The Fallout Show Is Canon, Despite Fans’ Questions, Todd Howard Says

The Fallout TV show is canon, Bethesda boss Todd Howard has once again confirmed, assuaging fan speculation that the show retconned Fallout: New Vegas. Spoilers for the show follow.

Howard re-confirmed the show’s canonicity, after originally revealing this in 2023, and explainedHoward explained how it fits into the broader timeline in an interview with IGN. The Fallout show is currently the latest canonical entry in the franchise, taking place in 2296, nine years after Fallout 4 and 15 years after New Vegas.

Fan confusion arose from the destruction of Shady Sands. The town is one of the more significant recurring locations in the franchise. It is one of the first towns in the original game and is discussed as the capital of the New California Republic in New Vegas. In the show, characters Lucy and Maxmius find a crater where the city once was. An in-show timeline states that the fall of Shady Sands took place in 2277, just four years before New Vegas. The destruction of the NCR capital before the events of the game would seem to be an outright contradiction.

Howard said, “All I can say is we’re threading it tighter there, but the bombs fall just after the events of New Vegas.” Bethesda studio design director Emil Pagliarulo also confirmed on Twitter/X that New Vegas was still canonical. He wrote, “Of course it is. We’ve never suggested otherwise.” A sign from the show also states that Shady Sands is the first capital of the NCR, implying it was replaced or supplemented with other capital cities.

None of this outright explains the apparent contradiction, but it seems that the show rearranges or adds to previously established canon, rather than outright overwriting it. With the show teasing New Vegas itself at the end of the season, more clarification will likely come.