Key information
At the end of September, a trailer for a project titled Fallout: New York appeared on Twitter/X. Created using AI via Claude Opus 5.5 by self-described AI creative Chris First, the project was not an official Bethesda game.
ZeniMax subsequently issued a Cease and Desist email to First, demanding that he stop utilizing the fallout.nyc domain and all material related to the Fallout video games. First responded to the notice on Twitter/X, expressing regret for those who enjoyed the project while noting that executives became involved.
Commentary highlights that the AI-generated project failed to follow the established lore of the Fallout franchise. Lore from previous titles including Fallout 3, Fallout New Vegas, Fallout 4, and Fallout 76 notes that the city was struck by multiple nuclear weapons on October 23, 2077, leaving it as a massive crater rather than the depiction shown in the AI trailer.
Bethesda is historically known for being open to community mods and fan-made projects, such as Fallout: London and ambitious mods combining Fallout 3 and Fallout New Vegas, making the legal action against this specific AI project notable by comparison.
