Fallout Extreme

Fallout Extreme was a canceled squad-based first and third person tactical video game planned for Xbox and PlayStation 2. It was in development by 14° East and would have been published by Interplay Entertainment. On November 22, 2000 the proposal document was presented to Interplay Entertainment, but was rejected and Fallout Extreme never materialized. Its existence was unknown until the design document was leaked online on January 27, 2010.

Development
The game was in development for several months in 2000 but never had a concrete development team. All that is known is Brian Christian, the head of 14° East, was the lead producer, and Todd J. Camasta was the art director. It never proceeded past the conceptual phase, but would have used the Unreal Engine.

Gameplay
The game would have been able to be played in the first or third person perspective. The player would control a four person squad of specialized characters, and be able to switch the active member at any moment. The squad could consist of ordinary wastelanders, former Brotherhood of Steel members, super mutants, Native American shamans, and even Mongol warriors.

Single and multiplayer modes were planned for the game, including squad campaign, deathmatch, capture the flag, assault, squad deathmatch, squad capture the flag, and squad assault.

It was not going to be just a shooter, but rather "a game of action, tactics, and strategies where moving into position, planning and falling back is just as essential as having the biggest guns." The world map was divided into territories, each of which had different layouts, populated by various enemies and different geographical strategic significance. One's strategy would come into play based not only on the tactics employed for a given mission; as the dynamics of each mission would be different based on whether the player entered the territory from the west, south, north, etc. For example: to get to a particular territory one could choose either to charge through an enemy stronghold or to sneak around through adjacent territories in order to flank the enemy.

Missions would also be interconnected and your choices would have consequences. For example: if the player destroyed a bridge in the territory of one mission, the enemy forces might be weakened in the next one because of a lack of reinforcements. Conquering and holding territories with productive towns would be essential for establishing and maintaining supply lines. If there was a supply camp nearby, the player's access to various kinds of weapons, ammunition, etc. would be constant and reliable. The player could even close off a territory, forcing enemy troops to pass through another territory where an ambush could be set up.

After completing a given mission, the player would move their squad to outlying camp areas, where new characters for the roster squad (max. 16) could be recruited and different members could be assigned to the active four person squad for the next missions. Members of the roster not on the active squad could be sent as scouts to adjacent territories or deployed into newly conquered territories to hold the fort. If a character died, they would clear space in the roster, allowing the player to recruit new members.

At any time during a mission, the player could switch and control any of their four squad members, each of whom had different perks and specialize in different weapons. In the meantime, the other characters could be issued various standing orders. However, characters also had personality traits that would determine how they would react under different stresses. Each character would gain experience points, which would allow them to increase combat skills or unlock perks.

Story
It's unclear when exactly the game would have taken place, but "almost a century has passed" since the Great War according to the design document.

The Brotherhood of Steel, the "once silent organization," has been expanding and seizing more and more territory under their control. Their area of influence stretches as far as Alaska, where their new headquarters is now located. Their agenda "leaves little room for the survival of radiation or FEV outbreak victims." Local humans are either drafted into their ranks as cannon fodder or enslaved, and mutants are outright eradicated. They are whom the player would oppose during the first half of the game.

The player controls a squad of revolutionaries known as The Cause. Throughout the game, they would gain momentum, starting in Oregon, then north through Washington, Canada, and eventually reaching Alaska. Each reclaimed town would vow loyalty to The Cause.

However, after defeating them, the player would learn why the Brotherhood set out to Canada and Alaska in the first place. The Cause must now venture across the Bering Strait, through Russia, Mongolia and finally into China, in order to disarm the Doom's Day Missile that would obliterate what is left of the United States of America. The endgame would then take place within the Forbidden City, where the Chinese Emperor resides.

Brotherhood of Steel
The "once silent organization" has been expanding and seizing more and more territory under their control. Their area of influence stretches from Fort Williamette in Oregon into Alaska, where the Brotherhood's new headquarters is now located. The Brotherhood's agenda "leaves little room for the survival of radiation or FEV outbreak victims." Local humans are either drafted into the Brotherhood's ranks as cannon fodder or enslaved, and mutants are outright eradicated. It is the Brotherhood that the player would oppose during the first half of the game.

Eventually, their iron-fisted rule would result in the revolutionary force known as the Cause to rise up and overthrow them about a century after the Great War. However, it would be revealed that the post-War Chinese Empire still threatened the former United States, that the Brotherhood had sought to stop. The Cause would manage to cross the Bering Strait and end the threat of the Chinese Empire.

The Cause
Player characters are all members of the Cause, a group of revolutionaries, fighting first against the oppressive regime of the Brotherhood of Steel, and then Imperial China. This gang arose from the settlements around Mount Hood. After initial success in Washington and Oregon, destroying a major Brotherhood fort and gaining recruits from surrounding communities, they proceeded north. They pushed through Canada and into Alaska, wiping out Brotherhood positions and locations all the while.

Only after almost completely wiping out the organization do they learn the reason for the push north: Imperial China is constructing a Doom's Day Missile to completely destroy the remnants of the United States of America once and for all. The Brotherhood of Steel had been attempting to reach Beijing and destroy the missile before it can be completed.

The Cause adopts the Brotherhood's mission, and cross the Bering Strait into what remains of the Soviet Union. They pass through Mongolia, fighting a group of raiders known as the Huns, and finally reaching China. They defeat the Army of the Golden Tiger and New Imperial Guard, kill the Chinese Emperor, and destroy the missile.

Other factions

 * Issaquah Nation
 * Montauk
 * Inuit
 * Kodiak
 * Horde of Huns
 * Siberian Cossacks
 * Army of the Golden Tiger
 * New Imperial Guard

Characters
Initial squad members:
 * Abel - Human, squad leader
 * Caleb - Human, precision arms specialist
 * UberDan - Human, demolition specialist
 * Big Betty - Super mutant, heavy arms specialist

Behind the scenes
The game's design document is presently at the Brian Sutton-Smith Library and Archives of Play at The Strong Museum in Rochester, New York, limited to on site researchers only.