With The Elder Scrolls 6 still lacking a release date, it's unlikely that the Fallout franchise will be receiving a sequel anytime soon, at least from within Bethesda. While there have been plenty of rumors that a spin-off Fallout game like Fallout: New Vegas could be in the works, there's been nothing concrete enough to raise my hopes just yet. The future of Fallout remains a mystery, but it offers plenty of room to speculate on what unique setting the series could explore moving forward.

From California, Nevada, Massachusetts, and more, the world of Fallout has already explored what the retro post-apocalypse can look like across different states. While it's unlikely that an official Fallout game would ever expand outside the United States, given the core themes of the series, fan-made mods like Fallout: London can offer a never-before-seen perspective on the genre. Even with the plethora of Fallout projects, Bethesda has only scratched the surface of the unique gameplay potential the franchise can offer.

10 A Return To Alaska After The Battle Of Anchorage

A Freezing Wasteland With Plenty Of Gear To Discover

Alaska is one of the few places where we got a rare pre-war perspective of the Fallout world during Fallout 3's Operation: Anchorage DLC expansion, laying the foundation for future entries. While the freezing wasteland might not sound like the most exciting setting for a Fallout game, Alaska still has plenty of potential for a Fallout ​​​​​​setting, especially by exploring the effects and survivors of the pre-war conflict.

Isolated communities have all the more reason to fight over even scarcer resources while defending against terrifying mutants.

It's easy to see the tensions and resource wars of the pre-war Fallout world carrying on past the apocalypse, as isolated communities have all the more reason to fight over even scarcer resources while defending against terrifying mutants. From ravenous polar bears to grossly mutated seals and penguins, there are plenty of options for unique monster encounters to come across while traveling the frozen wastes.

9 Louisiana Could Make Use Of Classic Monster Designs

Taking The Best Aspects Of Point Lookout To The Next Level

Games like Hunt Showdown have proven just how terrifying the bayous of Louisiana can truly be when infested with monsters, but you don't even have to look outside the franchise to see how effective they can be. While it's not the same environment, the Point Lookout DLC for Fallout 3 offers a glimpse into what a full Louisiana Fallout experience could look like, filled to the brim with unique irradiated monsters to face off against and environments to explore.

Unlike the smaller Point Lookout DLC, Louisiana can offer much more variety than just simple swamps to explore, with rogue factions or historical communities to interact with in between escaping the chase of mutated alligators or blood-sucking insects. While the irradiated wetlands are likely to be its most iconic environments, there are still plenty of classic Fallout experiences to be found exploring the flooded ruins of New Orleans.

8 The Mountains Of Colorado Hold Plenty Of Worthwhile Mysteries

Diverse Environments That Offer A Cozy Contrast To The Apocalypse

Acting as a mix between Fallout: New Vegas and Fallout 76, the abundance of mountains and landmarks tucked away in the forests is just waiting to be filled with unique vaults and apocalyptic bunkers. On top of its environmental storytelling potential, Colorado was planned to be incorporated into the lore of the Brotherhood of Steel as a forward operating base in their expansion.

The Brotherhood has maintained its popularity since Fallout 3 and continues to stand at the forefront of the series, so this could be a great way to expand their lore with a more aggressive splinter of the iconic faction. Whether you decide to side with them or one of the many other factions making the mountains of Colorado their home, you'll likely need all the help you can get to survive radiation storms and other environmental hazards the apocalyptic wilderness could unleash.

7 Returning To California With Next Generation Fidelity

Continuing The Overarching Story Of Fallout's Iconic Factions

Even though California might be somewhat overdone in the Fallout universe, there hasn't been a dedicated game set in the ever-relevant location since the original games. With the Fallout show expanding the NCR and exploring post-war California once more, it's easy to see a new game taking advantage of the setting's renewed interest.

Aside from tying the franchise back to its origins, a Californian Fallout game could see the end or even the beginning of the NCR, facing off against the enclave or other powerful emerging factions. With a technology hub filled with advanced robots and diverse biomes, I would love to see a return to the location, even if it's just a remake or the original isometric games.

6 Florida Would Make For An Interesting Comparison To GTA 6

Fallout Miami Already Showed How Iconic This Location Can Be

It's honestly a surprise that Bethesda hasn't explored the Fallout series through Florida, as the state feels like the perfect setting for a satirical critique on American ideals, especially given its history during the Cold War. With the next Grand Theft Auto game using this as a setting, the contrast between the two game worlds could also make the post-apocalyptic environments stand out even more in comparison.

