Community:Fallout 3 Easter Eggs

Numerous easter eggs and references to various books, movies and other games are one of the staples of the Fallout series.

Guidelines for adding cultural references

 * 1) A character having the same name is probably not a reference in and of itself.  A similar rather than identical name is even less likely.  Other contextual indications are necessary in both cases.
 * 2) If a geographical name corresponds to any real-world geography in or around the DC Metro area, it is definitely not a reference.
 * 3) Any usage of common words and phrases is not a reference without other contextual indications.
 * 4) Be conservative in what you identify as a reference.  If the connection is vague and questionable, consider opening a discussion about it on the talk page instead of adding it to the article.
 * 5) There is no need to write extensive essays about well-known topics in this page; prefer to link to Wikipedia or similar sources.  Information about what makes it likely to be a reference is the most relevant, and even that can be kept to a minimum.
 * 6) You do not need to say where people or items are, or anything else about them that isn't directly related to why they are a reference, if they have wiki pages; just link to their pages.
 * 7) Avoid tacking on material to existing entries using "also".  These tend to grow into chains of "alsos" that read very poorly.  If you are adding information to an entry that isn't directly related to anything currently present in it, separate it from the existing material with two line breaks.
 * 8) References are organized by the non-Fallout topic referenced, in alphabetical order.  Maintain this organization.

1984
In Tenpenny Tower, on the top floor, resides Irving Cheng. If you look on the computer in his suite, you will find a listing called 'Daily Affirmation'. One of the affirmations is "Comrade Cheng is Watching You", as opposed to "Big Brother is Watching You" in George Orwell's dystopian classic '1984'. Another reference is found in Vault 92, where on the overseer's terminal it notes that he used the quote: "Sanity is not statistical" to stop the crazies for a time.

2001: A Space Odyssey
Both HAL 9000 and the ZAX Computer view the world through fisheye lenses. This is a superficial resemblance at best, since the personalities of the two computers are different.

A Boy And His Dog
The protagonist of Harlan Ellison's A Boy And His Dog refers to his dog Blood, on at least one occasion, as "dogmeat", and the setting contains locations strongly resembling the Vaults. There are other distinctive thematic similarities between this and the Fallout series, which can be expected from post-apocalyptic fiction, but a major element in common is the blending of idealized 1950s America with futuristic horrors.

A Christmas Story
While in the Rivet City Market, near the dining area, you can over hear the Young family having a conversation at the diner table. Mrs. Young says to her daughter "Eat your dinner dear" to which C.J. responds by saying "But mom, do I have to". Then Mrs. Young says "Yes, because there are starving people in the wasteland". Same scenario as in A Christmas Story when Ralphie's mom tells him to eat his oatmeal because there are starving people in China.

Apocalypse Now
Mr. Gutsy robots can be heard saying, "There is nothing I like better than the smell of plasma in the morning", a reference to the quote "I love the smell of napalm in the morning" from Apocalypse Now.

Aqua Teen Hunger Force
In the Museum of Natural History, among the many Abraham Lincoln related items that can be obtained is an action figure of Lincoln holding a samurai sword. This may be a reference to Aqua Teen Hunger Force's character Meatwad who occasionally transforms into what others call "Samurai Lincoln", although he says it's Wayne Gretzky.

Armitage III: Polymatrix/Dualmatrix
The security android for Dr. Zimmer in the Replicated Man quest is named Armitage, which is also the name of the main character in Armitage III: Polymatrix/Dualmatrix. In this movie, Armitage was a human-like robot who was struggling with who she is.

See also Neuromancer.

Back to the Future
Butch DeLoria shares many personality traits with Biff Tannen. DeLoria is probably a reference to the De Lorean, the car used as a basis for the time machine.

Beneath the Planet of the Apes
In Megaton, the unexploded bomb and Children of Atom are a reference to the film Beneath the Planet of the Apes, in which a cult of survivors worship an intact nuclear intercontinental ballistic missile. This could also be a reference to the Futurama episode entitled "I Second That Emotion", in which a group of sewer mutants worship an unexploded nuclear bomb. Of course, this was a reference to Beneath the Planet of the Apes itself.

Bethesda Softworks
Fallout 3 was developed by Bethesda Softworks, and there is an area in the game called the Bethesda Ruins. However, as the main development office of Bethesda Softworks is in Rockville, Maryland, a few miles away from the north edge of the gameworld, the Bethesda Ruins are not a reference to it. They seem to be intended as the offices of the Fallout universe's Bethesda Softworks, apparently never having moved from the offices where the real-world company was founded, in Bethesda, Maryland (the site of the Bethesda Ruins).

Sweetrolls
The "sweetroll question" has been a staple of Elder Scrolls character generation quizzes since Arena. In the "tutorial" part of the game, as you turn 10, Old Lady Palmer will give you a sweet roll. After the cake is cut, Butch (and supposedly Wally Mack and Paul Hannon) will accost you for your sweet roll while you are left with a few decisions on what to do. This is a reference to Bethesda's recurring "Sweet roll" Character Generation Quiz scenario. In the scenario from Morrowind, a baker gives the protagonist a sweet roll, who is then accosted by 3 thugs; the player's choices in this and other questions determines their character makeup. Sweetrolls are also an item in a minor quest in the Shivering Isles expansion for Oblivion.

