Summary
While theFalloutshow’s first Season has generally been well received by longtime fans of the games, debates about alleged retcons in the franchise have become a hot topic recently. For the most part, these allegedretcons in theFalloutshowhave been clarified and debunked by official sources by now. However, one particular retcon still sticks out like a sore thumb, which is theFalloutshow’s iteration of Power Armor.
Despite remaining an iconic feature of the games, theFalloutfranchise’s Power Armor has gone through several changes by this point. Throughout the franchise, these changes have resulted in the original lore surrounding Power Armor being retconned. With theFalloutshow being considered canon, the iteration of Power Armor depicted in the show essentially sets the future of the franchise’s Power Armor in stone.
The Fallout Franchise’s Power Armor Retcons Explained
Power Armor Training Requirements
The first change to theFalloutfranchise’s Power Armor which is generally considered a retcon was introduced inFallout 3.Fallout 3marks the first game in the franchise developed by Bethesda, who obtained the rights to the franchise from Interplay Entertainment. With such a transition, it was arguably inevitable that the franchise’s lore would change, and such is the case for the franchise’s iconic Power Armor.
Fallout 3’s iteration of Power Armor was functionally the same as it was in the previous games, though in this game it requires proper training credentials before it can be operated. Based on the reckless actions of themain character Maximus in theFalloutshow, after the character first obtains a suit of Power Armor, it appears that Power Armor training is no longer a required prerequisite to operate the armor.
Power Armor Fusion Cores
Fallout 4ultimately omittedFallout 3’s Power Armor training prerequisites, though this game once again introduced new changes. UnlikeFallout 3’s training credentials,Fallout 4’s version of Power Armorhas been considered highly controversial as a much more explicit retcon to the lore of the originalFalloutgames. Among other changes, the most noteworthy change introduced inFallout 4is that Power Armor now requires Fusion Cores as a power source.
In the games beforeFallout 4, Power Armor was said to have drawn power from an infinite power source attached to the back of the suit, except from this point in the franchise onward, Power Armor is now powered by a removable and finite power source, Fusion Cores. WiththeFalloutshow’s Power Armorusing Fusion Core power sources, this marks this element of Power Armor as a definitive, permanent change.
TheFalloutshow itself doesn’t necessarily retcon the originalFalloutgames' Power Armor lore, but it still perpetuates retcons that were introduced inFallout 3andFallout 4.
The Fallout Show’s Version of Power Armor is Canon
Concerning theFalloutshow, the medium’s accessibility to a wider audience beyond gamers naturally means that the show has a lot of influence on the franchise. Consequently, theFalloutshow could have been the perfect platform to reboot the franchise and establish a new, modern lore forfutureFalloutgamesto inherit. However, this wasn’t the case, as the show ultimately remains faithful to the lore of the modernFalloutgames developed by Bethesda, and is considered canon.
As a result, theFalloutshow’s depiction of Power Armor including Fusion Cores effectively ends any discussions of whether Power Armor will ever go back to the way it was in the franchise’s original lore. So after theFalloutshow, fans who were holding out hope that futureFalloutgames would reintroduce the old style of Power Armor may be out of luck. As controversial as these changes and retcons surrounding theFalloutfranchise’s Power Armor have been, these changes seem to be here to stay, for better or worse.
