's new Ohio region as enemies, but players will also be able to get their hands on one to place in their settlements as a pet.

In an interview at a preview event last month, creative director Jon Rush revealed that the decision to add a friendly Radhog was partly inspired by his real-life childhood pet.

"When I was growing up, I had a pet pig named Hamilton," he said. "So with us putting a Radhog in the game, and it being an appropriate size for a camp pet, I just couldn't pass up the opportunity to have it made into one."

"It's an homage to Hamilton," he continued. "When Fallout 76 was first being conceived, there were some concepts for Radhogs done by an artist, and we had just never made them."

"Going through the older concepts and seeing that, it felt like a really good fit to have these, these vicious pigs running around the new region. And of course, Hamilton being in the back of my mind, I was like, 'well, we're going to do it'."

"I think it plays into player feedback as well," added production direct Bill LaCoste. "We gave players the dog and the cats. They love dogs and cats, but now they will get some more interesting pets."

The Burning Springs update is set to release in December alongside the premiere of Fallout TV show's second season.

Fallout 76 is available now for PC, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One, or PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X and Series S via backwards compatibility.

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• The Ghoul is coming to Fallout 76 voiced by TV series actor Walton Goggins
• He is a key part of new bounty hunting missions
• It comes as part of the massive Burning Springs update

Ever wondered what The Ghoul got up to before the events of the Fallout TV show? The upcoming Fallout 76: Burning Springs update finally lets us find out.

He appears in a new Ohio-inspired region of the Appalachia wasteland. The online game's second major map expansion, it all comes as part of the largest free content update in years that is set to introduce new items, factions, world events, and more.

Voiced by TV series actor Walton Goggins, The Ghoul is an integral part of a new bounty hunting mechanic. Players can visit him in the 'The Last Resort' bar in the new Highway Town settlement, where he dishes out missions that have you tracking down a varied roster of targets.

They range from the standard Grunt Hunts, which feature relatively low-level enemies, to elaborate server-wide Head Hunts against powerful bosses. Head Hunts cost Caps to access and are designed to be fairly difficult, so definitely make sure you're prepared before taking one on.

Completing bounty hunts showers you with rewards, including the tantalising prospect of earning The Ghoul's gun as seen in the show.

The update will release alongside the premiere of the show's second season and could make for the perfect accompaniment of you're still craving some Fallout action once the credits roll.

The game is available now for PC, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One, or PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X and Series S via backwards compatibility.

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The next Fallout 76 update, Burning Springs, is set to be the biggest content drop the game has seen in its almost seven years of expansive post-launch support. Releasing alongside the premiere of Amazon Prime Video’s highly anticipated Fallout season two in December, it’s shaping up to be the perfect accompaniment for fans of the TV show.

It represents the game’s second map expansion since the Skyline Valley update last year and fleshes out the Appalachia wasteland’s western region with a massive new area based on Ohio. That’s not everything, though, as this fresh environment is crammed with activities ranging from more story quests, two bombastic public events, and plenty of little secrets to discover.

Most exciting of all, however, is the addition of The Ghoul. Voiced by none other than Prime series actor Walton Goggins, he looks ripped straight from your TV screen and is an integral part of the update's biggest and most enjoyable new mechanic: bounty hunting.

Gun for hire

Picking up a bounty is as simple as heading to the newly added settlement of Highway Town, a strip-like city perched on top of a decimated overpass, and making a beeline for the shadiest bar you can find. The Ghoul stands menacingly in the corner in all his glory and, after a quick chat, offers you the chance to pick up some low-level contracts called Grunt Hunts.

While the final version of the update will feature plenty of Goggins' voice acting, it was unfortunately absent from the early build I played. Still, all of the dialogue was still present in a generic text-to-speech voice, and it provided enough to get at least a decent flavor of how it all might sound.

Grunt Hunts are repeatable tasks that are designed to be replayed time and time again, providing you with a steady stream of experience, items, and a generous amount of Caps. Although they can be tackled solo, I soon found that they really shone with a friend. Walking to the location of each target gives you the perfect chance for a little chat and to explore all of the new terrain. I bumped into a few little collectibles and even found a handful of items connected to the latest story quests on my travels.

Of course, simply fast-travelling to somewhere close to the target is always an option, but I’d recommend taking the extra time to really soak this new area in - at least in the first few weeks while the update is still fresh. When you reach your destination, finding your target is pretty simple, and while they might have a few goons on hand as backup, they’re all relatively easy to dispatch.

Far more challenging are the Head Hunts - server-wide contracts that cost a few Caps to access. Anyone in the game can join these, and you’ll likely need the assistance as they’re meant to be seriously difficult. In my time with the build, I went head-to-head with everything from a Power Armor-wearing psychopath flanked by waves of heavily armed US flag-themed foot soldiers to some random rifle-wielding old lady called Granny Grail.

For the purposes of the preview event, every participant was given a ridiculously high-level character and an arsenal of seriously overpowered weapons, so Granny Grail and her entourage of fellow golden oldies, all amusingly called ‘Tough Granny’ in-game, were obliterated in a matter of seconds. Was it a little anticlimactic? Sure, but the absurdly gory sight of all her limbs exploding practically instantaneously as four level 300 players showered her with rifle bullets had me howling with laughter - so I can’t really complain.

She’ll presumably stand more of a chance against my regular account, so I look forward to receiving a significant beating in our next encounter once the update is live.

Interestingly, the developers told me that these encounters are not procedurally generated as you might expect, but rather drawn upon a large list of hand-crafted enemies that can show up in any one of twenty possible locations, and I can’t help but chuckle at the mental image of a developer crafting a deadly old woman for players to defeat.

Vegas vibes

Ohio is nowhere near Las Vegas geographically, but that doesn’t mean that the developers haven’t tried to imbue this setting with a distinctly desert vibe to help match the new setting of the show. It’s a very sandy, red wasteland that looks far more like the world of Fallout: New Vegas than anything that we’ve seen in 76 before.

Radscorpions, a constant pest in New Vegas, are absolutely everywhere and a key part of the new Sinkhole Solutions public event. It’s a neat little horde survival challenge that has you fending off increasingly deadly waves of Radscorpions as a team, occasionally taking out nests as you go, for high-level rewards. The other new public event, Gearing Up, is then all about collecting scrap and leading a friendly Deathclaw through waves of bandits. It seems less repeatable than Sinkhole Solutions, but it is still a decent change of pace.

Highway Town is an impressively unique destination, but there are still lots of other locations well worth a visit throughout the map. The real-life city of Athens is represented in the middle of a charming Halloween celebration, the streets littered with plastic skeletons and other seasonal decorations. Make sure to snag the novelty witch’s hat that’s perched on the mannequin in the middle of the town plaza when you visit for some serious style points.

As a free update that also drops alongside a new season pass filled with a fresh wave of unlockable goodies, the quality and quantity of content on offer here is undeniable. If you’ve been waiting for an excuse to dive into the world of Fallout 76, this is it.

The game is available now for PC, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One, or PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X and Series S via backwards compatibility.

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• Amazon has revealed the official release date for Fallout season 2
• Previously, we only knew it would premiere on Prime Video in December
• This season's first trailer was unveiled alongside the launch date at gamescom 2025

Amazon has announced that Fallout season 2 will make its Prime Video debut on December 17, 2025.

Before today (August 19), we only knew that Fallout season 2 would be released on Prime Video in December. Now, we know exactly when it'll launch on one of the world's best streaming services, with its actual release date being revealed during Opening Night Live at gamescom 2025.

That's not all that was revealed. Indeed, Amazon also unveiled this season's first trailer, which you can watch above, and shows Ella Purnell's Lucy MacLean and Walton Goggins' The Ghoul coming face-to-face with one of the videogame series' iconic Deathclaws.

That Deathclaw encounter aside, season 2's inaugural teaser unsurprisingly puts the series' main characters front and center as they continue to traverse the Wasteland. It also offers our first glimpse at the Fallout TV show's live-action take on New Vegas, aka the main location for one of the videogame series' most beloved entries in Fallout: New Vegas.

The mid-credits scene of last season's finale made clear that New Vegas would feature heavily in one of the best Prime Video shows' second season. Fans, then, were well aware that part of this installment's story would take place there. Nonetheless, it's great to see such a prominent and beloved locale from the games depicted as authentically as possible. Oh, and we'll be spending some time with its dictatorial ruler Mister House, who'll be played by Justin Theroux, in flashback sequences showing New Vegas at the height of its glory.

