Bethesda: “We Showed Three Games at E3” and None of Them Were Fallout 4
Skyrim had itself a long reign but the team behind the lauded, fantasy RPG time sink have officially ended DLC support for it and have moved on to their next project.
Given their great success in reintroducing the world to the post-apocalyptic wastelands of the Fallout universe (and reusing a Ron Pearlman soundbite that is just positively burned into gamers’ skulls), it’s no leap in logic for fans to expect Fallout 4 is next up off the bench…
However, Kotaku insists you’re stretching reason extremely thin if you believe Bethesda had a closed doors presentation for the game at last week’s E3. The rumor began its life in the words of one journalist claiming he saw one surprise Bethesda failed to announce at the most publicized industry event of the year. Microseconds later, Fallout 4 was name dropped hard enough to break the floor.
As they invariably do, the rumor grew bigger and bolder until certain sites were reporting specific details about the game including which consoles it was coming to (basically everything without a Nintendo logo on it), when it was coming out (October…of 2015), and a completion estimate of 55%. A teaser trailer clocking in at nearly over half a minute was also purported to be shown; gravelly Pearlman voice-over and all.
If members of the press really got see a forty-five minute presentation on one of the biggest franchises in gaming…Where were all the headlines? Well, whether Fallout 4 is in production or not, this “Easter egg” E3 presentation probably didn’t happen. Skeptical? Here’s what Bethesda shot Kotaku’s way:
“We showed three games at E3 - Wolfenstein: The New Order, The Elder Scrolls Online and The Evil Within. We did not show any of our games behind closed doors.”
I know what you’re thinking. “We live in a world where they swore to us Steve Carrell wouldn’t be back for The Office finale." I know. I know. But food for thought: for all intents and purposes, E3 serves as a monolithic, flashing billboard meant to advertise to gamers the world over and permeate in consumers’ heads until buyin’ season kicks off. Why wouldn’t Bethesda want to take advantage of that platform to stir Fallout fans into a frenzy?
[If Fallout 4 is announced next week, the correct answer to that question is, "Because they’re goddamned liars. When can I pre-order?”]