Fallout was a "B-tier side project" at Interplay, says co-creator Tim Cain
There was a time when Fallout was seen as more of a cute, playtime project than the multi-bajillion-dollar IP Bethesda ultimately helped turn it into, says the RPG's co-creator Tim Cain. He recalled the early days at Interplay, the franchise's first home before Bethesda purchased it in 2004.
Cain remembers feeling, "we were a B-tier side project at Interplay." Designer Leonard Boyarsky echoed that, adding, "it was very much like, here's our team off in the corner, and there's the rest of Interplay" — though he said he felt fortunate about the situation.
"I was aware enough to know this is weird in a really good way," Boyarsky muses. "This is like we're making an indie game, but we have a steady job, and we have steady paychecks, and we're not trying to find a publisher for it, because once they saw what we were doing — and they appreciated what we were doing — they're just like, 'Well, we have these much more important games!