A chunky Fallout: New Vegas expansion mod which sees the courier set off east to the post-apocalyptic Illinois has released its first demo. No prizes for guessing where this mod – Fallout Chicago – is set. Though, you might want to brush up on your knowledge of Fallout Tactics’ lore before you dive in.
This first demo for Fallout Chicago has gone live today following a showcase of it at C3, an annual fan-run Bethesda game modding streamathon for charity, this weekend just gone. It looks to be a pretty hefty demo too, comprised of the entire first act of the mod’s main storyline, plus a few side quests and plenty of activities/locations to discover as you wander around the version of Chicago’s ruins the modders have put together. There’s even a companion and a player home aboard a working train.
“You’ll set out to solve pre-war mysteries [and] post-war politics between The Union Mob and Midwest Brotherhood, along with other factions’ dilemmas,” team lead Grimdos wrote in the demo’s description. “Chicago is dangerous and fraught with betrayal. Do you have what it takes to make it out [of] your mission? Hell, this was supposed to be a side job after all.”
Having checked out Fallout Chicago’s C3 stream and the demo trailer above, I’m certainly intrigued by a New Vegas mod leaning into the urban vibes you’d typically associate more with Fallout 3, given add-ons for Obsidian’s RPG naturally tend to mirror that base game’s tendency towards open desert and lonesome highways. Meanwhile, the inclusion of the Brotherhood of Steel’s midwestern splinter group, introduced in Micro Forté’s 2001 turn-based tactics affair Fallout Tactics, has me wondering just how much of the game’s worldbuilding the modders have opted to run with.
Tactics is one of the few Fallout entries I’ve never given a go, so maybe playing this demo’ll persuade me that’s worth changing. Then again, its description boasts of drug dealing and business owning mechanics, plus the ability to bank your cash, so mayble I’ll come out craving some of Steam’s ever-massive arsenal of sims.
Going forwards, Grimdos and co will be working on delivering another couple of acts to round out Fallout Chicago’s main quest. Fleshing out Chicago with more interiors, something the team acknowledge it’s lacking in right now, is also on the list of planned future additions, alongside the addition of two more companions, more voice acting, and the ability to upgrade your housetrain.
If you fancy giving Fallout Chicago’s demo a go, you’ll need to grab the New Vegas Script Extender along with its JIP LN, JohnnyGuitar and kNVSE Animation plugins. The FNV 4GB Patcher‘s also a must, plus all of New Vegas’s official DLC. Once everything’s set up, you’ll need to poke around at the Atomic Wrangler in Freeside to get going on the road to Chicago.
Among the other massive modding projects shown off at C3 was Skyblivion – the remake of The Elder Scrolls 4 in Skyrim‘s engine- with its project lead saying it’s “in a great place” ahead of a planned release this year.