The first round of footage arrives a day after Fallout season 2's first-look images and four days on from the debuting of Fallout season 2's first poster. With just under four months to go until Amazon's adaptation of Bethesda's iconic game franchise returns, let's hope it hasn't spoiled every surprise that awaits us in season 2.

Season 2 will see familiar faces return from its forebear, including Purnell's Lucy, Goggins' The Ghoul/Cooper Howard, Aaron Moten's Maximus, Kyle MacLachlan's Hank MacLean, and Moises Arias' Norm MacLean. Theroux's addition notwithstanding, Fallout season 2 also reportedly added Home Alone icon Macauley Culkin to its roster last November, but there's still no word on who he'll play.

Fallout season 2 will launch with a one-episode premiere on Prime Video. New episodes will roll out weekly after that until the finale's arrival on February 6, 2026. For more on the Prime Video TV Original's return, check out my dedicated guide on Fallout season 2.

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LocalThunk has unveiled the latest Balatro update for its Friends of Jimbo collaboration pack, which adds even more crossovers to the game.

The announcement comes from the latest ID@Xbox showcase, where the developer released the teaser trailer for Balatro Jimbo Pack 4, while also shadow-dropping the award-winning, poker roguelike on Xbox Game Pass.

From the trailer, we know that the free update adds new card skins themed after Assassin's Creed, Civilization 7, Fallout, Dead by Daylight, Rust, Slay the Princess, Bugsnax, and Critical Role.

All cards featured in the collaboration pack will have artwork based on fan-favorite characters from their respective games, like Fallout's Vault Boy and Dead by Daylight's The Trapper.

For the Assassin's Creed, in particular, players can expect to collect skins for some of the series' most iconic characters. These include Ezio Auditore da Firenze as the King of Spades card, Jacob Frye as the Jack of Spades, as well as Fujibayashi Naoe as the Queen of Spades, one of the playable protagonists from the upcoming Assassin's Creed Shadows.

This latest patch is the fourth update to Balatro's Friends of Jimbo collaboration pack. It was first released in August 2024 and added decks inspired by The Witcher, Vampire Survivors, Dave The Diver, and Among Us.

The crossover later saw card skins based on Cyberpunk 2077, Shovel Knight, Don't Starve, Divinity: Original Sin 2, Stardew Valley, Warframe, and more. It's unclear if LocalThunk has plans for even more updates, so we'll have to see what cards the sole developer has up his sleeve.

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The Gleaming Depths update has landed in Fallout 76, bringing heaps of new content to the massively multiplayer online (MMO) game. Its namesake, the brand-new Gleaming Depths raid, looks like a seriously meaty challenge and should put long-time vault hunters to the test. Those able to overcome the odds will be rewarded with resources for the all-new 4-Star legendary crafting system, which lets you transform your already powerful 3-Star items into even more effective gear.

This is on top of additional public events, plus loads of major changes to a handful of existing Perk Cards. Everything is available completely for free and is just one of the many substantial updates that developer Bethesda Game Studios has put out since launch in 2018.

I went hands-on with an early build of the update ahead of release and, as a bit of a lapsed Fallout 76 player myself, really enjoyed my time venturing back into the virtual world of post-apocalyptic Appalachia. I also had a chance to sit down with the developer to find out why fans should be excited about this update.

Teaming up

The Gleaming Depths is “a raid that I think players will find the mechanics to be somewhat familiar, especially if they've played World of Warcraft or they've played Final Fantasy 14, or they've played any other typical major MMO,” explains Fallout 76 production director Bill LaCoste.

He points to the Guardian Bot, a powerful robotic enemy that you encounter right at the start of the raid, as something that MMO die-hards will recognize: “They'll notice that the Guardian Bot, for example, is pretty much your DPS [damage per second] check. It asks ‘Do you have a team that's good enough to actually make it through the rest of the raid?’ That Guardian Bot is very aptly named, it lets you know that this is how the rest of the raid is likely to go.”

“There's a lot of different mechanics that are actually involved with the raid, but players are going to be able to figure that out pretty quickly I think,” he continues. “Even players who are not looking at YouTube, if they go in, they're going to fail a few times, but they'll be able to figure those mechanics out. There's also a few hidden mechanics that we've not shown players either.”

This is content that has been designed for the most dedicated players, so I’m eager to find out exactly what the developers think it takes to beat. “You're gonna have to have a character that's at least level 300, maybe 200 is the base, but certainly level 300 above, because you'll have all your legendary perks available to you,” he replies.

“You'll probably have those legendary perks at a relatively good level, so you've got a good loadout. You're gonna want to have your full complement of (you don't have to be min-maxed, but you certainly want a really good loadout) armor, power armor, and weapons to take on each of these encounters.”

The Gleaming Depths is not a challenge that you can beat alone, however, so players are also going to need a well-coordinated team if they hope to survive. “It's going to be more than just jumping into a public team and just expecting to go through it,” LaCoste begins. “There are a lot of mechanics that are going to take a good amount of cooperation between the team and that's something I think is new to the series and I think players have been wanting it for a while too.”

The Guardian Bot is easiest to beat if you have a teammate dedicated to keeping it distracted and tanking the bulk of its damage output. “You're also going to come across mole miners, as well as the Stalker when you're actually in the mining facility,” explains LaCoste. The Stalker is a particularly interesting enemy, as it’s completely impervious to damage by default but can take you down in seconds with its ultra-powerful hits. As the name would suggest, you should expect to butt heads with it frequently as it follows you throughout the early stages of the raid.

You also have to fight Squad Epsilon, a forgotten Conclave unit kitted out in high-end armor that long-time series fans might recognize as inspired by the look of the character on the box art of Fallout 2. “When you get down to Squad Epsilon, there's going to be shield generators that you have to power down, because that's how the bosses are actually shielded from damage,” he outlines. “So you have to turn those down and then go attack them.”

The fight with Squad Epsilon is followed by a research lab that has been overrun by irradiated creatures. You have to work as a team to lure them close to bright glowing crystals, which can be detonated with gunfire for massive amounts of damage. This is also where you get a chance to finally take down the Stalker, which then leads you into the raid’s final and biggest challenge - a fight against the Ultracite Terror.

Size matters

The Ultracite Terror is the largest enemy in any Fallout game to date, an absolute behemoth boss lizard that towers over your squad as you fight from a small island suspended over a lethal green ooze. “The Ultracite Terror spits out toxic spit, it puts pools on the ground that players are going to have to avoid,” LaCoste says. “Unless you're a Ghoul, in which case you don't have to avoid them. Then there are the tails that come up at set points in time, which actually hit the island, and it causes it to shrink and shrink and shrink. There will be a point where, if you don't take down the tails or the snake in time, it's going to destroy the island. People are going to wipe and you’re going to have to come and do it again.”

Creating an encounter where you fight such a massive foe has been a particular challenge for the developer, after all there’s been nothing else quite like it in any other Fallout games. “When you're dealing with something that big obviously, there's a lot of textures and there are a lot of elements that didn't exist,” LaCoste outlines. “Even in VATS, actually making sure that all the different panels across the neck were actually taken into account in VATS, so you can aim at them and destroy them. There's a stumble mechanic, then there's the spit, there's the tail.

“We're talking about adding mechanics to the game that didn't exist before, and so getting those implemented, and working with the animation crew as well as the character crew to get all this stuff working and actually looking right, was a pretty big challenge. Also, just because you have this massive monster, we need to make sure that with the camera views that players are playing in, they can actually see the encounter. It has to be far enough back, but you still have to be able to hit it.”

Jamming out

The Gleaming Depths raid actually started life as part of a game jam - an internal contest where developers are free to try out new ideas on various Bethesda properties. “Every year, the company shuts down for a week. We cancel all meetings. Everybody's expected across production, art, QA, whatever it is, to join in with a group of people or by themselves,” says LaCoste. “They can work on Fallout 76, they can work on Starfield, they can work on any other game that we have going on, and develop those things across the week, and then show them off.”

“For [creative director] Jon Rush and that team, we wanted to create something that was just new and unique and challenging for players within Fallout 76 and they came up with this idea, and everybody loved it and they're like, ‘we want to see more of that!’” reveals LaCoste. “So they started expanding on the creatures and the design and how many encounters there would be.”

