Can someone canonically expain cultural stagnation in the Fallout franchise?

Current Events

Current Events » Can someone canonically expain cultural stagnation in the Fallout franchise?
Or at least the Bethesdaverse. As I understand it America went through a period of significant scientific breakthroughs and for some reason just remained locked in the 50s until the Great War happened in the late 21st century.
Thanks for reading!
Yes.
The
  • Transistors were never invented
  • Why not?
https://www.discogs.com/user/Nocoasts
I don't think they have a canonical reason, it was just a neat aesthetic they wanted to use
The Legend is True!
It's just atompunk If you go watch sci-fi movies from the 50s and 60s, you'll understand. These are futures based on present day societies that had access to nuclear technology but not the microprocessor. The transistors was still new in fact -- it didn't become a thing until after world war 2.

That's the best way I can put it. I don't know the specifics of the Fallout universe but that is how I always explained it to myself while playing the games.
You know how fads are. Today it's brains, tomorrow, pierced tongues. Then the next day, pierced brains.
-Jane Lane
The idea is loosely that people were locked in vaults so the culture they had in the vault is what stayed with them for decades. And without networks of people culture doesn't really change much.
It says right here in Matthew 16:4 "Jesus doth not need a giant Mecha."
https://i.imgur.com/dQgC4kv.jpg
MC_BatCommander posted...
I don't think they have a canonical reason, it was just a neat aesthetic they wanted to use
I'm pretty sure it's this, but my best guess is that the presence of the Enclave meant that they made sure America stayed the way they wanted it.
https://i.imgur.com/Er6TT.gif https://i.imgur.com/Er6TT.gif https://i.imgur.com/Er6TT.gif
So? I deeded to some gay porn. It doesn't mean anything. - Patty_Fleur
  1. The transistor just wasn't invented until way too late for it to make a significant difference, meaning most computational technology is still working off of vacuum tubes, and most other technological development was likely impacted by that (as well as the eventual oil shortages that ended in the Great War).
  2. The American government was very conservative, and would likely have had a vested interest in suppressing cultural shifts that could possibly (in the establishment's collective mind) have led to people becoming disenchanted with capitalism and wanting to try communism. That said, some progress seems to have still ended up being made despite it, as interracial couples are seen in both the "Sanctuary Hills" prologue of Fallout 4 and the pre-War scenes of the Amazon series, and the former also includes a lesbian couple.
There's also the idea of the 50s being the idealized version of the "American Dream" and the series is largely intended to be a deconstruction of that.

Plus, the overall theme of Fallout being people who can't let go of the past and are doomed to repeat its mistakes.
I have nothing else to say
Out of lore. The vibe there going for was "What would the 1950s think 2077 would look like."

In lore, they developed the transistor wat after we did. But had considerably more advanced nuclear development.
1 line break(s), 160 characters allowed
Compsognathus posted...
But had considerably more advanced nuclear development.
To give an idea of how advanced, their cars run on nuclear batteries.

It's funny, there's a "gas" station in one of the series' episodes, but if you look closely at the sign, they're selling coolant.
https://i.imgur.com/Er6TT.gif https://i.imgur.com/Er6TT.gif https://i.imgur.com/Er6TT.gif
So? I deeded to some gay porn. It doesn't mean anything. - Patty_Fleur
When youve achieved perfection why keep changing?
Moustache twirling villain
https://i.imgur.com/U3lt3H4.jpg- Kerbey
Also note that medical technology is far more advanced in Fallout.
pegusus123456 posted...
To give an idea of how advanced, their cars run on nuclear batteries.

It's funny, there's a "gas" station in one of the series' episodes, but if you look closely at the sign, they're selling coolant.
That is nothing when it comes to being advanced. They can heal broken bones with a shot.
The ball is round, the game lasts 90 minutes. That's fact.
Everything else, is theory.
loafy013 posted...
That is nothing when it comes to being advanced. They can heal broken bones with a shot.
Sure but I don't know if that has anything to do with their nuclear development.
https://i.imgur.com/Er6TT.gif https://i.imgur.com/Er6TT.gif https://i.imgur.com/Er6TT.gif
So? I deeded to some gay porn. It doesn't mean anything. - Patty_Fleur
SpawnShadow posted...
1. The transistor just wasn't invented until way too late for it to make a significant difference, meaning most computational technology is still working off of vacuum tubes, and most other technological development was likely impacted by that (as well as the eventual oil shortages that ended in the Great War).
I'd like to know how they were able to make advanced electronics and robots without transistors.
If you're not smart enough to survive, you are basically just food for something smarter.
008Zulu posted...
I'd like to know how they were able to make advanced electronics and robots without transistors.
They do have transistors (one of the devs point out way back that robots in the first two games would probably not take such high damage from EMP grenades if they ran on vacuum tubes), they're just not ubiquitous.
https://i.imgur.com/Er6TT.gif https://i.imgur.com/Er6TT.gif https://i.imgur.com/Er6TT.gif
So? I deeded to some gay porn. It doesn't mean anything. - Patty_Fleur
008Zulu posted...
I'd like to know how they were able to make advanced electronics and robots without transistors.

