Poll: Should any of the endings of Fallout: New Vegas be considered canon? (Spoilers obviously)

[scorptatious]

I've been playing some Fallout recently, and this has been on my mind for a while. For those who don't know, Fallout New Vegas has several different kinds of endings. Each end up deciding the fate of New Vegas and the Mojave Wasteland forever.

I remember reading some threads on other websites debating on which one would be considered canon. And personally, I'm kinda torn on the issue.

One one hand, the Fallout games up to know have always made certain events and decisions that can happen based on a player's decision canon in the sequels. For example: in Fallout 1, you had the optional sidequest of rescuing Tandi of Shady Sands from some Raiders. If you do, you get an ending slide that talks about how she and her dad founded the NCR. Which obviously is a big part in both 2 and New Vegas.

On the other hand, I kinda feel that with the amount of different quest lines you could do for the factions and the different endings that result from them, I feel it would be kind of a waste to make one canon. I personally wouldn't mind if the next Fallout was set somewhere else, and the fate of New Vegas was left ambiguous. Plus, even with all the added little details you can get during the ending slides in previous Fallout games, there is overall, only one major ending in each of them. (No, I don't count the Master Ending in 1)

So what do you guys think? Do you believe any of the endings in New Vegas should be considered canon for future games? If so, which one and why? Or should they be left ambiguous?

 

[Eclectic Dreck]

The obvious canonical choice is the NCR as there is already much invested in that faction. By contrast, the Legion has been in precisely one game. Giving the new guys the victory, especially when I'd wager most people went with the "Anyone but the Legion" choice, would be silly.

 

[Gethsemani_v1legacy]

I reckon that either the NCR or independent ending should be considered canon. The House ending flies in the face of previous themes in the series, by being an ending where all the bad shit from before the war turns out to be the good stuff whereas both Fallout and Fallout 2 put emphasis on the need for mankind to move on.

 

[Ed130 The Vanguard]

Obsidian and Interplay Dev Chris Avellone really didn't like the way the NCR was returning civilisation to the wastes so that one is doubtful.

The Legion would ultimately fall after Caeser's death and having them fail to take New Vegas and collapsing would make a more interesting backstory.

House's long term plan as well as his roots in the past (moving forward has been a staple theme for Fallout) discount him.

Independent adds a new faction, stops the NCR from expanding its presence and is the most common ending for players.

 

[Mangod]

Just throwing it out there that Chris Avellone has gone on record (ok, Twitter) that if he's involved in Fallout 4, or whatever they name it, then he's nuking the NCR back to the stone ages.

https://twitter.com/ChrisAvellone/status/117371054938263552

Edit: Also, stupid ninja. >.<

 

[Klaflefalumpf]

One of them will be, but like previous Fallout titles we'll just have to wait for the sequel to find out.

 

[Doom972]

That would depend on the plot in future Fallout games. If Bethesda/Obsidian decide to write a plot that involves one of the NV endings in some way, then they should choose the one that fits that plot. Otherwise, might as well keep it ambiguous.

 

[BrotherRool]

This is easy for me to say because I've never been affected by something becoming canon. I don't see why that really has any affect on my playthrough or what I did. I played the game with my mind and my character, canon endings are like being shown an alternative universe and someones else mind and character to explore.


But for Fallout it's simple. They can't make it ambiguous without actually spoiling your choices in F:NV. If they pick one, then its 'This is what would have happened if the wasteland had turned out like this'. If they make it ambiguous then what they're saying is 'no matter what happened, it didn't make a big difference to the world'. Letting the Legion or the NCR command the strip feels important. But if the answer is that 20, 50 years later the world is so unchanged you can't tell which one of those incredibly different things happened, then whats the point?


The only way they could avoid making something canon without insulting the things you did in NV would be if they went for a completely out of nowhere answer. Actually the courier teemed up with the Apocalypse guys and ruled the strip with them. But then why couldn't you be them?


I think the most interesting thing they could do is make the Yes Man ending canon, because then the next game would be discovering the nature of the courier character and the impact they had on the world. He has an opportunity to show us something new about New Vegas.

House is only interesting if he's not in power once it comes about, because we already know him and his motivations, having him rule Vegas would be boring. In a similar way the NCR are too nice and the Legion too destructive.

Although saying that, I quite like the Legion because it's unexpected and it really shakes up the world. Having the Legion win Vegas instantly creates a very powerful and scary threat for Fallout 4

 

[Genocidicles]

I would hope the Legion wins. That way we can get a game set in NCR territory as they're being invaded.