Morrowind
Raven Rock is the name of a village in the Elder Scrolls III: Morrowind expansion Bloodmoon. Both Morrowind and Fallout 3's Raven Rocks are located at the northwestern corner of the map.

Bittercup (a girl/woman found in Big Town) is also an actual trophy that can be found in Morrowind. Use of the Bittercup lowered your lowest stat by 10, while raising your highest stat by 10.

Oblivion

 * The image of Grognak on the Grognak the Barbarian skill book is identical to the image used for the Barbarian class in Oblivion. As might be expected, it also bears an extremely close resemblance to depictions of the famous Robert E. Howard character of film, books, comics, etc "Conan the Barbarian".


 * If you grab the knife lying in the bathtub in the basement of Lock and Load in Paradise Falls, you may hear the voice of a male elf yelling “Stop thief!”


 * The Jalbert Brothers Waste Disposal facility may be a nod to Oblivion, specifically a Redguard Necromancer named Jalbert found in the Ayleid ruin of Vilverin early on in the game.


 * Once the Big Trouble in Big Town mission is complete, if the Super Mutant attack on Big Town was driven off, a citizen of Big Town will shout "Why it's you, the Hero of Big Town!" This may be a reference to Oblivion where the city guards say "Why it's you, the Hero of Kvatch!"


 * Outside of Big Town, along the city wall at the "back" of town, in what appears to be the exact center of the world map, is a utility pole with the unique identification tag "TES-04".


 * Some traders say "Another satisfied customer" - the exact same phrase traders say in Oblivion.


 * When Super Mutants hear something but do not detect the player, they may say "My ears are playing tricks on me", a phrase that enemies in Oblivion may say in a similar situation.


 * While in the Arlington Library, Scribe Yearling can be heard citing phrases from parts of speech used by random NPCs in Oblivion, and other games of the Elder Scrolls series.


 * While walking by a non-hostile NPC, they will sometimes say "hail", a common greeting used by friendly NPCs in Oblivion.


 * Many of the voices in both games are similar, owing to Bethesda Softworks employing the same voice actors, such as Wes Johnson.


 * Fawkes, voiced by Johnson in a manner similar to the Arena Announcer in Oblivion, can sometimes be heard saying "Let the Battle Begin!", which is said at the opening of the gates in every arena battle.


 * Mister Burke, also voiced by Johnson, sounds like the character Lucien Lachance in Oblivion. Both characters share an evil disposition, and employ the player character to kill people.


 * Some hostile Regulators have the same voice actor as Oblivion's male elves.


 * Uncle Leo, the non-hostile Super Mutant, shares his name a with non-hostile zombie that lives in a woman's home in New Sheoth in the the Oblivion expansion The Elder Scrolls IV: Shivering Isles.


 * The NPC Cutter is also found in New Sheoth.


 * Attacking Stanislaus Braun (taking the form of a little girl named Betty) in the Tranquility Lane simulation will result in the player interface disabling itself and Braun using his god-like powers in the simulation to kill the player (while chiding the player for attacking him at the same time), similar to what happens in the Shivering Isles expansion if the player attacks Sheogorath (although Braun does not teleport the player several thousand feet into the air.)


 * The Weatherly Hotel is likely a reference to Weatherleagh, there the player must lead two brothers back to their troll-infested home

NOTE: The Farragut Metro Station is an actual metro station in Washington, DC. It is not a reference to Fort Farragut in Oblivion. See the talk page for details.

Bill and Ted's Excellent Adventure
In Rivet City you will find the game's ultimate slacker: Ted. With his "whoa, dude" phrases he is the namesake from the classic movie, Bill and Ted's Excellent Adventure.

Blade Runner
The name and content of the quest "The Replicated Man" is a reference to the replicants in Blade Runner.

Blades of Glory
If you look at Nova but do not talk to her she will say things and one thing she says is "Lookings for Free, Touching gonna cost you" which Chazz Michael Michaels says on Blades of Glory

Bob's Big Boy
The large statue in Paradise Falls is a reference to the statues at the Big Boy restaurant chain. The statues at the restaurants are rarely larger than life-sized, the large size of the Paradise Falls statue may also be a reference to Dr. Evil's escape rocket in Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery.

Bradbury, Ray
A bit of a dual-natured reference in this one. In Georgetown, one of the few accessible buildings, McClellan Family Townhome, has a powered-down Mr. Handy. You can activate the robot, and one of the things you can tell it to do is to give a bedtime story to the children (or, given the war, the skeletal remains of the children) of the house. The poem spoken, "There Will Come Soft Rains", speaks about how, if mankind would go extinct because of a war, nature would care very little. Ray Bradbury wrote a story of the same name (and directly used the poem) in a story of a robotic house continuing the actions of the family that lived there, before a nuclear war killed them. So, in essence, the player can reenact the main plot of Ray Bradbury's short story (have the robot do things for its obviously-dead owners), by having it speak the poem that inspired the short story in the first place. "McClellan" is also the last name of a character from Fahrenheit 451, Clarice McClellan.

Burke, William
Mr. Burke may be a reference to the William Burke who killed at least 17 people in Scotland in the 1820s. Due to the method used by Burke and his partner (William Hare) which left no visible marks on the body, to "Burke" someone or commit a "Burking" is to kill without leaving a sign.