The Gleaming Depths is far from the first addition to the game that started life this way. “The photo mode was part of a game jam,” LaCoste says. “We also have the fly cam when you're doing camp building, that was part of a game jam. There are many other features that have actually started out as a game jam. It's a really good defining moment, you know, not only for our game but for the studio because everybody's committed to it.”

It might take a bit of time to reach level 300 and get enough good gear to take on the Gleaming Depths, but if you’re a new player who wants to try out Fallout 76 for yourself the game is available now on PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and PC. This is in addition to Xbox Series X, Xbox Series S, and PlayStation 5 via backwards compatibility.

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• Millions of dollars worth of crypto is being stolen from wallets
• The victims are being linked to the 2022 LastPass hack
• The hack saw both encrypted and unecrypted data stolen from the password manager provider

The hacker responsible for the huge LastPass breach in 2022 has continued their rampage by using stolen data to take $5.36 million from 40 crypto wallets.

The August 2022 hack saw the attacker gain access to information that allowed them to later successfully breach a cloud-based storage environment which stored customer keys, API tokens, multi-factor authentication (MFA) seeds, and encrypted password vaults.

While the password vaults were encrypted, the master password used to open them could still be brute forced if it was weak, reused, or previously leaked, which may be the reason for a string of crypto thefts against LastPass users since 2022.

The fallout continues

The latest theft is being linked to the LastPass breach by a blockchain expert known as ZachXBT (via The Block). ZachXBT claims in a Telegram post this is just the latest in a long line of crypto thefts affecting victims of the LastPass breach, with $4.4 million being stolen in October 2023, and a further theft of $6.2 in February 2024.

“Stolen funds were swapped for ETH and transferred to various instant exchanges from Ethereum to Bitcoin,” ZachXBT wrote in their Telegram message. “Cannot stress this enough, if you believe you may have ever stored your seed phrase or keys in LastPass migrate your crypto assets immediately.”

The Verge previously reported between the time of the breach in August and December of 2022, over $35 million was stolen from 150 apparent victims of the LastPass breach.

These subsequent breaches of crypto wallets highlight the importance of using unique passwords for every single account, and ensuring that each password adheres to recommended password security standards by using one of the best password generators.

Even if you have changed your password manager provider since the LastPass breach, any compromised passwords that are still being reused are at risk, as evidenced by these crypto thefts. It is also recommended to use a strong authenticator app that uses biometric verification to secure your accounts even if an attacker knows your username and password.

Christofer Hoff, Chief Secure Technology Officer at LastPass, said, "A year has passed since initial claims surfaced alleging a link between certain cryptocurrency thefts and the 2022 LastPass security incidents. In that time, LastPass has investigated these claims and to date is not aware of any conclusive evidence that directly connects these crypto thefts to LastPass."

"Because we take any claims regarding the security of LastPass and our customers seriously, we continue to invite any security researchers who believe they may have evidence to contact the LastPass Threat Intelligence team at securitydisclosure@lastpass.com," Hoff concluded.

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• Fallout won Best Adaptation at The Game Awards 2024
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Arcane fans have taken to social media to express their disappointment about the outcome of one of today's winners at The Game Awards 2024, following the announcement that Amazon's Fallout TV show was crowned 'Best Adaptation'.

Arcane, one of the best Netflix shows, brings to life the League of Legends universe through the use of striking animated visuals and explosive action. Meanwhile, one of the best Prime Video shows, Fallout, "brings one of gaming’s most iconic series to life with a highly satisfying blend of source material devotion and narrative originality", as Tom Power wrote in TechRadar's Fallout season 1 review.

The point is, though, that both video game adaptations are terrific watches, but what they do have in common is the fact that they aren't just catered to fans of the video games. No matter if you're an avid fan or a newcomer to the franchise, both shows will both wow you (much like The Last of Us did for me).

However, this hasn't stopped fans flocking to social media to express their views over Fallout winning the award over Arcane, with one user even feeling "robbed" at the defeat.

Although Arcane season 2 missed out this time, the animated series hasn't gone without its fair share of awards. Not only did it win 'Best Adaptation' at The Game Awards in 2022, it won four Emmy Awards, including the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Animated Program and became the first streaming series to win the award.

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• Filming is underway on Fallout season 2, according to two of its primary actors
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• It's unclear when the hugely successful Prime Video series will return to our screens

It's time to return to the wasteland – well, for the stars of Amazon's TV adaptation of Fallout, anyway, because filming on the hit show's second season is officially underway.

Taking to Instagram yesterday (December 3), Walton Goggins, who plays The Ghoul/Cooper Howard, confirmed he was back in the metaphorical saddle to start shooting Fallout season 2. Indeed, Goggins posted an image of himself as his Ghoul prosthetics were being applied by one of the series' many makeup artists, which confirms principal photography has begun.

Goggins' post comes hot on the heels of social media posts from one of his Fallout TV show co-stars in Ella Purnell. Taking to Bluesky two days earlier, Purnell, who plays Lucy MacLean, posted an image from a plane as it flew over an unknown desert location. 24 hours later, Purnell posted a follow-up message on Bluesky to say "the wasteland is calling see you soon" before signing off with "#fallouts2 #falloutnewvegas".

We already had an inkling that the hugely popular Prime Video show's sophomore season would start filming before the end of 2024. In October, Leslie Uggams, who plays Betty Pearson, told ScreenRant that principal photography would begin in November. However, with Purnell and Goggins confirming their filming schedules have begun, this is the clearest indication we've seen yet that one of the best Prime Video shows' next chapter is in full production.

Full spoilers follow for Fallout season 1, so proceed at your own risk!

In the final episode of Fallout's first season, Lucy and The Ghoul joined forces to pursue Lucy's dad Hank (Kyle MacLachlan), who was revealed to be an employee of Vault-Tec, the nefarious megacorporation who played a big role in nuclear weapon-fuelled cataclysm known as The Great War. Hank is also responsible for the destruction of Shady Sands decades after The Great War, too, which turned his wife and Lucy's mom into an irradiated feral ghoul – a heart-breaking finale scene that was reshot because "it didn't feel right", according to Purnell.

With Goggins and Purnell starting work on Fallout season 2, then, the series' next installment will see their characters continue their search for Hank. With the latter seen heading to iconic Fallout location New Vegas in season 1's mid-credits scene, we can expect Fallout: New Vegas, one of the many games set in Bethesda's long-running and iconic videogame franchise, to inspire the show's next chapter.

Does Fallout season 2 have a release date yet?

Unsurprisingly, no – and it's going to be a while before it's released on Prime Video, aka one of the world's best streaming services.

Filming on the series' first season began in July 2022 and, according to Goggins, production wrapped in March 2023, so it took eight months to shoot from start to finish. If season 2 requires a similarly long shooting schedule, principal photography isn't likely to wrap until August 2025. With season 1's post-production phase requiring a year's worth of work, too, I'd be surprised if Fallout's sophomore chapter launches on Amazon's primary streamer before mid-2026.

Still, at least there's been some movement on the filming front. After all, it was only two months ago – in early October – that Purnell admitted "I don't have a script, I have literally nothing" for Fallout season 2. That revelation came six months after Amazon MGM Studios renewed Fallout for a second season, so fans (myself included) were starting to wonder what was holding it up. In all likelihood, showrunners Graham Wagner and Geneva Robertson-Dworet were still working on this season's scripts, while the likes of director-producer Jonathan Nolan, in conjunction with the show's massive crew, worked out where they'd film season 2 alongside other production logistics.

Anyway, while we wait for season 2 to emerge from its vault, read my review of Fallout season 1 to see what I thought of it. Alternatively, check out some of my exclusive interviews with Nolan, the show's cast, and Bethesda chief Todd Howard about season 1.

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When it comes to the best Prime Video shows and best Disney Plus shows, Fallout and Percy Jackson and the Olympians sit comfortably on our lists. With both expected to return for second seasons both platforms have unveiled a brand new cast member for each show, with Macauley Culkin joining the post-apocalyptic drama and Andra Day joining Disney’s Greek deity fantasy.

Premiering on Prime Video just this year, Fallout proved to be an authentic adaptation of the popular video game, making it one of Prime Video’s top three most-watched titles. But although details of its second season have yet to be unveiled, Macaulay Culkin’s addition to the cast is confirmed and he'll allegedly be playing a “crazy genius-type character”, according to Deadline.

Culkin’s new character will join an already star-studded cast featuring Ella Purnell, Aaron Moten, Kyle MacLachlan, Moisés Arias, and Walton Goggins - whose Outstanding Lead Actor Emmy nomination was just one of 17 that Fallout accumulated this year. Given the successful run of its first season which attracted 65 million viewers in its first 16 days, Fallout season two sure does have a reputation to live up to.

