After spending well over a decade writing for other game studios and projects, the lead writer for the timeless RPG Fallout New Vegas is back at Obsidian. While that’s excellent news for whatever project the studio is cooking up next, I’ve got some less-excellent news to share too – Fallout New Vegas 2 seems to be off the cards.
I’ve never been able to pin down my definitive ‘favorite’ Fallout game – depending on what week it is, what I ate for breakfast that day, or whatever the moon is up to, I’ll probably give you a different answer depending on how I’m feeling. They’re all brilliant in their own right – even Fallout 76 is good these days – but the answer I give most often is probably Fallout New Vegas. It’s an exceptional game from the RPG wizards at Obsidian, and I’m certainly not alone in wanting another adventure in the Mojave Wasteland. Imagine my immediate excitement, then, when I see John Gonzalez, New Vegas’ lead writer, back at Obsidian as its new creative director.
You can also imagine my similarly swift disappointment when I see this sentence appear on Gonzalez’s LinkedIn page: “Back to Obsidian for exciting times! (No, it’s not FNV2.)” Darn it.
With Avowed just a couple of weeks away at the time of writing and The Outer Worlds 2 release date slated for later this year, it’s a busy old time for Obsidian, but as for what comes after that, we’re none the wiser right now. Fallout fans everywhere of course want it to be New Vegas 2, or some kind of spinoff experience in the Fallout universe – Obsidian handled New Vegas so well, and the wait for Bethesda’s in-house Fallout 5 is going to be an extremely long one. We’ve got The Elder Scrolls 6 to get through before then.
In a way, I’m glad Gonzalez has ruled this out immediately – I’m not sure the internet rumor spinners, nor the copium-huffing Fallout fans like myself, would be able to deal with his return to Obsidian if left unexplained. That is, unless, all of this is a ruse. Maybe it’s just not called ‘New Vegas 2,’ right guys? Guys?
It’s been almost 14 years since Gonzalez originally left Obsidian, and in that time away he most notably went on to become narrative director at Guerrilla Games, shaping the story of Horizon Zero Dawn and Forbidden West. He also worked on Middle-earth Shadow of Mordor at Monolith, and had a short stint at Fantastic Pixel Castle working on its upcoming MMORPG. In October 2024, he announced that he left that role because “a new opportunity arose that I straight-up couldn’t resist.” It seems that irresistible opportunity was a return to Obsidian.
So, no New Vegas 2 apparently, but at least Gonzalez is back to work some more magic at Obsidian. To fill the Fallout void in your life, you should definitely go and play Fallout 76 if you haven’t already – it’s genuinely one of the most fun co-op games around nowadays. Alternatively, check out our list of the best games like Fallout.
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