Highlights
- Fallout games are known for their unusual side quests, such as helping Moira write a survival guide that involves players giving themselves radiation poisoning.
- In Fallout: New Vegas , players can find an "organ" for The King's dog, Rex, which involves swapping out his failing organic brain for a new one.
- Fallout 2 allows players to become a porn star by passing stat checks and being hired as the lead of a low-budget adult film, or at least a role as a fluffer if they fail.
The Fallout series is unusual by its very nature. The idea of a post-nuclear America filled with mutants, giant insects, and radiation is nothing new, but the fact that humanity manages to survive thanks to the use of 1950s-style bomb shelters called "Vaults," only to emerge with retro-futuristic tech that puts modern cellphones to shame, is certainly a unique take.
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Typically, the main narrative in a Fallout game is pretty straightforward. The player, a nameless wasteland wanderer, is given a task - find their father, deliver a package, etc. - which leads them on a journey. Instead, it's side quests like the ones below where the Fallout games start to get really weird.
9 Wasteland Survival Guide (Fallout 3)
Help Moira write a survival guide for fellow wanderers
Moira is one of the first people players will meet upon exiting Vault 101. She seems relatively harmless and asks the player to help her pen a survival guide full of tips for braving the Wasteland.
All players have to do is help her with the research portion. Easy, right? Well, that is until she needs them to deliberately give themselves radiation poisoning, traverse a minefield, or lose over 50% of their health to injuries. Once her checklist is complete, though, players can get a bit of revenge. Moira will ask them to recount their discoveries, and players have the option to feed her total nonsense in response. She'll still eat it up.
8 Nothin' But A Hound Dog (Fallout: New Vegas)
Find an "organ" for The King's dog
Even in the nuclear wastes of Washington, D.C., Elvis Presley is still around. He can be found in Freeside, and should the player ask him about his cybernetic pet dog, Rex, The King will share a sad tale.
Rex's organic brain is starting to fail, and even though his body is mechanical, a dead brain still equals a dead dog. Therefore, players have to track down a new dog brain, and believe it or not, there are three dog brains available in the area. Once players procure one, they can bring it (and Rex) to Dr. Henry, who will swap out the old brain for a new one. Rex can then become a companion and will be granted a different perk depending on which brain he now has.
7 Become A Porn Star (Fallout 2)
It's exactly what it sounds like
In Fallout 2's New Reno, players can stumble upon an unmarked quest by talking to the Corsican Brothers. They have a unique proposition that needs to be heard to be believed.
The Brothers are shooting a low-budget adult film, and are looking for a star. By passing the right stat checks (they will need at least 9 Charisma, and 8 Agility or Endurance), players can be hired as the star of the film. If they fail those checks, don't worry. They'll still be offered a role as a fluffer.
6 Our Little Secret (Fallout 3)
The town of Andale has interesting taste
Players will run into Old Man Harris in Andale, and he will warn them to run as far from the town as possible. He's right, but is anyone really going to heed that warning? Instead, if players look around a little (say in the Garden Shed or the Smith's house basement), they'll discover stockpiles of human meat.
Fallout 4 Player Makes Bizarre Discovery at Lexington Pharmacy
The Commonwealth in Fallout 4 can be full of surprises, as a player comes across something equal parts disturbing and humorous in Lexington.
Yes, Andale is a town of cannibals. Upon exiting the shed/basement, players will be confronted by the townsfolk. If they already have the "Cannibal" perk, they can brush the discovery off as no big deal. Otherwise, passing a Speech check will have the same result. Failing the check, however, will cause the town to attack. Maybe it's better if they're all dead anyway?
5 The Silver Shroud (Fallout 4)
Give an old man a nostalgia kick
Fallout 4
- Platform(s)
- PC , PS4 , PS5 , Xbox One , Xbox Series X , Xbox Series S
- Released
- November 10, 2015
- Developer(s)
- Bethesda
In the town of Goodneighbor, players can chat with Kent Connolly in the Memory Den. Kent will wax poetic about the days of the Silver Shroud, a vigilante mobster from way back in 2071. By accepting this quest, players can don the Shroud's iconic costume and dispatch some vigilante justice of their own.
Targets will be doled out via Silver Shroud Radio, and players can track down and "dispense justice" to each one of them. Once the hit list is complete, returning to Goodneighbor will reveal that Kent has been kidnapped by raiders. Rescuing Kent is tricky business, and it's easy for him to be killed in the crossfire. However, a successful rescue mission will result in Kent regretfully admitting that it might not be so easy to make the world of Fallout 4 a better place.
4 Beat Francis (Fallout 2)
Wrestling with a Super Mutant, what could go wrong?
At the Broken Hills Tavern, a Super Mutant named Francis is looking for someone to arm wrestle with. In walks the player, a perfect candidate. A victory will result in the player winning the "Big Frigger" Power Fist, one of the most powerful unarmed weapons in the game.
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Losing, however, means that Francis gets to "spend a night" with the player character. After the loss, players will black out, and wake up the next morning with a ball gag in their inventory. How'd that get in there?
3 Last Voyage Of The U.S.S. Constitution (Fallout 4)
Get that ship back up and running
Upon approaching the U.S.S. Constitution, a lookout will tell the player to go and talk with Captain Ironsides. The Captain will then explain that the ship needs some repairs before they can return it to working order, and will enlist the player's help in completing them.
Executing the repairs, fighting off invading scavengers, and chatting with Captain Ironsides will eventually have the ship back in tip-top shape. Players can fire up the engines and watch the ship take off... before it loses control and crashes into a nearby skyscraper. Alternatively, they can side with the scavengers and sabotage the ship from within. Either way, the Constitution isn't making it back to the skies it once sailed.
2 Oasis (Fallout 3)
What to do with a humanoid tree
When players enter the Oasis, they will encounter Tree Father Birch, who asks them to drink a special sap that will purge them of evil, in order to keep "Him" safe. Who exactly "He" is gets revealed shortly, as players black out and wake up in the Grove.
"He" is Harold, a mutated human fused with a tree. Tree Father Birch desperately wants to apply a sap to Harold's heart that will stop his growth, while Leaf Mother Laurel wants to accelerate it. Harold, on the other hand, just wants to die. Players can choose any of the three to side with, and while burning Harold to the ground may seem like the merciful option, siding with Birch or Laurel will yield the greatest rewards.
1 Come Fly With Me (Fallout: New Vegas)
Fly away Ghouls, fly away
In Novac, a REPCONN test site can be discovered that is overrun by Ghouls. However, these are no ordinary Ghouls. After meeting a human named Chris (don't tell him he's not a Ghoul, he'll refuse to believe it), players will chat with Jason Bright, a Glowing One who wants to take his fellow Ghouls on "The Great Journey."
This "journey" is a ride on some REPCONN rockets into outer space, but the Ghouls need the player's help in getting the rockets up and running. Once the busy work is complete, players will need to head up to the launch controls to send them on their way. Passing a 55 Science check will let them navigate the Ghouls slightly closer to their celestial destination, which grants some bonus karma. Sadly, Chris has to stay behind, as the launch pad is too irradiated for a human to survive. Unsurprisingly, he is none too happy about it.