Calvin and Hobbes
Sugar Bombs are probably a reference to "Chocolate Frosted Sugar Bombs" in the Calvin and Hobbes comic strip. They are Calvin's favorite breakfast cereal and in one strip he got a decoder ring prize from inside the box; this is reflected in the advertisement for Sugar Bombs, which also contains a decoder ring inside.

Cannibal! The Musical
Willow, a female ghoul outside of The Museum of History refers to humans as those "Other Assholes". In Cannibal! The Musical, the "Indians" refer to non Indians as the "Other Assholes" in the same way Willows refers to all Non-ghouls.

Card, Orson Scott
The Rad Regeneration perk may be a reference to the early Orson Scott Card novel Treason. In the book, the main character is a member of a caste capable of extremely rapid healing &mdash; even to the point of re-growing severed limbs. Some members of the caste cannot control their healing and grow extra limbs even when they are not injured. These are referred to as Radical Regeneratives or "Rads".

Catcher in the Rye
In the initial escape from Vault 101, Vault dwellers named Tom and Mary Holden are seen quoting Catcher in the Rye before running to their death amid a shower of bullets.

Clue
The butler in your home in Megaton is a Mr. Handy robot named "Wadsworth". Wadsworth the Butler is Tim Curry's character in the movie Clue. Like other Mr. Handy robots, he speaks in a tone and voice similar to that employed by Tim Curry in the movie (a stereotypical "English butler" voice).

Cosby, Bill
During the tutorial, when your dad gives you your BB Gun, if you shoot him with it he will occasionally say, "Son, I brought you into this world. I think you know the rest." This is a nod to Bill Cosby's famous line "I brought you into this world, I'll take you out."

Comic book industry
The receptionist terminal in the Hubris Comics building contains a letter to the editor about the villain called The AntAgonizer in the Grognak the Barbarian comics (the apparent inspiration for The AntAgonizer). It complains about the current writer of the series, a Mr. Neptura, and demands the return of a former writer, Mr. Moorellis. The latter is a portmanteau of the last names of Alan Moore and Warren Ellis, critically regarded as two of the best comics writers now or ever.

Cool Hand Luke
In some circumstances, Rory McLaren will say "Nobody can eat 50 eggs!", referencing the movie Cool Hand Luke, in which Paul Newman's title character accepts a bet to eat 50 eggs in an hour.

In Paradise Falls there is a Pulowski Preservation shelter named "The Box". This could be a reference to when Carr says "Any man playing grabass or fightin' in the building spends a night in The Box."

Crowley, Aleister
In Underworld, there is a ghoul named Mister Crowley, presumably a reference to occultist Aleister Crowley. Allistair Tenpenny is one of the people Mister Crowley sends you to kill, which can be interpreted as reinforcing the connection to Aleister Crowley.

See also Osbourne, Ozzy.

Crystal Pepsi
Inside the Nuka-Cola Plant, you can find terminals mentioning the recent development of Nuka-Cola Clear as well as its recipe. This is a reference to the very short-lived Crystal Pepsi, which was a colorless, caffeine-free variant of the regular Pepsi Cola.

Dick, Philip K.

 * Many places, views and situations in Fallout 3 are similar to ones in Philip K. Dick's Dr. Bloodmoney, or How We Got Along After the Bomb: situations such as eating dog meat, which in the book is depicted as a delicious meal and even aftermath newspapers talk about recipes on how to cook it, mutated cattle and two headed or multi-bodied people. In particular, Three Dog's character and speech style presents a lot of similarities with that of Walter Dangerfield, a lone astronaut that had been sent on a trip to Mars with his wife (who died shortly after the launch) and never got there because of the start of the nuclear war. He remained in Earth's low orbit becoming the one and only radio broadcaster for the whole Earth, broadcasting music and playing the DJ part, inspiring all the people that remained alive on the planet, who gathered in groups to listen to his show.


 * Also, the Keller Family Tapes could be a reference to this book. Although the way the family is portrayed doesn't match the names and amount of people in the book.

See also Blade Runner.

Die Hard
Bryan Wilks can be heard saying, while in the preservation pod during the Those! quest, that he now "knows what a TV dinner feels like", which is a line from the movie Die Hard. Going along with this, the name Bryan Wilks could be a nod toward Bruce Willis the star of the Die Hard series.

Doyle, Arthur Conan
Colin Moriarty, a crime boss, may possibly be a reference to Professor Moriarty, criminal mastermind and arch-nemesis of Sherlock Holmes.

Dracula
Lucy West, the woman who kicks off the Blood Ties quest, is probably a reference to Lucy Westenra, Mina Murray's friend in Bram Stoker's Dracula who is turned into a vampire and then staked by Van Helsing. Also the town Arefu is the name of the town out side of the castle of Count Dracula.

Duck and Cover

 * At Springvale School, there is a poster referencing Duck and Cover, a famous United States "nuclear preparedness" propaganda piece.


 * The explosives skill book is called Duck and Cover!

Dune
Mentats are a reference to Frank Herbert's Dune, in which Mentats are humans trained to function as 'living computers'.

Evil Dead 3: Army of Darkness
After nuking Megaton, if you run into Moira at the ruins, one dialog option with her is the Army of Darkness quote "Honey, you got reeeal ugly!"