However, Fallout is just one of the shows on the best streaming services returning with an updated cast as Oscar nominee Andra Day is set to play the role of Athena in the next season of Percy Jackson and the Olympians on Disney Plus. Day will step into the shoes of the Greek goddess of wisdom – an integral character in Rick Riordan’s series of novels – playing the mother of Annabeth Chase (Leah Sava Jeffries), one of Percy’s (Walker Scobell) closest friends.

The news that Day would be joining the cast of the Disney Plus show was announced at the D23 event in Brazil, followed by a video (see below) posted to social media with Day in character. Disney also announced more cast members for season two including Tamara Smart and Daniel Deimer, who are lined up to play Thalia Grace (the daughter of Zeus) and Percy’s half-brother Tyson.

Despite the absence of release date details, we know that season two of Percy Jackson and the Olympians will be based on Percy Jackson and the Sea of Monsters, the second book in Riordan’s fantasy series. One year after the events of the first season, Percy returns to Camp Halfblood to find that it’s under threat from Kronos. Along with his shifting friendships and the missing case of his friend Grover (Aryan Simhadri), Percy learns that he has a long-lost half-brother Tyson, who happens to be a cyclops.

Percy Jackson and the Olympians is expected to return for a second season sometime in 2025 on Disney Plus.

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What's going on with Fallout season 2? Six months after Amazon's TV adaptation of Bethesda's beloved videogame franchise broke records on Prime Video, it seems that everyone is being kept in the dark about its development – including its lead stars.

Speaking to DiscussingFilm, Ella Purnell, who plays Lucy MacLean in the hugely successful Prime Video series, admitted she "doesn't know anything" about the status of the show's next installment. It doesn't sound like progress is moving as fast as Amazons executives have made out in the past, then.

"I'm excited," Purnell replied when asked about season 2. "I really cannot wait [but] I don't have anything – I don't know when we're going to do it, I don't have a script, I have literally nothing.

"I don't even know if I'm in it," she jokingly added. "I hope I'm in it. I think I'm in it. I'm probably in it. But no, I don't know anything. I'm excited, I really want to get going. I need to start practicing my accent again and getting back into the Lucy headspace."

Apocalypse (not) now

Purnell's comments don't instil confidence of an imminent return to the world of Fallout – from a production standpoint anyway – but it seems odd that Amazon hasn't informed its cast about when filming may begin. It's even more curious when you factor in comments made by Amazon officials since season 1 of its Fallout TV show emerged from its vault and, as I mentioned, took the world by storm in April.

Speaking to Variety in July, Prime Video's Head of TV Vernon Sanders said "we’ve already gotten scripts in hand" – a pleasing update that came 24 hours after Amazon MGM Studios chief Jennifer Salke told Deadline: "We’ve got a plan that we’re moving very fast on. I can’t tell you an exact date, but I think everyone will be happy with how quickly we’re able to get back with season 2."

If, as the pair suggest, script work has been completed and principal photography will get underway sooner rather than later, wouldn't they have told Purnell and company when work on one of the best Prime Video shows' second seasons will begin? Okay, script rewrites and/or treatments are usually required to improve the quality. Additionally, the volatile nature of the entertainment industry means that a studio's best-laid plans can change at the last minute. After all, a production as big as Fallout needs its cast and crew's schedules to line up perfectly before filming can start. Other important details, such as securing permits to shoot in certain locations, sourcing equipment, and ensuring a months-long shooting schedule is locked in, need to be sorted before work can get underway, too.

Regardless of the fact that Purnell isn't aware of how far along Fallout season 2 is on the development front, then, it doesn't mean progress has stalled. So, desperate though I am to see what happens next, I'm happy to wait if it means that Fallout's return on one of the world's best streaming services is as good as, if not better, than its debut. 

That all said, I'd be surprised if Fallout's sophomore season is released before late 2026, which means we'll have a long wait on our hands if my prediction proves correct. As we *ahem* stand by for more news on season 2, find out about the "really cool" plans that director Jonathan Nolan has for Fallout's next season. Alternatively, if you haven't watched it yet, read my review of Fallout season 1 to see why it's one of 2024's unmissable TV shows.

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Full spoilers immediately follow for Arcane season 1.

Netflix has released a new official clip from Arcane season 2, and it teases a potentially fascinating alliance between Jinx and Sevika.

The latest teaser, which you can watch below, sees Jinx running running for her life as she seemingly attempts to evade capture from, well, everybody. Indeed, the clip shows her carrying a package of some sort, and my initial thought is that she's trying to dispose of the rocket launcher she used to attack Piltover's council chamber in the season 1 finale. That callous act means that not only Piltover's law enforcers are after her, but Zaun's bounty hunters are likely to be, too, as they try to earn a quick payday for bringing her in.

Anyway, she's quickly set upon by the Scrap Hackers, a new Zaun-based criminal faction led by the Yordle known as Smeech who'll make their debut in one of the best Netflix shows' second season. After a tense back-and-forth between Jinx and the body-augmented crime outfit, Jinx appears to be rescued by Sevika before the clip ends.

What makes Jinx and Sevika's reunion such an interesting proposition is that the latter doesn't know that Jinx killed Silco, aka the criminal kingpin they worked for. By the end of Arcane's first season, Sevika isn't aware that Jinx took Silco's life after he tried to murder her sister Vi. For now, then, Jinx and Sevika remain allies, but for how long remains to be seen.

As I alluded to earlier, this is only the latest season 2 clip that Netflix has released to whet our appetite for the animated League of Legends (LoL) show's return. In late July, another clip showed Heimerdinger and Ekko infiltrating a Hexcore lab in Piltover, while an all-too-brief piece of footage in June teased new heroes, another possible time jump, and Vi's new costume. Back in January, the first Arcane season 2 clip also suggested that we'll see a fan-favorite LoL villain make their debut in Netflix's TV adaptation of Riot Games' beloved video game franchise.

An official distraction from the huge Netflix data breach?

Call me a cynic, but the timing of this latest clip's release seems a bit too coincidental. How so? Because, if you weren't aware, Netflix has, at the time of writing, spent the past five days battling a massive leak after one of its post-production partners suffered a major data breach. That's led to full but unfinished episodes of Arcane season 2, Heartstopper season 3, and many other shows being posted online. Other projects, including numerous new Netflix movies that'll arrive before 2024 ends, have also been impacted by the security hack.

Outside of telling the press that it's "aggressively taking action" to pull the leaks from the internet, the PR team for one of the world's best streaming services hasn't commented further. A couple of movie and TV show creators have commented, however, including Arcane co-showrunner Christian Linke, who took to X/Twitter (see below) to post a gif summing up his reaction to the leak.

Considering that this new clip was released just 48 hours after the first reports emerged about Arcane season 2 episodes leaking online, I can't help but feel that this is a ploy on Netflix's part. Sure, I'd like to give it and Riot the benefit of the doubt, and believe that this clip was always set to be unveiled on Saturday (August 10). However, the timing is a bit too serendipitous for my liking. I'll take an officially released clip over an unfinished episode leak every day of the week, but I can't be the only one who's viewing this as a mere distraction tactic from Netflix and company to try and prevent people from searching for said leaked episodes.

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Fallout 76 has come a long way since its launch back in 2018. The first multiplayer installment in the traditionally story-focused Fallout series, many long-time fans were initially disappointed by its countless bugs and largely empty open world. Almost six years later, Fallout 76 has been completely overhauled. A string of major updates have added non-playable characters (NPCs), reworked story content, addressed all manner of technical issues, and ultimately transformed it into an enjoyable online experience.

With the game currently experiencing record-high all-time player counts on Steam, it seems as though the arrival of new content isn’t going to stop any time soon. The game’s latest free update, Skyline Valley, introduces an all-new region to the Virginia setting inspired by the real-world Shenandoah National Park. On top of a fresh area to explore, the update brings additional story content centered around the recently unearthed Vault 63 and its sinister overseer.

I sat down for a few hours with an early build of the update at the London HQ of developer ZeniMax Online Studios and was able to chat about my experience with Fallout 76 lead producer Bill LaCoste.

The only way is up

First and foremost, I was interested to hear what the game’s rocky release and recent resurgence have been like for the development team. “I think for the team, even with a rough launch, there was a roadmap to success and everybody just stayed on that,” he explains. “It was like, ‘No, we know where we're going and we know we're going to get there and we know that players are going to continue to support us in this effort.’”

