Fallout Shelter

Fallout is one of the most recognizable video game franchises out there, which is admirable when you consider the fact that it’s been around for over two decades. Granted, there were some hiccups along the way, especially after the series was bought by Bethesda a couple of years back. However, they managed to rekindle that classic Fallout spark and make the franchise a bestseller again, which is no small thing.

Fallout Shelter is a casual management game that’s a lot less complex or demanding than an actual Fallout game, yet it can still keep you engaged for many hours. Hence, it’s a simulation that allows you to build a vault underground and protect your dwellers from the radioactive outdoors. There’s more to it than that, on the other hand, since it takes quite a bit of work and manpower to keep an underground town running smoothly.

To begin with, it’s important to set up a few must-have utilities, such as a power generator, water filtration unit and a few others that are required to provide your dwellers with the most basic of human needs. After that you can start focusing on things that make the population happier, such as bars, living quarters and many other modules that can be added to your vault along the way.

Living inside the vault is not free, however, which is why everyone has to have a job and maintain the equipment. Speaking of which, it’s important to choose the right job for each inhabitant, mainly because it makes them happier, but also because this increases their abilities a lot faster. The SPECIAL system is included in Fallout Shelter as well, which means that each character can excel in a variety of fields.

As it’s always the case with games in the genre, things tend to slow down after a few hours, especially since there’s not much you can do but increase your population and your vault. Microtransactions are an option as well, but they are obviously not required to advance. The graphics are enjoyable as well, although they are obviously fairly basic from a technical point of view.

Fallout Shelter is exactly as advertised, although it’s not really a huge hit on PCs, given the fact that it’s the kind of game you check back on every now and again. Even so, there’s enough content to be worth your time and patience.