Wasn't it just said that it came much later in that world?

As for why they did it, I think it was the whole 'Americana' aspect which is actually a very unique theme. It really screams the 'American dream' at you but like another user said, they deconstruct it in the very games.

Pre war is what people would think of when they think of the future. I actually think of Back to the Future when I imagine the Fallout games.

Just technology is progressing differently and faster but culturally stagnant.
Massive nuclear breakthroughs. Everything basically running on free energy. Massive medical breakthroughs where most things could be healed with a single injection.

I mean... Society just went in a different way, really. Why advance when things are going absolutely amazing (until everything exploded.)
R_Jackal posted...
Massive nuclear breakthroughs. Everything basically running on free energy. Massive medical breakthroughs where most things could be healed with a single injection.

I mean... Society just went in a different way, really. Why advance when things are going absolutely amazing (until everything exploded.)

I mean wasn't it Vault-tec's fault that everything exploded?
Tyranthraxus posted...
The idea is loosely that people were locked in vaults so the culture they had in the vault is what stayed with them for decades. And without networks of people culture doesn't really change much.

Nope.

The bombs dropped in 2077.
"There's no return from darkness. There's no return, I promise."
(THEY/THEM)
CountCorvinus posted...
Nope.

The bombs dropped in 2077.

I remember when I first got into Fallout and thought that everything happened in the 50s and then later found out it was 2077 and was confused for a good long while.
dameon_reaper posted...
I mean wasn't it Vault-tec's fault that everything exploded?
Didn't the great war start because they were running out of resources in the first place?
He/Him http://guidesmedia.ign.com/guides/9846/images/slowpoke.gif https://i.imgur.com/M8h2ATe.png
https://i.imgur.com/6ezFwG1.png
Bethesda really cranked it up to 11 with their Fallout

it wasn't in your face THE 50's before
DrizztLink posted...
Didn't the great war start because they were running out of resources in the first place?

are we calling the war with the fallout the great war or are we referring to World War 1? Lol
dameon_reaper posted...
are we calling the war with the fallout the great war or are we referring to World War 1? Lol
I honestly thought that's what it's called, but I could definitely be wrong.
He/Him http://guidesmedia.ign.com/guides/9846/images/slowpoke.gif https://i.imgur.com/M8h2ATe.png
https://i.imgur.com/6ezFwG1.png
DrizztLink posted...
I honestly thought that's what it's called, but I could definitely be wrong.

No you were right, I was just ignorant. It was called The Great War of 2077. I just thought it was strange to call it since WW1 was called the Great War until WW2 so I was a bit confused.
I always just looked at it as a "what if" scenario where all that cheesy retrofuturism stuff is actually how the future turned out
Sack to crack, going to town
it just works
It don't matter. None of this matters.
he/him
Tyranthraxus posted...
The idea is loosely that people were locked in vaults so the culture they had in the vault is what stayed with them for decades. And without networks of people culture doesn't really change much.

No. Fallout takes place past the year 2000 before they even go into vaults.

Not canon but my head canon is they became so focused on evolving science that pop culture took a back seat and never evolved. Like so much so new stuff just wasn't being made.
I put my heart and soul into my work and I fear I have lost my mind in the process
Because culture, well...culture never changes
http://i.minus.com/i5EWBMXTN4ERv.gif
I want to know why they were able to invent and continue building things like robots, flying warships, power armor, Synths, and laser guns, but couldn't figure out how to get any of the pre-existing cars to run or build a house out of anything but loose sheet metal and plywood
TMOG posted...
I want to know why they were able to invent and continue building things like robots, flying warships, power armor, Synths, and laser guns, but couldn't figure out how to get any of the pre-existing cars to run or build a house out of anything but loose sheet metal and plywood
My head Canon is that the cars use fusion cores and the major factions would rather use the scrapped cores for electricity /power armor/weapons.
http://i.minus.com/i5EWBMXTN4ERv.gif
Wait, the nukes aren't in the 50's?
Kremlin delenda est
ROBANN_88 posted...
Wait, the nukes aren't in the 50's?
As per falliout story no
I put my heart and soul into my work and I fear I have lost my mind in the process
it's literally just an alternate history so the timeline is different. it's a bunch of "what ifs". what if we designed everything around tesla instead of edison? what if the 60s cultural revolution never happened and we never got the disco 70s and crazy 80s? what if the american dream lifestyle took center stage, such as culture did in the 90s, and continued forward for decades without much change (besides technologically). it's really not difficult to figure out.