“As we continued to roll out those updates, players started to come back in and they were like, 'Oh, this is getting really good.'” These comments certainly ring true for me as one of the many players who have recently rediscovered Fallout 76 thanks to the popularity of the Fallout TV show. As a big fan of Fallout 4, I’ve been particularly impressed by just how similarly engaging the world of Fallout 76 now feels despite hailing from a different developer - and it seems that I’m not alone.

“I think the biggest compliment I've heard from just listening to people play in area chat is that, 'hey, this actually feels like a Bethesda game now because I have an intention to go do something and I get sidetracked by all this other stuff, and I come back eight hours later and go, ‘what was I doing?'” LaCoste says. “To have Fallout 76 be that now is really amazing.”

While countless other live service titles have failed to recover after rocky launches, LaCoste argues that the growth of Fallout 76 has been driven by a continued sense of progress: “Every time we've released a new update, people have felt the game getting progressively better and better. [...] For a lot of people who left at launch, they had very valid reasons to leave. It wasn't a game for them and it had a lot of issues, but for us, we always knew where we were going and that we were going to fix those things.”

Growing the world

Skyline Valley stands apart from previous updates as the first to increase the size of the map. I spent some time wandering around the new location and wanted to know why now was considered an opportune time to expand the world of Appalachia. 

“One, because it hits all of our players. You're able now to go explore a new area, there's new points of interest, and there's especially more places to place camps now which feeds a huge section of our player base,” LaCoste explains. “We've got a new vault, we've got a new story, and a new overseer that you're interacting with. There's a great branching storyline [...] and there's something for all of our players.”

“There's going to be daily events, there's going to be random encounters, there's going to be bosses,” he continues. “Other content that we've released in the past hasn't been for everyone, it's been for an isolated group of players, whether it’s new players or whether it's older players. This type of content, everybody can engage with even from level 25 all the way through to the highest level players.”

Although it is still recognizable as a location within the Fallout universe, the lush forests and beautiful vistas of Skyline Valley definitely feel like a breath of fresh air compared to the more downtrodden locations that have come to characterize the series. I was particularly keen to discover what kind of work went into its creation. “We spend a lot of time doing research, we go in and take pictures, we get textures, you know, that are representative of those areas,” LaCoste says.

“We really do try to recreate the style and the look of those areas. I think that's what makes the Shenandoah National Park area so unique as well, because it doesn't look like an ash heap, you know. It's its own kind of unique biome in a way, its own unique space.”

As with any successful live service title, the community is always a consideration for the development team. “We have a great community of people," he begins. “We are always thinking about what the sentiment is going to be regarding releasing something like this because it's important. If it's going to make players upset, if it's going to anger them, there's got to be a really good, valid reason for us doing it.”

LaCoste gives one example of an update that upset the community but was ultimately necessary for the game. “Way back in like update 12, we had to remove all the mods off power armor for everyone because of a technical issue. We knew that was going to upset people, but we had to do it. With content, it's a little bit different but we get it tested, we get feedback from the community through the public test server, we get feedback from Discord, Reddit, things like that.”

The Skyline Valley update is live right now and if you’re a new player who is eager to get to grips with all of its brand-new content, Fallout 76 is available for PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and PC in addition to PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X, and Xbox Series S via backwards compatibility.

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Players will soon have the ability to explore the wasteland as a Ghoul in Fallout 76, with an update adding the feature set to release in early 2025.

The highly anticipated addition will be part of a free update and can be unlocked through a new quest line once you hit level 50. Although you definitely lose out in the looks department, with some key factions treating you with additional suspicion thanks to your decrepit appearance, those who choose to become a Ghoul will benefit from a new way to leverage the wasteland's deadly radiation to your advantage.

Ghouls will also be fully customizable thanks to the ability to alter your look and choose from a broad range of new Ghoul specific perk cards. All things considered, it seems like a pretty substantial departure from the existing character system and a great addition to the game. The news also comes at a very opportune time, with fans still absolutely obsessed with the recent Fallout TV show and its Ghoul protagonist Cooper, portrayed by Walton Goggins, in particular.

I was recently able to spend a few hours playing as a Ghoul and sit down with Fallout 76 lead producer Bill LaCoste at a preview event in London and was curious to find out whether this brilliant timing was all carefully planned. “It's all somewhat coincidental. We knew that the TV show was going to feature Cooper and we had an idea that Cooper would probably be a popular character because of being Walton Goggins but also just a Ghoul in the show,” he explained.

“But we had plans, even before that, to play as a Ghoul. So I would say that it's very coincidental that the popularity of Cooper and our ideas to want to play as a goal kind of just happened around the same time. So we were already thinking about wanting to do this and, again, the popularity of Cooper has kind of just made this an amazing feature at this point.”

Outside of the addition of playable Ghouls, Fallout 76 is set to receive the huge Skyline Valley update later this week. It will introduce a series of new quests, features, and expand the game’s map for the first time. You will be able to read a more detailed interview with LaCoste about all things Skyline Valley and the broader state of Fallout 76 when the update goes live on June 12.

If you’re a new player that is eager to get started in the game before Skyline Valley arrives, Fallout 76 is available right now for PC, Xbox One, and PlayStation 4 in addition to Xbox Series X, Xbox Series S, and PlayStation 5 via backwards compatibility.

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Full-fat Windows gaming on Android appears to be ever-closer as one clever engineer has managed to get Fallout 4 running at 30 fps on Android through the open-source Winlator emulator. 

As spotted by Tom's Hardware, Winlator is an open-source APK for Android which essentially emulates PC games and apps on the best Android phones and the best Android tablets available. ETA PRIME has taken things a step further by getting the popular action RPG Fallout 4 running natively on a string of devices at playable frame rates. 

It's important to note that the copy of Fallout 4 running through Winlator is the GOG version which is DRM-free, meaning the game can be launched without being tied to an internet connection or account. That effectively rules out getting to boot up your Steam, Ubisoft Connect, Xbox Game Pass, and Epic Games Store accounts, but it's a start. 

The full video tutorial goes through the setup needed which is pretty tricky, and generally not for the faint-hearted. It starts with using the offline backup installer version of Fallout 4 through GOG and then copying over the saves and files to then launch into Winlator. You'll then need to make a new 'container' which sets up the graphics driver, native resolution, audio driver, and DX wrapper, too. So, only the really clued-up need apply here.

All that said, the results speak for themselves. The game can be seen hovering consistently above the 30 fps mark on a Samsung Galaxy Tab S9 with the settings cranked and resolution at 720p. It's impressive, and we're excited to see what tinkerers and developers can do given more horsepower. 

That's because we aren't too far away from the release of Qualcomm's Snapdragon X Elite ARM-based processor. This mobile hardware appears to be something of a powerhouse based on the leaks and speculation we've been covering. The Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 inside the tablet is no slouch, but it's a fraction of the upcoming processor's power. 

Windows emulation could get more sophisticated 

With the boom in ARM-based silicon in recent years, and mobile hardware becoming more powerful, there's greater potential for more demanding software to run on your smartphone. We've seen the likes of the Steam Deck, Asus ROG Ally, and Lenovo Legion Go make leaps with native performance, but this could be bettered yet. 

The actual process of loading Windows games onto your phone is extremely far from streamlined at this point, and the reliance on DRM-free content limits what can actually run. However, developments such as this hint at a future where games could be happily played on your Android device, just as we've seen with Apple hardware. 

That's because Apple has been making moves in translating PC games to the iPhone and iPad as we've seen from the likes of Death Stranding, Resident Evil Village, and Assassin's Creed Mirage. The lines between smartphone and PC could be blurring, and while it's clearly early days here, this is another step in the right direction. 

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Todd Howard has said that Bethesda Game Studios is currently focused on finding ways to increase its output. 

After releasing Starfield in September, Bethesda is now at work developing The Elder Scrolls 6. The role-playing game was announced back in 2018 and even though the development team has reportedly been "playing early builds", there's still no release date, reinforcing the idea that we won't be seeing the studio's next major title for a good few years at least.

During a recent interview with Kinda Funny Games, when asked about the timeline of Howard's work at Bethesda and what he still wants to achieve, the developer explained that he loves making games and that if he wasn't creating them, he'd be playing them. 

Howard also touched on the development to release period for Bethesda games, and currently looking for ways to shorten long wait times.