Fawkes, Guy
When asked about his name, Fawkes says that it was taken from researching history texts and that Fawkes was the name of a man who died for what he believed in, and as such, he felt a kinship to him.

See also V For Vendetta.

Fear Factory
In the Research Lead terminals in the Museum of Technology, the first log entry ends with: "After a complete cleanup on the mainframe's core, I am happy to announce that the infection has been removed... the soul of this machine has improved. - B. Bell, Research Lead". This is a reference to the Fear Factory song "Archetype", which contains the lyrics "The infection has been removed, the soul of this machine has improved". The mainframe is also called the "Archetype Model FF06", Archetype being the song name, FF being Fear Factory, and 06 being the album number, and vocalist Burton C. Bell's name can be abbreviated to B. Bell, the researcher's name.

Frisky Dingo
The AntAgonizer is a reference to Grace Ryan from Frisky Dingo, who falls into a vat of radiation and can then command ants to attack, using the name Antagone and soliloquying about how humans shall fall and ants shall inherit the earth.

Flags of our Fathers

 * After completing either of the first objectives during "Paving the Way" mission in Operation:Anchorage DLC, after You exit the HQ tent, a reporter is gathering a group of soldiers for a photo and tells them "...maybe someone will make this picture into a statue one day". This is a reference to the movie called "The flags of our Fathers", 2006, directed by C.Eastwood.


 * Also, the pose captured in the photo is the same as the pose of the soldiers at the Anchorage War Memorial.

Full Metal Jacket
The Mr. Gutsy robot will sometimes say when you kill one "Pin my medals upon my chest" or "Tell my mom I did my best" which are small parts of a running cadence sang in the military. This cadence is also sung in the movie Full Metal Jacket. This is not only from a cadence, but from the song "Ballad of the Green Berets" by SSgt Barry Sadler.

Futurama
The Pulowski Preservation Shelters apparently only killed people, and say 'Occupied' while closed, resembling in both regards the suicide booths from Futurama; which may in turn be a nod to the suicide booths used in the Star Trek Original Series episode entitled "A Taste of Armageddon". This is also a nod towards Kurt Vonnegut's book "God Bless You, Mr. Rosewater, or Pearls Before Swine" which mentioned suicide booths. Additionally suicide booths are a key element in The King in Yellow which later became a part of H.P. Lovecraft's Cthulhu Mythos.

Galley, Garry
Gary's Galley may be a reference to Garry Galley, a hockey player.

God of war chains of olympus
A Follower you can get goes by the name of Charon which is also a major boss in god of war another simularity is that charon is under a contract from a general of hades in fallout 3 charon is also under a contract,charon in fallout 3 kills his contract holder by shooting him in the head in charons biography he kills hades general by sliceing off his head

Gorillas in the Mist
Isabella Proud's story is a reference to Dian Fossey's, the basis of the movie Gorillas in the Mist.

Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas
The character Allistair Tenpenny may be a reference to the villain in GTA: San Andreas. In Fallout 3, Tenpenny is trying to weed out the imperfections of the wasteland; in GTA: SA, Tenpenny's main goal is to get rid of street trash and thugs. Both characters pursue their goals through very destructive means.

Greek Mythology
Cerberus is a reference to the Cerberus of Greek mythology. One dialogue option with Cerberus asks if he is the "guard dog", which he reluctantly confirms.

Charon is a reference to the Charon of Greek mythology.

In addition, the Underworld is another word for Hades of Greek mythology.

Half-Life Series
The Prototype Medic Power Armor could be a reference to the HEV suit in the Half-Life series. Both suits talk to the user, provide protection, and give the user morphine.

Hardware
Three Dog is reminiscent of a radio DJ called Angry Bob (Played by Iggy Pop) in the 2000 AD inspired film, "Hardware" or "M.A.R.K. 13" (European title).

Harvey
The picture for the Animal Friend perk may be a reference to Harvey.

Incredible Hulk, The
You can overhear a Mr. Gutsy say, "I'm starting to get angry. You would not like me when I'm angry". This is the much like the comment Dr. Banner would give to Mr. Mcgee in the opening sequence of the tv series (1978-1982) the Hulk. Exact quote: "Mr. McGee, don't make me angry. You wouldn't like me when I'm angry."

Internet culture
Moira Brown's terminal password is MB3K-OMFG; the last four digits, OMFG, are a common internet acronym for Oh My Fucking God. (The first two letters are Moira's initials; the significance of the 3K, or 3000, is most likely a reference to MST3K or Mystery Science Theater 3000 a popular comedy series involving a man and his two robots mocking terrible sci-fi films.)

Jefferson, Thomas
During one of President Eden's radio broadcasts, he utters the phrase "The price of freedom is eternal vigilance". While the quote originally comes from Thomas Jefferson, it was also prominently said by Admiral Tolwyn in Wing Commander IV: The Price of Freedom. Malcolm McDowell plays the part of both Eden and Tolwyn.

Jericho
Jericho is probably a reference to the post-apocalyptic television series of the same name. The TV series is supported by Bethesda, as seen on their blog site on the attempted second revival of the show.

