Character

Characters are the individuals appearing throughout the Fallout series.

Non-player character
A non-player character (NPC) is any AI-controlled character. While some of these NPCs may interact with the player, others may be hostile mutants or critters that pay no mind to combat. In the Gamebryo games, NPCs are pre-programmed via "packages" in the G.E.C.K. editor. Non-player character records within .esm data files use an NPC_ record signature.

Mentioned-only character
A mentioned-only character is any person that does not actually appear in a game, and is mentioned in conversation with NPCs, on holotapes, notes, terminals, or any other source in the specific game.

Player character
The player character is a player's avatar in the game world. These can be designed by them, or some games offer pre-designed player characters to choose from.