"You know, they do take a long time, and so I think one of the things we’re focused on here is obviously making sure they’re of the highest quality," Howard said, "but also finding ways to increase our output, because we don’t want to wait that long either, right. It’s never our plan, but we want to make sure we get it right."

"My hope is to do it as long as possible. I have no plans to retire or anything like that."

Howard has previously hinted that Bethesda is making plans for another Fallout game, which in theory would arrive after the release of The Elder Scrolls 6. The developer stated last year that he would've announced the next Elder Scrolls "more casually" when asked if he regrets announcing the game so early.

Elsewhere in the same discussion, Howard has revealed that Starfield's first post-launch expansion Shattered Space will launch later this year.

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Bethesda has confirmed that owners of the PlayStation Plus version of Fallout 4 won’t be able to access the new content update.

Two years after it’s initial announcement, last week (April 25), Fallout 4 finally received the current-gen update for PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X|S, which saw the addition of brand-new features including a Performance and Quality mode.

Unfortunately, despite the upgrade being marketed as a free patch for all current owners of the post-apocalyptic role-playing game, PS5 users were left confused after an apparent bug made the upgrade unavailable to those who owned the PS Plus version.

However, after Bethesda said it would look into the issue, it was later confirmed by the studio that those who own the title through PS Plus are not eligible for the update.

Instead, the free update is only available to those who are subscribed via the PlayStation Plus Extra catalogue (via IGN), meaning that in order to access the new Fallout 4 content, users will need to purchase a native PS5 version of the game.

Fallout 4 was once featured in the PS Plus Collection, however, said collection was retired from PS Plus in May last year. This could potentially be the reason for the lack of update for this version.

"We've seen some confusion regarding the free Fallout 4 next-gen update for PlayStation Plus Extra members,” Bethesda said in a statement on social media. “The Fallout 4 next-gen update will be available to PlayStation Plus Extra members through the PlayStation Game Catalog. Your patience is appreciated while the teams work on this."

In addition, there is some confusion surrounding refunds for Fallout 4, after some players who owned the PlayStation Plus Extra version went on to purchase the PS5 native version due to the previously mentioned bug.

Bethesda has yet to comment on this particular issue.

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It's official: Fallout has set the streaming world on fire. The hit series, which only began streaming on April 10, has dropped some seriously impressive numbers in its first two weeks on Prime Video. So much so, in fact, that's now the second most popular Amazon show of all time.

Confirmed in an X/Twitter post, Amazon's Fallout TV show has been streamed by 65 million people since it debuted. To put that into context, other wildly successful Prime Video shows, including The Boys, Invincible, and Reacher, didn't pull in as many audience members after their first seasons were released. Simply put: Fallout has enjoyed an explosively epic start to life on Amazon's primary streaming service.

As *ahem* rad as those viewing figures are, Fallout can't claim a place in the history books as the most popular Prime Video show ever made. That honor belongs to The Rings of Power, Amazon's non-canonical Lord of the Rings prequel series, whose first season was seen by 100 million people worldwide after its September 2022 release.

There is one small caveat to The Rings of Power's popularity among audiences, though. The aforementioned viewership figure for the high fantasy series' debut season was accumulated between September and December, aka the three-month period after its initial launch. The fact that Fallout has amassed around 66% of that 100 million figure in just over two weeks, then, suggests it might have the legs to eventually overhaul its Prime Video sibling at the most-watched Amazon TV summit.

Even if it doesn't, Fallout has confirmed its position as one of the best Prime Video shows in many people's eyes. And, with Fallout season 2 greenlit just days after its predecessor's critically and commercially acclaimed arrival, more adventures across the Wasteland await us down the road.

More than an okey-dokey kind of Prime Video show

So, what's behind Fallout becoming one of the most-streamed Amazon TV Originals of all time? 

There are a number of factors, including its authenticity to the source material, pleasing blend of multiple genres, its likeable cast, innovative and hard-working crew, and its accessibility to anyone who hasn't played any of Bethesda's post-apocalyptic game series, which Prime Video's TV show is also set in. 

Oh, and let's not forget the fact that it fleshes out and expands upon Fallout's universe in wholly original ways – a prime example being that Fallout includes "the one thing we could never do" in said games, according to Bethesda boss Todd Howard.

All of that – and a whole lot more that I could get into but won't because I'll be here all day – positions Fallout as a truly epic videogame adaptation. Indeed, in my review of Fallout season 1, I called it "an ambitious, prestige-flavored adaptation that brings one of gaming’s most iconic series to life with a highly satisfying blend of source material devotion and narrative originality". 

Here's hoping season 2, which director/executive producer Jonathan Nolan teased some "really cool plans" for in my exclusive chat with him, will be as big of a blast as its forebear is on one of the world's best streaming services.

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Fallout season 2 is ready to emerge from its underground bunker. The hugely popular Prime Video show will be back on our screens on December 17, so there's no time like the present to get the lowdown on it.

In this guide, you'll find the biggest and latest information on the Fallout TV show's next entry. That includes its first trailer, confirmed cast, story specifics, and the Amazon TV Original's future.

Full spoilers follow for Fallout season 1. Possible season 2 spoilers are also discussed, so proceed at your own risk.

Fallout season 2 release date

Fallout season 2 will premiere on December 17. Amazon had confirmed a surprise December 2025 launch for Fallout's next chapter earlier this year, so we always knew it arrive before the end of the year.

Unlike its forebear, season 2 will air with a one-episode premiere. After launch day, new episodes of one of the best Prime Video shows will drop weekly until the finale arrives on February 6, 2026.

Fallout season 2 trailer

Amazon unveiled the first trailer for Fallout season 2 in August.

I won't cover everything that's shown for spoiler reasons. However, it reveals who's playing New Vegas' overlord Mr. House (more on him later), gives us our first-look at the Fallout game franchise's deadly Deathclaws, flashbacks of Cooper Howard visiting New Vegas at the height of its glory, Lucy and The Ghoul working together, and Hank stumbling on what appears to be an underground Vault-Tec HQ.

Three months later, Amazon unveiled the official trailer for Fallout season 2, which revealed even more new footage. Highlights from said teaser included confirmation that Macaulay Culkin is part of its cast – and, surprisingly, so is Kumail Nanjiani – as well as Lucy's brother Norm, who clearly escaped Vault 31, leading the rest of Vault 33 on an above ground excursion.

If that wasn't enough footage to whet your appetite for the series' return, check out the first official clip of Lucy and The Ghoul in the iconic location known as Novac:

Fallout season 2 confirmed cast

Here's Fallout season 2's confirmed cast:

• Ella Purnell as Lucy MacLean
• Aaron Moten as Maximus
• Walton Goggins as The Ghoul/Cooper Howard
• Kyle MacLachlan as Hank MacLean
• Moisés Arias as Norm MacLean
• Frances Turner as Barb Howard
• Xelia Mendes-Jones as Dane
• Justin Theroux as Robert House
• Teagen Meredith as Janey Howard
• Leslie Uggams as Betty Pearson
• Zach Cherry as Woody Thomas
• Annabel O'Hagan as Stephanie Harper
• Dave Register as Chet
• Johnny Pemberton as Thaddeus
• Leer Leary as Davey
• Michael Cristofer as Elder Cleric Quintus
• Jon Daly as the Snake Oils Salesman
• Macaulay Culkin as TBC
• Kumail Nanjiani as TBC

The first six cast members were confirmed to be back for more Wasteland adventures via Fallout season 2's first-look images. Meanwhile, the vast last season's supporting cast are all back, with many of them appearing in this season's trailers.

Newcomers-wise, Theroux will play Robert House, the enigmatic evil-doer who lauds it over New Vegas, which will play a prominent role this season.

"[House] is synonymous with Vegas, and in many ways, controls the city,” co-showrunner Geneva Robertson-Dworet told GQ. "So, it felt like it was the only right way to do an adaptation. But also, he's just an unbelievably interesting character. There's interesting questions in protecting Vegas… And is that purely for his own ends, or is there any kind of greater good that he might be after? There's so many echoes to the technocrats of our modern day.

"We find [House] in a place preparing to save Vegas from the coming apocalypse, which he has predicted within, I think, minutes or days," Theroux added. "Whatever algorithm he has run has told him exactly when the apocalypse is going to happen, and how it's going to happen. I'll say nothing else other than there's a fly in the ointment, and he has to call in Cooper Howard to help him figure out what that fly is."