John Carpenter's "The Thing"
The alien from The Thing changes into a multi-limbed, grotesque form with some human attributes when it changes its appearance or attacks, similar to the appearance of the Centaur. Also, Mayor MacReady of Little Lamplight is known to the locals as "RJ" - RJ MacReady was Kurt Russell's character in The Thing.

Day of the Dead
Inside the Red Racer Factory a scientist known as The Surgeon keeps a Glowing One named Stefan in a cage. The journal entries on a nearby terminal allude to the ghoul being one of the surgeon's special projects. This is reminiscent of the movie Day of the Dead, in which a mad scientist nicknamed "Frankenstein" imprisons and experiments upon an intelligent zombie which he names "Bub".

Land of the Dead
Tenpenny Tower is very similar to Land of the Dead's Fiddler's Green, a fortress-tower owned by a wealthy elitist. In Land of The Dead, the tower gets attacked by intelligent zombies (ghouls in Fallout 3, though everyone refers to them as "zombies"). This similar event only happens if you actually let the ghouls in Tenpenny Tower.

Lost
The combination to Billy Creel's safe is 15, 16, 23, 42, which is the latter two-thirds of a reccurring chain of numbers in the television show Lost.

Lovecraft, H.P.
In the extreme southwest of the world map you can find the Dunwich Building, which once housed the offices of a pretty innocuous company (Dunwich Drilling, a manufacturer of industrial mining and drilling machines). This is possibly the single "creepiest" or "spookiest" location in the game, as the ruins now form a very dark, chaotic three dimensional maze absolutely chock-full of feral ghouls. The personal logs you find here and an object you find at the very end of the maze form a definite reference to Lovecraft's Cthulhu mythos/setting. The name of the location itself is a direct reference to Lovecraft's the Dunwich Horror. (The company based in the building being titled Dunwich Borers.)

During exploration of the Dunwich Building the player comes across nine personal audio tapes that make reference to a mysterious book (somewhat implied to be the Necronomicon) that drove the man's father insane and lead him to the whispering obelisk in the Virulent Underchambers.

The suicide booths in the game are a possible reference to one of the short stories in "The King in Yellow" by Robert W. Chambers. This book and story elements were later  incorporated into the Cthulhu Mythos by H.P. Lovecraft.

Mad Max


There are many items and incidents that appear to refer to the Mad Max movies, which starred Mel Gibson as a post-apocalyptic warrior.


 * For instance, one of the Little Lamplight children uses the word humongous incorrectly, saying 'humungus.' Though it appears incorrect, it is actually a reference to Lord Humungus, the leader of the antagonizing gang in The Road Warrior.


 * The "Blackhawk", a unique Scoped .44 Magnum weapon in Fallout 3, may also be a reference to Humungus's scoped revolver, which is a black color. (It's likely the name "Blackhawk" is not a Mad Max reference and instead is simply a reference to the real-world .44 Magnum, the Ruger Super Blackhawk.)


 * The design of the Leather Armor in Fallout 3 is strikingly similar to Mel Gibson's armor in Mad Max.


 * Additionally, a picture of the main character walking beside Dogmeat that is featured on the back of the packaging, and in every ending is an homage to the image of Mad Max walking beside his dog from The Road Warrior, though it is from the back rather than the front.


 * Fallout 3's Dogmeat is also a Blue Heeler, the breed that was used for Mad Max's dog in the movie.


 * There is also a random encounter with a character named Mel wearing a leather jacket and sporting a Sawed-Off Shotgun. If your Perception is high enough, you'll notice that the shotgun is unloaded. In Road Warrior Max threatens the Gyrocaptain with his shotgun, even though it wasn't loaded.


 * The Raiders' style of dressing is very similar to that of the various raider and biker gangs in the Mad Max films.


 * You will also find Medical Leg Braces randomly throughout the wastes similar to those that Max wears on his left leg in the films.


 * One of the possible passwords to a computer in Vault 87 is "Bartertowne"; the main settlement in Beyond Thunderdome is Bartertown.


 * In Scrapyard, where Dogmeat is found, there is a dead guy named "Max" wearing a leather jacket and wielding a shotgun.


 * The Raider Blastmaster Helmet bears a striking resemblance to the helmet worn by Blaster, the "muscle" of Bartertowne in Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome. In the film, Blaster -- and his brainy dwarven friend "Master" -- are collectively referred to as "Masterblaster."


 * The outfit worn by Mayor MacReady of Little Lamplight is identical to the costume worn by the Gyro Captain's Son in Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome: a pith helmet, goggles, and a too-big jacket.

Mandroid
Dr. Zimmer is probably a reference to the movie Mandroid, in which Dr. Karl Zimmer is the creator of a humanoid robot.

Marvel Comics

 * The Perk, Adamantium Skeleton, is a direct reference to Wolverine of the X-Men, who (usually) has an indestructible adamantium skeleton.
 * Iron Fist -- the Fallout 3 perk which grants a bonus to unarmed damage -- shares its name with a Marvel Comics martial arts superhero.
 * Abraham Washington mistakenly claims that the Declaration of Independence lead to the start of the Evolutionary War.

Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater
During the DLC mission, Operation Anchorage, the player fights a chinese tank known as Chimera. This tank bears a strong resemblance to the Shagohod in MGS3 from its body shape to the use of dual screws for propulsion.