 

[Angelous Wang]

I would say House, simply because House winning doesn't effect another game, unless that game is set in Vegas again. As things just stay they way they are, minus the legion and reduced NCR presence.

Independence is my second choice as it's not that different from House, except Vegas would likely fall apart after the Courier died/got old/left. And I'd imagine they would want to keep Vegas more or less intact.

If the NCR won Vegas they would have become more powerful (taking all houses tech and everything), which would effect the NCR across all future games. And I think the goal of the Dev's of Fallout is to keep the status qoe so they can keep Fallout as is, so they wouldn't actually let the NCR succeed in fixing the world.

If the Legion won the NCR would have been hugely crippled and the large new chaotic faction (with house tech) would start taking over more of the world as they are not one for stagnation. This would probably cause a big effect in any future Fallout games. And onece again I don't think the goal of the Dev's is to let one faction ever really win.

 

[Headdrivehardscrew]

Nah, just move on please.

I hate the Legion, I despise the NCR, I killed House once I figured out that I could do that. Just me and the Yes Man, we had some fun times.

I also killed the Powder Gangers and pretty much anyone else on sight. I have very little tolerance when it comes to mafia types, cannibals and all the other assorted scum they threw at me in New Vegas. I missed the Brotherhood of Steel and I would really have liked to get some Enclave action. There were some scenes and vistas and tasks and brief moments of fun interaction that entertained me well, but it came as a bit of a disappointment that Fallout 3 proper was just so much more memorable and less bullshitty, despite all the obvious issues it had. At least my gripes with characters I encountered are easily summed up, and do not consist of a list of just about every faction and every single soul I met.

 

[Ryan Hughes]

In short, no. Because arguing over what you erroneously refer to as 'canon' is just about the stupidest thing you can do. Particularly in the interactive medium of gaming.

Kinda mean of you to call everybody in the thread stupid for some harmless speculation.

I am not calling everyone stupid. I am calling the action stupid. Even smart people do stupid things, in fact, they do them far more often then they would like to admit.

Without getting into the obvious issue of the absurdity of establishing fact within fictional space, let's focus on how this effects interactivity. Basically, the ending you got when playing through the game is your ending. If you didn't like it, then go ahead and play again. All the endings are equally valid, and to assume any less would undermine the interactive nature of gaming.

 

[Ryan Hughes]

I am not calling everyone stupid. I am calling the action stupid. Even smart people do stupid things, in fact, they do them far more often then they would like to admit.

The adjective has no place here. It's needlessly caustic. Particularly since this is a harmless speculative discussion about, as you pointed out, fiction.

You might not be saying 'you all are stupid,' but you are saying 'you all are doing something stupid' and that's just as belligerent and mean-spirited for no reason at all.

'Needlessly caustic', you say? Well, I would retort that even discussing or arguing what most people think of as 'canon' is far more damaging and caustic than anything I could say. As I said, it undermines the nature of the interactive game. Also, it undermines the concept of fiction, which every thinking person is free to interpret as they see fit.

The reason the game has multiple endings is simply because the developers wanted people to have unique experiences. By asserting that one is more valid than the other, you actually insult the creators of the game far more than I could ever insult you. And the worst part is, you didn't even know you were doing it. So, call me belligerent, but all you are doing is projecting.

 

[Ryan Hughes]

Also, it undermines the concept of fiction, which every thinking person is free to interpret as they see fit.

We're free to interpret fiction as we see fit but we're not allowed to talk about our interpretations with one another? What?

Seriously, what the hell is your problem, dude? You're acting like a huge jerk for no reason. If you don't like the discussion, fine. Go somewhere else. There are plenty of other things to talk about on the forums.

That is not what you are doing. You are not discussing interpretation. Properly used, the word 'canon' refers to real-world, factual events. Thus, you are trying to establish fact, not discuss opinion. I do not think it necessary to expound further on how absurd that is.

 

[SuperfastJellyfish]

I really felt like the game geared towards House winning, it just drags you along and if you follow it all you end up House. Games with multiple endings typically consider that ending the canon since most people would have experienced it.

 

[Roxas1359]

Seeing as how the NCR surviving in one of the Fallout 2 endings turned out to be canonical, I wouldn't be surprised if the NCR ending for New Vegas will be in fact the ending that Bethesda/Obsidian choose. If you actually go for every single person getting a happy ending (I mean companion and quest wise), the NCR ending actually can give everyone a happy ending if you do it just right. The second best ending for everyone is the Yes Man ending as well.