Wild Wasteland

 is a trait which only appears in Fallout: New Vegas.

''Wild Wasteland unleashes the most bizarre and silly elements of post-apocalyptic America. Not for the faint of heart or the serious of temperament.''

In an interview with Chris Avellone, he notes that the Wild Wasteland trait may add more references to older content in Fallout and Fallout 2, in regards to special encounters. Players without Wild Wasteland will find less silly analogues in places where Wild Wasteland modifies things. According to J.E. Sawyer, the trait was added as a compromise because different members of the team often suggested 'wacky' content that others thought would be out of place.

Events that are modified/triggered by Wild Wasteland are indicated. Alien-esque music (that wouldn't sound out of place in Mothership Zeta) will play for a moment. A message saying "..." will appear, and its icon will be Vault Boy with spirals for eyes, identical to the Wild Wasteland icon.

Wild Wasteland Encounters
There are 16 random encounters associated with this trait.

Hovering Anomaly
Occurrence: As you close in on the area just north of Horowitz Farmstead [1.06], what looked like a Mercenary Camp from a distance turns into an extra-terrestrial landing, complete with spacecraft, and three Aliens! Defeat the Captain to take his Unique Alien Blaster.

What Is It, Boy?
Occurrence: Speak to Rex while you're out in the Mojave Wasteland. At some point, Rex will answer with an "aroo!" You then divine that Little Jimmy may have fallen into a well, the location of which is unlocked on your Pip-Boy's world map (northeast of New Vegas, right outside the wall).

A reference to the 1954 Lassie TV series, where "Timmy fell into [insert dangerous hole here]" was a staple of the show.

Granny's Gang
Occurrence: A fearsome gang of old ladies (named Malefic Maud, Irate Ida, and Rancorous Ruth) are harassing townspeople and eluding the NCR. You may be randomly assaulted by this gang, especially when exiting the Cerulean Robotics building [2C.04] in outer Freeside.

A reference to the "Hell's Grannies" sketch from Monty Python's Flying Circus.

We Named the Dog Indiana
Occurrence: A battered fridge appears in the Mojave Wasteland; it looks like it has survived a devastating blast, but the occupant has not; the skeletal remains of an adventurer are inside, along with his hat. No snakes, thankfully.

Reference to the infamous scene from Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull, were Indy avoids a nuclear blast by hiding in a lead-lined refrigerator.

Getting Too Close
Occurrence: During Side Quest: I Put a Spell on You, if you unwittingly divulge to Captain Curtis that you know a mole is using the Control Tower during the night, and then stake it out, he ambushes you there. Right before the ambush occurs, Curtis says "You're getting too close, shamus!"

R.O.U.S.
Occurrence: You may not think they exist, but in certain underground locations, such as the New Vegas Sewers, the Broc Flower Cave, or Vaults with peeling election posters, are rats one-and-a-half to two-times bigger than normal. These are Rodents of Unusual Size.

This is a reference to the movie "The Princess Bride" and the R.O.U.S.s that inhabit the Fire Swamp.

Owen and Beru
Located in Nipton there are two corpses. One looks to be a male human, while the other is female, lying next to each other. They look like they've been charred. Alas, there's no power converter to loot.

This is a reference to Star Wars IV, where Luke Skywalker's foster parent's are burnt and their charred corpses' can be seen.

Holy Hand Grenades
Occurrence: Somewhere, in a place where two spires once shot forth skyward, is a basement with a box of Holy Hand Grenades to utilize. There is a sign on the box that reads "Holy Hand Grenades. Pull pin, count to five [scratched out]... 3, and throw."

This is a reference to The Holy Hand Grenade of Antioch from Monty Python and the Holy Grail, and they also appeared in Fallout 2.

Romanes Eunt Domus
Occurrence: Scrawled on a concrete building in Cottonwood Cove, some upstart has scrawled the graffiti "Romanes Eunt Domus."

This is a reference to Monty Python's Life of Brian where Brian is writing graffiti on the palace wall and uses the same incorrect conjugation. 

Crusoe Sucks as an Investigator
Occurrence: During Side Quest: Beyond the Beef, a dead investigator is discovered inside an Ulta-Luxe hotel room. Further investigation of this crime-scene reveals his name to be "Crusoe," with a shock of red hair, sunglasses and a business suit.

The Future of Law Enforcement
Occurrence: While listening to the Securitrons interact with the visitors to The Strip, you swore you heard one state "your move, creep." Should you frame Heck Gunderson during Side Quest: Beyond the Beef, the arresting Securitron may have no preference over Heck's life; he's still going with him.

Stay Classy, Mr. New Vegas
Occurrence: Mr. New Vegas sometimes introduces his music with: "You know, I tried to measure my charisma on a Vit-o-matic Vigor Tester once. The machine burst into flames." The sweet-talking doesn't end there either. He has a special news sign-off, and some home truths about the Mojave.

The Big One
Occurrence: Close to the Devil's Throat is a large, unexploded bomb known as The Big One. Amid the crackle of your radiation counter, you can open up the bomb, and scavenge some Energy Weapon ammunition, if you can stand the Glowing One and Super Mutant attacks.

Johnny Five-Aces
Occurrence: During Free Quest: Barton the Fink, you're instructed to investigate an overlook south of Goodsprings. There's a dead Prospector up here named Johnny, wearing glasses, with a glass pitcher next to him, and five aces on the table. On the cliff are four balls in a line.

Game Over Man, Game Over!
Occurrence: If you're listening to the NCR Emergency Radio during the final battle for Hoover Dam, among the chatter about positioning snipers and reinforcing positions you may hear lines such as "They're coming out of the dam walls!" or "Game over, man!" [Reference to Bill Paxton from the movie "Aliens" ©1986].

Damn it, i'm an Ambassador not a Doctor!
Occurrence: During NCR Quest: Kings Gambit, when talking to ambassador Dennis Crocker about Pacer, if you select the option about Pacers jet addiction there is an option for "[wild wasteland] I was hoping you would know." if selected this sparks the response "Damn it, i'm an Ambassador not a Doctor! you'll have to find another way!"