Ministry
While traveling with Fawkes, during battle she will occasionally say "I only kill to know I'm alive", which is a partial lyric to the song "So What" by Ministry, from the album The Mind Is a Terrible Thing to Taste.

Moby-Dick
If the player visits Fort Independence and asks an Outcast named Defender Morgan, "What have you got against the Brotherhood?", she will refer to Elder Lyons as "Ahab Lyons", who "is off chasing his Super Mutant white whale."

Furthermore, if the player's Intelligence is high enough, he or she can respond with "By that analogy, you think Lyons will be killed by the Super Mutants?", much to Morgan's astonishment. She replies, "Huh. And here I thought we had the only remaining copy of that."

This is a clear reference to Herman Melville's Moby-Dick, in which Captain Ahab and his whaling crew are hunting for a monstrous white whale, and a nod to the book itself, which was written in 1851 -- long before the Divergence.

Monty Python's Flying Circus
In the Museum of Technology there are several terminals that have notes from the lead researcher, Professor R. J. Gumbie, a reference to the Monty Python character Professor R.J. Gumby.

Munchkin
In the Munchkin card game there is a weapon called the Board of Education, a 2 by 4 with a nail in it. This weapon appears in Fallout 3 as the unique nail board. Munchkin is made by Steve Jackson Games, which also makes GURPS. Fallout 1 was originally supposed to use the GURPS system. The word "GURPS" can also appear as a possible password when hacking computers.

Music industry

 * In Vault 92, the vault used for music preservation, the name of the overseer is Richard Rubin. This can be found while looking into the computer files. Rick Rubin is a real life music producer and founder of Def Jam Records who in 2007 was listed by Time Magazine among the 100 Most Influential People in The World.
 * Another name listed on terminals as a denizen of Vault 92 is "Gordie Sumner." Gordon Sumner is the real name of the musician Sting.

Music Man, The
One of Dr. Zimmer's lines, "And he's right here in Rivet City!", may be a reference to the musical The Music Man, that takes place in River City, Iowa, and has a music montage frequently featuring the line "... right here in River City."

Mystery Science Theater 3000
A computer in the National Archives contains a memo from the man in charge of robot maintenance is signed, P. Brantseg. Patrick Brantseg was one of the prop guys from MST3K, listed in the credits of the MST3K movie as puppet wrangler.

Neuromancer
Dr. Zimmer's security android is named Armitage. This may be a reference to William Gibson's "Neuromancer". Formerly a Green Beret named Colonel Willis Corto, who took part in a secret operation named Screaming Fist. He was heavily injured both physically and psychologically, and the "Armitage" personality was constructed as part of experimental "computer-mediated psychotherapy" by Wintermute, one of the artificial intelligences seen in the story (the other one being the eponymous Neuromancer) which is actually controlling the mission.

See also Armitage III: Polymatrix/Dualmatrix.

Norse Mythology
The slaver that kills the bartender in Paradise Falls, Ymir, is a reference to the Norse frost giant whose body is the foundation of Midgard. His son is called Jotun, which is the name of the race of the Norse giants.

A raider named Thor is referenced by recordings found in the Dunwich Building.

O'Brien, Tim
When you kill a Mister Gutsy robot they sometimes will say "Box me up and ship me home". This is a reference to Tim O'Brien's "If I Die in a Combat Zone: Box Me Up and Ship Me Home", which in turn references a US Army running cadence popular in the Vietnam era and still used today.

Occam's Razor
The melee weapon Occam's Razor is a reference to the scientific principle of the same name.

Osbourne, Ozzy
Mister Crowley's name appears to be a reference to the song "Mr. Crowley" by Ozzy Osbourne.

See also Crowley, Aleister (the subject of Osbourne's song).

Paradise Lost
John Milton's Paradise Lost appears in Fallout 3 as a skill-training book. The person who gives it to you, the ghoul Tulip, explains that it is about a journey to Hell and the nearby bar The Ninth Circle is a reference to it. (This actually describes Dante's Inferno, not Paradise Lost; since the character claims to have read the book and therefore should know, this is probably a mistake or joke by the developers.) Tulip's personal terminal contains excerpts from the book's first four chapters.

The name of the area Paradise Falls is a multiple entendre referencing Paradise Lost.

Peanuts
In the town "Little Lamplight" the doctor, Lucy, is a reference to the character "Lucy" from Charles Schultz's Peanuts. Inside of the clinic where she is located, a sign reading "The Doctor is in" can be found, which was often seen on Lucy's stand in the series.

Pleasantville
The Tranquility Lane scenario is reminiscent of the movie Pleasantville, both involving protagonists transported into a black-and-white world modeled after an idealized version of 1950s America. Additionally, entering both Fallout 3 and Pleasantville is accompanied by the classic Indian Head TV test card.

Portal
The personality of the Robobrains may be a reference to GLaDOS (Genetic Lifeform and Disk Operating System), a computer artificial intelligence that monitors and directs the player in the videogame "Portal." Both have "friendly" female personalities. It may also reference the turrets in the game, as both the Robobrain and the turrets share the line "Are you still there?"

Princess Bride, The
While patching you up during the Wasteland Survival Guide personal injury sub-quest, Moira asks you to describe the pain &mdash; "And remember, this is for posterity!" This echoes a line used by Count Rugin in The Princess Bride when asking Westley to describe the torture in the Pit of Despair.