Disclaimer: There's a good chance the above post could be sarcasm.
Die-hard Oakland A's fan --- Keep the A's in Oakland!
BrohammedAli posted...
* Transistors were never invented
* Why not?
Please tell me that's not canon.

Please tell me they don't expect me to believe these robots are running on vacuum tubes lol.
There's a difference between canon and not-stupid.
It's partly silly, yes, but it's not exactly a realistic setting anyway. Radiation doesn't work like how it does in the games for starters.
Fix your hearts or die.
When I sin I sin real good.
GuerrillaSoldier posted...
it's literally just an alternate history so the timeline is different. it's a bunch of "what ifs". what if we designed everything around tesla instead of edison? what if the 60s cultural revolution never happened and we never got the disco 70s and crazy 80s? what if the american dream lifestyle took center stage, such as culture did in the 90s, and continued forward for decades without much change (besides technologically). it's really not difficult to figure out.

Pretty much this. It's also assumed that cultural revolutions were cracked down on pretty hard by the government. New Vegas for instance has a handful of terminal entries in the Divide that allude to stereotypical beatnik / hippie types that were brutally put down / turned into science experiments by the military command there.
Simple questions deserve long-winded answers that no one will bother to read.
Southernfatman posted...
It's partly silly, yes, but it's not exactly a realistic setting anyway. Radiation doesn't work like how it does in the games for starters.
I guess I could see it if we assume there's a meta-author who himself lives in the 50's and just hasn't heard that there's an alternative to vacuum tubes.
There's a difference between canon and not-stupid.
Because they use retrofuturistic style.
GameFAQs isn't going to be merged in with GameSpot or any other site. We're not going to strip out the soul of the site. -CJayC
TMOG posted...
I want to know why they were able to invent and continue building things like robots, flying warships, power armor, Synths, and laser guns, but couldn't figure out how to get any of the pre-existing cars to run or build a house out of anything but loose sheet metal and plywood
That's just Bethesda. Fallout 1 and Fallout 2 have people building houses and restoring society. And in Fallout 2, you actually help fix a car and drive it around, though it's noted to be exceptionally rare to have a working one there. The fuel cell regulator you need to fix it is said to burn out pretty frequently by accelerating too fast, so it's likely not a lot of them are still around.

PoopPotato posted...
My head Canon is that the cars use fusion cores and the major factions would rather use the scrapped cores for electricity /power armor/weapons.
That's not headcanon, it's just actual canon lol. The Highwayman you drive in FO2 is fueled with small energy cells or microfusion cells. The energy cells are batteries and the microfusion cells are "self-contained fusion plants." Both are also ammo for energy weapons.

RetuenOfDevsman posted...
Please tell me that's not canon.

Please tell me they don't expect me to believe these robots are running on vacuum tubes lol.

pegusus123456 posted...
They do have transistors (one of the devs point out way back that robots in the first two games would probably not take such high damage from EMP grenades if they ran on vacuum tubes), they're just not ubiquitous.
https://i.imgur.com/Er6TT.gif https://i.imgur.com/Er6TT.gif https://i.imgur.com/Er6TT.gif
So? I deeded to some gay porn. It doesn't mean anything. - Patty_Fleur
DrizztLink posted...
Didn't the great war start because they were running out of resources in the first place?
The war that precipitated the end of the world, yes. China had invaded Alaska for it's oil reserves.
If you're not smart enough to survive, you are basically just food for something smarter.
They went into the world with the premise of "what if America didn't grow culturally beyond the 1950s American exceptionalism?"
Face it Cloud is a gaming icon and has appered in lots of games while mario has only appeared in 2 games sunshine and 64 ~xSlashbomBx
Current Events » Can someone canonically expain cultural stagnation in the Fallout franchise?