Other cast additions include Macaulay Culkin, who reportedly signed on for a mystery role in Fallout season 2 in November 2024. He'll play a member of Caesar's Legion, an autocratic and xenophobic faction that operates in and around New Vegas. Lastly, Nanjiani's surprise involvement was revealed in season 2's official trailer but, as from playing an airship pilot, the identity of his character is a mystery.

Fallout season 2 story synopsis and speculation

Here's Fallout season 2's official synopsis: "The new season will pick up in the aftermath of season one’s epic finale and take audiences along for a journey through the wasteland of the Mojave to the post-apocalyptic city of New Vegas."

Not a lot to go on, but we can infer more plot-based elements from what's been teased about the forthcoming season. Full spoilers immediately follow for last season's finale, so turn back now if you're not caught up.

Season 1 episode 8 revealed Hank was one of Vault-Tec's junior employees who was placed in cryosleep inside Vault 31 before The Great War. Alongside Betty Pearson, Hank was among those reawakened over 200 years later to help Vault-Tec tyrannically rule the post-apocalyptic United States. He was also responsible for the Fall of Shady Sands – a cataclysmic event that saw a nuclear bomb dropped on the aforementioned New California Republic-run town.

Rose – Lucy and Norm's mom, and Hank's wife – was turned into a feral ghoul due to radiation poisoning from said warhead (FYI, a merciful Lucy kills Rose to end her misery in episode 8), while Maximus' entire family was killed during the initial blast. Oh, and Hank was also a huge fan of Cooper Howard – i.e. the A-list actor who becomes The Ghoul. In summary: Hank has strong ties to all three main characters.

His secret past now not-so-secret, Hank – who was accidentally freed by Maximus before Lucy could tell Maximus about Hank's villainous past – managed to escape in a stolen T60 power armor suit. He suffered a facial injury after being shot by The Ghoul, though, so he'll bear the physical scars – as well as the mental and emotional ones – to show for his crimes moving forward.

Why is all of this important? Episode 8's final scene saw Lucy and The Ghoul form an uneasy alliance – one described as a "buddy road trip", Ella Purnell told Empire magazine – to pursue Hank across the Wasteland.

For her part, Lucy wants more answers about her dad's involvement with Vault-Tec and his familial betrayal. Meanwhile, The Ghoul needs to find Hank to get information on which vault his wife and daughter – Barb and Janey – are in.

Before The Great War, Barb, a high-ranking Vault-Tec staff member, secured a place in one of the evil megacorporation's most prestigious underground bunkers for her family. However, the implied breakdown of Cooper and Barb's marriage – something we might learn more about this season – suggests Cooper lost his place following their divorce, forcing him to survive as an irradiated ghoul on the surface. It's possible Barb and Janey survived The Great War if they were cryogenically frozen in Vault 31 or another subterranean location, and Hank may know where.

All of this points to Hank being the show's primary antagonist moving forward, right?

Not completely. The season 1 finale revealed Barb was also involved in concocting the idea of The Great War to line Vault-Tec's pockets and ensure it was well positioned to rule the US after the nuclear apocalypse.

She was joined at that pivotal meeting by other scheming executives looking to make a quick buck, including RobCo owner Robert House (played by Rafi Silver, not Justin Theroux, in season 1), an Machiavellian ruler who's known as Mr. House, and who first appeared in Fallout: New Vegas. That's the title of the 2010 video game from Bethesda and Obsidian Entertainment, which is viewed as one of the franchise's best entries.

Why do you need to know this? Because Fallout season 2 will head to a dilapidated version of New Vegas. It's the location we see Hank look out onto in last season's mid-credits scene and, as evidenced by Fallout season 2's first poster, will be a major setting this season. Expect House to be in the running for antagonist-in-chief in the show's next chapter.

That mid-credits tease concerning New Vegas wasn't the only thing that delighted long-time fans. Indeed, the skull of a Deathclaw, one of the most formidable monsters in the Fallout universe, was also glimpsed. With one teased in the first trailer, at least one Deathclaw will show up in season 2.

As for Maximus, his fellow Brotherhood of Steel, erm, brothers believe he was the one who killed Moldaver – his friend Dane convinces them this was the case – so he's set to have a grater influence within the group. However, Maximus fell for Lucy during the pair's Wasteland excursions last season, so we expect Maximus' allegiances to be torn between the Brotherhood and wanting to reunite with Lucy.

There are plenty of other subplots that require further examination. We need to find out how Norm will escape Vault 31, learn what happened to those Vault 33's inhabitants who resettled in the deserted Vault 32 (and whether Chet will finally reveal its harrowing past), and how Moldaver survived for over 200 years without turning into a ghoul like Cooper.

Additionally, we'll catch up with Thaddeus, who believes he's starting to become a ghoul after consuming a mysterious serum from the cryptic Snake Oil Salesman. We may get more details on cold fusion, a new non-Vault-Tec technological advancement that might offer hope of a brighter future for the surface-dwelling common folk, too, so Fallout season 2 has a lot of ground to cover.

Is Fallout season 2 going to be the final installment?

No. In May, Amazon confirmed a third season was in development. Speaking to IGN, executive producer Jonathan Nolan said he hoped filming would begin in mid-2026, too, so a late 2027 release window isn't out of the question.

Meanwhile, speaking at Liverpool Comic-Con 2025 (as reported by The Gamer), Moten suggested it'll take five or six seasons to tell Fallout's full story. That tracks with comments made by showrunners Graham Wagner and Geneva Dworet-Robertson, who told The Hollywood Reporter they were eyeing a similar number of seasons.

Of course, much will depend on the show's ongoing popularity. But, with season 1 being one of the most-watched Prime Video TV Originals ever – 100 million people watched the first season, according to Amazon MGM Studios – there's no reason to suspect Fallout season 3 will be its final chapter.

For more Prime Video coverage, read our guides on The Boys season 5, Invincible season 4, The Rings of Power season 3, and Reacher season 4.

PS Plus Extra subscribers hoping to download the Fallout 4 free current-gen update have been left disappointed, after finding that the upgraded version hasn't been applied to the subscription service. Instead, those who have downloaded the game from the PS Plus game catalog are stuck with the previous-gen version.

As reported by GameSpot, Fallout 4 players took to social media to warn others that the current-gen PS5 update has yet to be applied to the PS Plus Extra download. However, developer Bethesda Game Studios is aware of the problem, and took to X / Twitter to address the issue.

"We've seen some confusion regarding the free Fallout 4 next-gen update for PlayStation Plus Extra members," the post begins. "The Fallout 4 next-gen update will be available to PlayStation Plus Extra members through the PlayStation Game Catalog. Your patience is appreciated while the teams work on this."

As of now, Bethesda Game Studios hasn't provided a concrete date or time as to when the fix will be implemented, though we imagine it shouldn't be overly long before PS5 players can enjoy the free update.

There's potentially worse news, however, for players who downloaded Fallout 4 via PS Plus Essentials (the monthly rotating free game service) or the now-defunct PS Plus Collection – they might not get the update at all. 

In response to a question in the original post's replies, the official Bethesda Support account posted: "Fallout 4's Next-Gen Update will be available for PS Plus Extra members. We do not have any information regarding PS5 Catalogue or PS Plus Essentials."

It hasn't exactly been smooth sailing for the Fallout 4 free update on other platforms, either. While the game has been successfully patched on Xbox Series X|S and PC, Xbox players are reporting that the update has broken modded saves, and some mods available via the in-game mod menu have stopped working outright. 

What's more, the PC version doesn't seem to play nice with F4SE (Fallout 4 Script Extender), a mod widely considered to be essential for adding larger-scale creations to the game.

It's all a bit of shame given the renewed interest in the game following the massive success of the Fallout TV show on Prime Video. For more on the show, check out our interview with Todd Howard, in which he explains the reasoning behind some of the big changes made to bring the game to a streaming audience.

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Major spoilers follow for Fallout season 1.

Fallout TV show star Ella Purnell has revealed that a hugely important scene involving her character Lucy MacLean was completely reworked because "it didn't feel right".

Speaking to GQ after the popular Prime Video show's first season was released, Purnell opened up the vital moment that redefines Lucy's sense of identity and shows how much she's evolved over the course of the series' first season .

I'm about to dive into full spoiler territory for Amazon's live-action TV entry in Bethesda's beloved post-apocalyptic video game franchise, so turn back now if you haven't watched all eight episodes yet.