A protectron may be heard refering to "rodents of unusual size" when directed to execute an infestation control routine.

Bittercup's name is a play on Buttercup's.

Raven Rock Mountain Complex
Raven Rock Mountain Complex is a real-world US government complex, also known as the "Underground Pentagon", which would go with the fact that the dwellers of Raven Rock conflict with the dwellers of the Citadel which is (stated on Enclave Radio) the Pentagon.

ReBoot
Dot's Diner is a reference to ReBoot.

Relic Hunter
During the quest to acquire the Declaration of Independence you come across an NPC named Sydney who greets you as a fellow "relic hunter", referencing the television series of the same name where actress Tia Carrere starred as Sydney Fox.

Roosevelt, Franklin
President Eden's radio broadcasts are modeled on the Fireside Chats of President Franklin D. Roosevelt. This is presumably a deliberate choice on the part of the Enclave rather than a metatextual reference.

Saving Private Ryan
Asked what she does for the Brotherhood, Knight Captain Dusk replies that she is a sniper, and then says 'Put any mutie bastard within one mile of me and my rifle and well, pack it up troops... fight's over'. Jackson in Saving Private Ryan says something similar, except to do with Hitler.

When asked what his real name is, Knight Captain Gallows responds with "What's the pool up to?" This is similar to a scene where a soldier asks Cpt. Miller what he did before the war.

Schindlers List
Allistair Tennpenny's desire to fire his sniper rifle at random vermin in the wastes reminds me of Amon Goeth's unrelenting desire to snipe all of the "vermin" (Jews) that he is watching over. Also both Allistair and Amon see themselves as superior to their enemies, the Jews with Amon and the Ghouls with Allistair.

Serenity
After the Galaxy News Radio quest, Three Dog shouts "You can't stop the signal!" This is a reference to the movie 'Serenity', in which the quote is mentioned by a cunning hacker and TV geek, before the main actors try broadcasting a top-secret video log over the universe-wide TV system.

The population of the planet Miranda in Serenity was subjected to a chemical agent intended to be calmative, but 0.1% became hyper-aggressive Reavers. Similarly, hallucinogens were introduced into Vault 106, which apparently had a pacifying effect at first but later drove the inhabitants insane and berserk.

One of the Achievements/Trophies you can be awarded for reaching level 8 with bad karma is called "Reaver". This could be a reference to the Reavers from the TV mini-series 'Firefly' or movie based in the same fictional universe, 'Serenity'.

Shadowrun
The Wired Reflexes perk is a reference to a piece of cyberware a character can have installed in their body in the tabletop RPG Shadowrun. In Shadowrun, Wired Reflexes uses neural boosters and adrenalin stimulators which allows the user to see the world around them in a state of slow motion (much like VATS). The concept itself shows up in a multitude of Cyberpunk fiction pieces, which the Replicated Man quest draws heavily from.

Sifl and Olly Show, The
One of the 911 Dispatch terminals in the Germantown Police HQ contains rantings referencing the song "Llama School" from The Sifl and Olly Show. The password for a computer terminal in the same building is "Vicious Coy", the name of the Precious Roy knockoff on the X-and-O show.

Simpsons, The
Some of the radios and televisions in the wasteland are called Radiation Kings, which is the name of the TV Homer had as a young boy. This easter egg was originally present in the opening movie of Fallout 1; this is a continuation of that reference.

Sugar Bombs are a candy in the Kwik-E-mart in the Simpsons, though as they appear to be a cereal in Fallout 3 they are probably a Calvin and Hobbes reference.

Snatcher
In the Capitol Post basement, there is a man named Gibson who has been decapitated in the same manner as Jean-Jack Gibson in Snatcher, with inventory of "Gibson's key" and "Gibson's Scrap of Paper". These are also found on his body in Snatcher, with the same message on the paper, "Search the house!" Gibson's house is in Minefield, along with two other buildings named after Snatcher characters: Gillian House (named for the protagonist, Gillian Seed) and Benson House (named for Benson Cunningham, Gillian and Gibson's boss). In Gibson House, there is a small model house on a table in the living room and a broken computer upstairs, both of which were in Gibson's house in Snatcher.

Sorry, Wrong Number
In the Germantown Police Station, one of the 911 terminals will have the story. It's about a woman who calls 911 when she heard someone.

Starship Troopers
In the approach to Galaxy News Radio, one of the Brotherhood of Steel soldiers spurs on his comrades by inquiring as to whether they want to live forever. The quote is similar, possibly identical, to the "Come on, you apes, you want to live forever?" that figures prominently in Robert Heinlein's Starship Troopers and its movie adaptation. That, in turn, is a reference to a quote sometimes attributed to one Sergeant Major Daniel Joseph "Dan" Daly (and having an extensive history going back at least to Frederick the Great), but coming from soldiers wearing power armor, it constitutes a reference to Starship Troopers (it being the novel where the concept of power armor was invented).

Star Trek: The Original Series
In the beginning of the game when your character is being born, and your mother begins to die, it fades out with the phrase "James, I need a doctor, not a dentist", a slight reference to lines in the original Star Trek where Dr. McCoy says to Cpt. Kirk, "Dammit Jim, I'm a doctor, not a scientist".

