The Rise of Fallout: How Bethesda’s Investment Led to Massive Success
When the “Fallout” series began in the late 1990s, it had dedicated fans but was still relatively niche in the gaming world. The PC gaming market was smaller back then, and “Fallout” was a top-down intensive role-playing game that didn’t necessarily attract a wide audience. Still, the franchise continued to grow with “Fallout 2,” while “Fallout Tactics: Brotherhood of Steel” brought fans of strategy games to the franchise in 2001.
Bethesda’s Acquisition and Reinvention of the Fallout Franchise
Investing in Success: Fallout 3 and Beyond
In the mid-2000s developer Bethesda Softworks was hard at work on “Fallout 3,” which would reinvent the mechanics of the franchise. At the time, Bethesda decided to buy the rights to the entire franchise from Interplay for $5.75 million. Bethesda was well-established thanks to its popular “Elder Scrolls” series, and it saw a bright future for “Fallout.” That investment has paid off way more than Bethesda probably thought it would nearly 20 years ago.
Bethesda’s Best-Selling Games: The Fallout Series
“Fallout 3,” “Fallout 4,” and “Fallout Shelter” are all among Bethesda’s best-selling games of all time. “Fallout 3” and “Fallout 4” have each sold over 12 million copies, while “Fallout Shelter,” which is free to play, has been downloaded more than 170 million times. Thanks in large part to Bethesda’s support, and even before the release of the “Fallout” TV show, the franchise is more popular than ever.