Thankfully, there's still hope for a Fallout game set in Florida, even without Bethesda. Some dedicated of the modding community have created a Miami-themed Fallout 4 expansion, with the first episode available to on the Fallout Miami website. This project offers a plethora of new enemies, factions to side with, and exotic landscapes that aim to bring back the magical feeling of exploring the wasteland for the first time.

5 Crossing The Sea To An Apocalyptic Hawaii

New Storytelling Potential In A Gorgeous But Deadly Locale

While it's somewhat hard to imagine Hawaii facing the same level of devastation from the nuclear fallout as major cities, its island-based landscape could offer plenty of unique gameplay opportunities. Since the landscape would require fast traveling or boats to traverse, each successive island in Hawaii's archipelago could offer increasing challenges and deadlier mutations, with unruly factions vying for control of regional resources.

The most interesting aspect of Hawaii as a potential Fallout setting, aside from the ability to separate each island with a distinct apocalyptic identity, is how the radiation would have affected the natural fauna so prevalent in the tropical environment. Mutated plants that are just as deadly as they are gorgeous could be easily hidden among the greenery, just waiting to grab unsuspecting wanderers at a moment's notice.

4 Oregon Is Ripe With Mysteries & Cryptids

The Redwood Forests And Ghost Towns Are Just Waiting To Be Explored

While the first supernatural aspect that comes to mind for Oregon is the ever-iconic Bigfoot, there are countless tourist traps based on the paranormal that could easily be made into mad cults worshiping what they believe to be pre-war deities. These already wacky landmarks could be taken to further creative extremes in the wild world of Fallout, with countless opportunities for terrifying or comedic environmental storytelling to come across.

Running alongside the coastline, Oregon also offers many of the same dynamic environments as in previous titles, with opportunities to explore just as many shipwrecks and radioactive sealife as raider-filled logging camps. If the next Fallout game includes the same settlement mechanics as Fallout 4, you could even make your own themed towns, offering a safe haven between the dangerous and dense forest or mysterious ghost towns tucked away in the mountains.

3 Chicago Is Primed For A Turn As The Setting

Sticking To What Fallout Knows Best While Improving On The Formula

While Chicago might not be a drastic change after Fallout 4, it still has the potential to offer one of the franchise's best settings. The dense urban network of buildings is just waiting to be explored, and nuclear annihilation would make it a treacherous environment. Aside from the design of Chicago's cityscapes offering unique routes to traverse, there are also plenty of iconic landmarks to discover, like the Lincoln Park Zoo and several military bases that local factions could inhabit.

Being known as a hub for blues and jazz in the past, Chicago could also heavily contribute to Fallout's fantastic soundtrack of classic songs, while paying homage to the artists that helped form the identity of the franchise, not to mention its long history of mafia-like factions to encounter.

Chicago itself is already referenced multiple times in the Fallout franchise, most notably being the home of Nick Valentine from Fallout 4, and home to splinters of both the Brotherhood of Steel and the ever-mysterious Enclave. The Enclave itself could provide an excellent antagonist for the series to finally explore in greater depth, with factions banding together to survive whatever deadly plot they've come up with.

2 Exploring A Southern Perspective With Texas

Leaning Into The Wild West Elements Of Fallout

With its environments similar to Fallout New Vegas, Texas feels like a prime environment to explore in the Fallout universe. Offering a diverse number of biomes affected by nuclear radiation, Texas is bound to have countless conflicts as survivors fight over limited resources like food or oil in the expansive deserts.

Boasting the Wild West influence that's so prevalent in Fallout media, it's easy to see new factions based on classic Hollywood stereotypes or real-world cultural influences playing into its characters. Even with its great foundation for storytelling, a Texan Fallout could also pay homage to the fan-made project Mexico, which was canceled just last year.

1 Seeing A New Side Of The War From The Annexed Canada

Diving Into A Massively Underdeveloped Part Of Fallout Lore

Even though it's hard to imagine a Fallout game taking place outside of the recognizable post-apocalyptic United States, Canada is by far at the top of my Fallout 5 wishlist for a potential setting. While this would normally break the rules of Fallout, Canada was officially annexed just before the Great War, offering massive narrative potential for the series.

With Canada's production of hydro dams and often frigid environments, it's more than likely that there would be a repeat of the Hoover Dam war in a Canadian-themed Fallout.

Even if it's unlikely that a future Fallout game will be set entirely in Canada, that doesn't mean it can't have some explorable environments set in the urban ruins of Vancouver, or just across the border into Niagara Falls. While it's far from official confirmation, the Fallout show revealed that several vaults were made in Canada, giving it the perfect opportunity to be explored in a future sequel.

Source: Fallout: Miami/YouTube, Fallout Miami