Similarly, the doctor in Rivet City will say "I'm a doctor, not a dealer!" when confronted about purchasing chems.

Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan
The password for the shipping computer in the Nuka-Cola Plant is NC-C1864. The call letters of the USS Reliant, the ship hijacked by Khan, were NCC-1864.

Star Trek: Voyager
Sawbones, the medical robot in the B Ring of The Citadel greets you with the phrase "Please state the nature of the medical emergency"; a phrase used by popular character The Doctor of Star Trek: Voyager. (This line is also used by medics in the classic RTS game "Starcraft", again, as a homage to the Doctor.)

Them!
The quest Those! is a reference to the Oscar-nominated sci-fi/horror movie Them!, in which a small town is invaded by giant ants.

Terminator, The
Three Dog says the Raiders "Can't be bargained, or reasoned with...", which is what Kyle Reese tells Sarah Connor about the Terminator. That Terminator model, played by Arnold Schwarzenegger, is the model T-101. The fact that the 101 designation matches the Vault number in Fallout 3 is probably only a coincidence. The picture of the Cyborg Perk, however, is a clear nod towards Arnold's appearance in Terminator 2.

Thief
Stephen Russel voices the Mr. Handy robots. He also voiced a techno-religious Hammerite in Thief: The Dark Project. One of the lines that the Hammerite says in combat is 'Have at thee!'. One of the Mr. Handy combat lines is also 'Have at thee'.

Tommy James & The Shondells
Eulogy Jones' slave bodyguards Crimson & Clover are references to the #1 hit song "Crimson And Clover" by the 1960s American rock and roll group Tommy James and the Shondells.

THX-1138
The code of the safe in the Republic of Dave is 1138, a reference to THX-1138, the first movie made by George Lucas. The letters THX and numbers 1138 appear in numerous other Lucasfilm productions.

Underground Railroad, The
Victoria Watts speaks of an underground movement called "The Railroad" who work to free androids. This is a reference to the Underground Railroad, almost certainly even an in-character one (that is, the members of the Railroad, in the game world, presumably chose the name to be a reference, rather than the reference being strictly metatextual). Victoria Watts may also be a kind of in-game version of Harriet Tubman.

V For Vendetta
In V For Vendetta, the character V was imprisoned and experimented upon in cell number 5 (marked with the Roman numeral V), the same cell number as Fawkes's. Both V and Fawkes are great fans of Guy Fawkes.

See also Fawkes, Guy.

Van Vogt, A. E.
The Children of Atom may partially be a reference to A. E. Van Vogt's short story Hand of God, in which a Martian religion believes in the "Atom Gods".

Washington Post, The
The pre-war newspaper "Capitol Post" is most likely a reference to Washington, D.C.'s "Washington Post".

Waste Land, The
Not far east of Rockbreaker's Last Gas, at the MDPL Mass Relay Station, there is a wrecked ship. This may conceivably be a reference to these lines from T.S. Eliot's The Waste Land:

On a winter evening round behind the gashouse

Musing upon the king my brother's wreck

In general, the absence of water is a major overt theme in The Waste Land, especially in section V, "What the Thunder Said", and Fallout 3's central dilemma of potable water shortage may relate to this. (Though the main reason to suspect a direct connection in either case is that it would seem odd if, given the fondness for references in the overall work, there were no references to this extremely familiar literary work whose title is both a ubiquitous term in the game and the name of the predecessor of the Fallout series.)

Watson, Thomas
In Our Lady of Hope Hospital there is a terminal called "Nurse's Station Terminal 02" on the first floor. The third Injury Report (labeled 09007882) tells of a man with the last name of Watson that is splashed by caustic chemicals. Alexander Graham Bell invented the telephone and the first call made was "Mr. Watson, come here. I need you.", a message sent to Thomas Watson after Bell had accidently spilt battery acid on himself and needed assistance.

Yogi Bear
The Yao Guai are mutated black bears that wander The Wasteland, with a name that (aside from being the Chinese Pinyin symbol for "monster", its overt meaning) is linguistically similar to "Yogi". Three Dog can be heard in one of his broadcasts warning Wastelanders "Don't feed the Yao Guai"; Jellystone Park's "don't feed the bears" policy and Yogi Bear's struggle against it is the main theme of the cartoon.

Zen Buddhism
When you try to rob Uncle Leo, his dialogue where he tells you the clothes are a gift and he wishes he could give you the "wonderful moon" comes from the following Zen Buddhist koan:

''Ryokan, a Zen master, lived the simplest kind of life in a little hut at the foot of a mountain. One evening a thief visited the hut only to discover there was nothing to steal.

''Ryokan returned and caught him. “You have come a long way to visit me,” he told the prowler, “and you should not return empty-handed. Please take my clothes as a gift.”

''The thief was bewildered. He took the clothes and slunk away.

''Ryoken sat naked, watching the moon. “Poor fellow,” he mused, “I wish I could have given him this beautiful moon.”

Much of the random dialogue heard from Fawkes as one wanders around can be heard as simple wasteland survival advice, but also references Zen philosophy. Examples include "Be aware of the present moment" and "There is safety in mindfulness". Taken together with Uncle Leo's reference, this suggests that Zen Buddhism may be a means to retaining a level of independent mental functioning after FEV transformation.