The scenario in question sees Lucy kill her mother Rose, who became a ghoul due to radiation poisoning, in the final 10 minutes of 'The Beginning', aka Fallout's eighth episode. Rose was turned into one of Fallout's mutated humans as a result of a nuclear warhead that was dropped on Shady Sands – an iconic location in the Fallout franchise – by Hank (Lucy's dad and Rose's husband), with the subsequent years of lethal radiation slowly turning her into said ghoul.

The reveal is one of many shocking moments in Fallout's season 1 finale that, according to Purnell, forces her "to go through the five stages of grief in such a short amount of time". Indeed, part of that accelerated grieving process leads a rage-filled but still empathetic Lucy to shoot Rose in the head. It's a decision that not only puts Rose out of her misery, but also becomes another difficult experience that, as Purnell exclusively told TechRadar, means she's "forever changed" by her "violent" season 1 journey across the Wasteland. And yet, the heart-wrenching sequence that sees Lucy kill her own mother almost had a different feel to it. 

"We reshot [the scene]," Purnell told GQ. "Originally, we [Purnell and Fallout's writers] had a different idea of how that ending was going to go. We originally shot me killing my mum as a really emotional moment; there were a lot of tears and wailing. And it just didn’t feel right. We felt like, if she’s gonna get up and go into the wasteland, she needs to be a changed woman, and maybe her grief needs to give way to something harder.

"By killing her mom in a mercy kill, she’s doing exactly what the Ghoul did to Roger [in episode 4]. She’s learnt from him. She has turned into him. When she said “'I’ll never be you', maybe that’s not true. And, in that moment, when she shoots her mom, it means so many things. It means, ‘I’m coming with you.’ It means, ‘I’m gonna meet my makers.’ It means, ‘I f*****g hate you, but I have turned into you, you were right.’ It means she’s letting go of her golden center."

How will Lucy's season 1 journey impact her Fallout season 2 arc?

Lucy's mercy killing of Rose is certainly one of the more emotionally impactful moments in the series, which we hailed as "an ambitious, prestige-flavored adaptation that brings one of gaming’s most iconic series to life with a highly satisfying blend of source material devotion and narrative originality" in our Fallout season 1 review. Given the critical acclaim that Prime Video's TV adaptation has been met with since its April 10 release, it was unsurprising to see Amazon renew Fallout for a second season just seven days after its debut on one of the world's best streaming services.

As for what's been planned for next season, director/executive producer Jonathan Nolan exclusively told me that the show's chief creative team has "really cool" ideas for Fallout season 2. It'll be sometime before we find out what those are, though, outside of what's been teased by Nolan and other prominent crew members in various post-season 1 interviews. For a round-up of the most interesting tidbits, check out our Fallout season 2 guide.

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Bethesda Game Studios has announced that Fallout 4's long-awaited current-gen update will finally be released today - allegedly at 9am PT / 12pm ET / 5pm BST.

The free upgrade arrives for PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X|S and will introduce all new features for the post-apocalyptic role-playing game, including Performance mode and Quality mode settings, that will respectively allow up to 60 frames per second and increased resolutions.

In addition, the update will also add new stability improvements and fixes, while players on PlayStation 4 and Xbox One will also receive a free update with stability improvements, login, and some quest fixes.

The PC version will also be getting a new update, adding widescreen and ultra-widescreen support, as well as fixes to Creation Kit and a variety of quest updates, and Japanese and Chinese language players should now find that Bethesda.net login issues have been resolved.

While Steam, Microsoft Store, and GOG versions will get stability, mods, and bug fixes, Bethesda has confirmed that Fallout 4 will be available to purchase on the Epic Games Store for the first time and that the game is now Steam Deck verified.

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In addition to these free technical updates, the game will also receive free Creation Club content, such as Enclave Remnants - which brings the Pre-War cabal, The Enclave, into the campaign - as well as adds Enclave items, like weapon and armor skins.

Players can also download the Makeshift Weapon Pack, which includes a variety of weapons like the baseball launcher and nail gun, along with a collection of 38 Halloween decorations "leftover from an ill-fated Halloween party, thrown by the New England Technocrat Society" to customize your settlements with.

The current-gen update - which comes just as Fallout has seen a massive rise in popularity due to Amazon's Fallout TV show - was first announced in 2022 as part of the series' 25th anniversary but was later delayed to 2024. 

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There’s always been tons of merchandise to match the popularity of the Fallout series, and this lovely custom gaming PC is easily one of the best.

The chassis for the NZXT H6 Flow PC is based on the iconic Vault-Tec aesthetics of the game series, with the blue paint covered in old rust stains and the bright yellow highlights complementing it. 

The inside also features the same design as well as the series mascot Pip-Boy, which can be seen through the glass side panel. One of the main fans even has the Nuka Cola emblem on its center, another nice touch.

Not only is this an incredibly well-designed desktop – from PC manufacturer NZXT and renowned hardware artist POPeART_ – but it packs some serious punch in terms of specs. It sports some of the best processors and best graphics cards with an AMD Ryzen 7 7800X3D processor, an AMD Sapphire Radeon RX 7900 GRE graphics card, 32GB RAM, and 2TB of storage. More than enough to handle the best PC games at the highest settings.

Unfortunately, you can’t purchase this PC anywhere, as it’s only available through a UK-based Bethesda giveaway which runs until April 26, 2024. If you wish to enter for yourself, you’ll need to be a legal resident of the UK, follow the official Bethesda UK Twitter / X account, and quote retweet the competition information.

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The Fallout TV show is here and available to stream via Amazon Prime Video, but did you know that a perk included with your Amazon Prime subscription means that you can also claim a free copy of one of the games in the series that inspired it? With codes available for both Xbox and PC, it’s the perfect accompaniment to the show and an excellent way to squeeze a little more value out of the service. 

The game in question is Fallout 76, an online multiplayer take on the traditionally single-player series that was originally released back in 2018. Set in the bright and colorful hills of post-apocalyptic West Virginia, it challenges you and your friends to survive and rebuild civilization in a shared open-world. It’s set over one hundred years before the events of the Fallout TV show, not to mention before all of the other games, giving you a unique look at a much younger wasteland than you might be used to.

Although it had quite a rocky launch period, with a fair amount of criticism leveled at the large number of bugs and a general lack of content, it has received countless updates since then and is now quite an enjoyable time. Do bear in mind that if you choose an Xbox copy of the game, however, you will also need to have an active Xbox Game Pass subscription in order to play online.

It is also important to note that this offer is only available until May 15, 2024.

How to claim a free copy of Fallout 76 with Amazon Prime

Before attempting to claim your game, you need to make sure that you have both an Amazon account and an active Amazon Prime subscription. If you don't, you can set up an Amazon account for free via the Amazon website and then subscribe to Amazon Prime. A standard subscription to the service costs $14.99 / £8.99 per month, but a 30 day free trial is available. Definitely make use of the free trial if you're new to the service, but also be sure to read our full Amazon Prime review for a comprehensive breakdown of all the perks that are included. 

Next, you need to open the Prime Gaming website and sign in with your account. This site offers loads of interesting digital goodies, including virtual items in popular titles such as Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3, but, for the time being, focus your attention on the top of the page. You should quickly spot a prominent section titled 'welcome to the wasteland' and, if you're struggling, you can see a screenshot of the section below.

If you want to claim an Xbox version of the game, hit the blue claim button on the panel labelled 'Fallout 76 (XBOX)'. This will open a splash screen with some artwork from the game alongside details confirming your chosen platform.

Now, simply hit the blue 'get game' button and wait a moment for your code to be displayed. There are then two possible ways to redeem the game code. You can either boot up your Xbox One, Xbox Series S, or Xbox Series X console and navigate to the store tab, hitting the 'View' button and then 'Redeem' before entering the code, or visit a redemption page on the Microsoft support website to redeem it in your web browser.

Once your code is redeemed, you should be able to access and play the game through your Xbox console.

The process is very similar on PC. Just hit the blue claim button on the panel labelled 'Fallout 76 (PC)' to open a splash screen confirming your chosen platform.

Then, tap the blue 'get game' button and your code will be displayed. You can redeem the displayed code via the Microsoft Store app on a Windows PC, which can be accessed by searching 'Microsoft Store' in the Start Menu search bar, or via a redemption page on the Microsoft support website.

Interestingly, you are not limited to one platform or the other and can redeem both versions of the game if you want to. If you have access to both an Xbox console and PC, this is definitely the way to go.