With the release and success of The Elder Scrolls 4: Oblivion Remastered, eyes are now on Bethesda for its long-rumoured remaster of Fallout 3. While the Oblivion remaster changed up quite a few things, it maintained the same classic open-world RPG gameplay of the original. Former Bethesda developer Bruce Nesmith believes, however, that with a Fallout 3 remaster, Bethesda should revise the title’s gunplay.
Speaking to VideoGamer, Nesmith spoke about how the Fallout series under Bethesda had evolved between Fallout 3 all the way back in 2008, to Fallout 4 in 2015. Among the differences in the two titles, Nesmith specifically pointed to the gun combat, which was much more refined in Fallout 4 than its predecessor.
“What did you see in Fallout 4? That will tell you what they felt was necessary to change from Fallout 3,” Nesmith said. “I know in Fallout 4 there was a lot of work done on the gun combat, because Fallout 3 is the first time they ever tried to do a shooter-style game. And, well, I think the work that was done was amazing.”
Nesmith, who has previously worked at Bethesda on titles like The Elder Scrolls 4: Oblivion and Fallout 3 as a designer, also went on to mention that the gun combat in Fallout 3 was “not good,” and that it would require heavy revisions if the game were to be remastered for release in the modern gaming market. He also says that Fallout 3‘s combat didn’t quite hold up to even its contemporaries at the time. For context, 2008 saw the release of Gears of War 2, Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots, Dead Space, and Call of Duty: World at War, among many other titles.
“[Fallout 3 combat] didn’t hold up to shooters at the time,” Nesmith explained. “Also, it’s an RPG shooter, it’s not a run-and-gun shooter. But a lot of work was done on that for Fallout 4. So I anticipate seeing a lot of that work go into it, assuming they’re doing the same thing.”
“Oblivion wasn’t just brought up to the 2011 version of Skyrim,” he continued. “It was brought up to something that, at least on the surface, looks like it exceeds the most recent graphics update in Skyrim.”
While Bethesda hasn’t made any announcements confirming the existence of Fallout 3 Remastered, rumours from as far back as 2023 indicate that it has been in the works for a modern release. A report from 2023 covering Microsoft’s trial with the US Federal Trade Commission included mentions of titles like Indiana Jones and the Great Circle and The Elder Scrolls 6, as well as of remasters like The Elder Scrolls 4: Oblivion and Fallout 3.
More recent rumours have indicated that Fallout 3 Remastered is still in the works at Bethesda. However, the game isn’t planned for release for a while.
In the meantime, check out everything you need to know about The Elder Scrolls 4: Oblivion Remastered, as well as what former Blizzard president Mike Ybarra thinks about the game. Also check out how the remastered release revamps various gameplay aspects, like enemy scaling and encumbrance.
