Ghoul (Fallout)

Last updated
Ghoul
Fallout race
FeralGhoul.png
Render of a typical Feral Ghoul used in Fallout 3 and Fallout: New Vegas
First appearance Fallout (1997)
Other name(s)"Zombie" (derogatory)

Ghouls are a fictional race of posthuman beings from the post-apocalyptic Fallout video game franchise. Within series lore, ghouls are originally humans, many of them survivors of a global nuclear holocaust, who have been severely mutated by the residual radiation, which greatly extends their lifespans but deforms their physical appearance into a zombie-like presentation. Many ghouls live alongside humans in settlements across the post-apocalyptic wasteland, while others mentally degenerate into a violently feral and antisocial state.

Contents

Considered to be among the most recognizable and iconic elements of the Fallout intellectual property (IP), ghouls have appeared in every media of the franchise, and have been the subject of numerous fan mods of Fallout series games. Critics have lauded their use as either antagonistic figures or as supporting non-player characters throughout the series, with some even calling for ghouls to play a more central role in future sequels or adaptations of the franchise. In the 2024 American post-apocalyptic dramatic television series Fallout , pre-war actor turned ghoulified bounty hunter Cooper Howard, known simply as The Ghoul, is portrayed by Walton Goggins.

Characteristics

The term "ghoul" in the Fallout series refers to human victims who were subject to prolonged exposure to radiation when they were caught outside during the Great War, a global conflict driven by the use of nuclear weapons which devastated much of the known world in the Fallout universe and provides the basis for the devastated world setting of the franchise. [1] Those who survive experience genetic mutations caused by elevated levels of radiation and develop widespread necrosis or rot on their physical bodies, though their lifespans are greatly extended which allows them to live for at least hundreds of years, if not effectively immortal. [1] [2] Besides their prolonged lifespans, ghouls are no longer harmed by low-level radiation and even receive physical benefits when exposed to it. [1]

Ghouls who live within the rebuilt civilizations of the known world are similar to normal humans in terms of intellect or personality, but often suffer from discrimination due to their disconcerting physical appearance. [1] On the other hand, Feral Ghouls have lost their mental faculties due to radiation damage and will attack other non-ghouls on sight. [3] [1] Feral Ghouls often roam together in packs and shamble around areas they are familiar with, such as a supermarket or a drive-in movie theatre, often with a form of muscle memory which vaguely drive them to relive aspects of the life they once knew, and trinkets looted from their corpses often provide hints or glimpses into their forgotten identities. [4] Some ghouls, colloquially known as "Glowing Ones", have managed to develop bioluminescence, rendering their bodies capable of illuminating dark areas with a glowing green light, though they also emit large amounts of radiation which can heal other ghouls and are dangerous to non-ghouls. [5] [6] A new type of ghoul introduced in Fallout 76 are the Scorched, mutants infected with a virulent plague spread by large mutated bats known as Scorchbeasts; like Feral Ghouls, they are largely hostile to player characters but differ in their capability of operating firearms. [7] [8]

In spite of their robust physiology and resilience towards radiation damage, ghouls are not as physically formidable as other types of mutated beings in the series, such as Deathclaws and Super Mutants. [9]

Development

Ghouls were originally conceived as "Bloodmen" during the development cycle of the original 1997 Fallout video game. [10] Media such as Forbidden Planet by Fred M. Wilcox and I Am Legend by Richard Matheson, along with real-life accounts of radiation poisoning, were cited as inspirations behind the concept of mutated creatures like ghouls and their exposed flesh for the early Fallout games developed by Interplay Entertainment. [2] Character model designs were physically sculpted before they were scanned into the game. [2] To produce the grotesque-looking skin textures of Feral Ghouls in Fallout 3, the first game in the series to be created by Bethesda Game Studios following their acquisition of the Fallout IP, artist Jonah Lobe reshaped photos of packaged chicken meat using modelling tools and filters to simulate a resemblance to human muscle tissue and create an "icky translucent" look for the relevant character models. [11] The visual design for ghoul characters in Fallout 4 is somewhat different, though they also have a pronounced lack of nose, lips, and skin; the texture of their faces was described by Kate Gray from Kotaku as resembling melted Peeps in appearance. [12]

Obsidian Entertainment, the developers of Fallout: New Vegas , initially considered allowing players the opportunity to play as a ghoul or a Super Mutant for their protagonist in New Vegas. The team faced technical limitations as New Vegas shared the same engine as Fallout 3, and the developers realized that the game engine's equipment system would not work properly for player characters that use non-human character models. [13] The officially licensed Fallout tabletop roleplaying game, developed by Modiphius and released in April 2021, allows players to assume the role of a ghoul character; Modiphius publishing lead Chris Birch said the inclusion of ghouls as a playable race among others was part of their design decision to make the game "authentically Fallout". [14] As Fallout 4 takes place more than 200 years after the Great War, the game's developers explored the concept behind the longevity of ghouls through a place called the Memory Den located in the settlement of Goodneighbor, where those who survived the nuclear fallout and have retained their sanity could access and revisit their pre-war memories. [15]

Appearances

Ghouls have appeared in every Fallout media, both as non-player characters in civilized settlements, and as hostile antagonists found throughout ruined or disused localities throughout the Fallout series. [11] Players could also recruit ghouls as traveling companions or allies in several main series and spinoff video games: noteworthy examples include Dillon from Fallout Tactics , Raul Tejada from Fallout: New Vegas, and John Hancock from Fallout 4. [16] [12] Hancock in particular is available as a romance option if the player character builds a positive affinity with him through eliciting his approval of their actions. [12] Before the Wastelanders update for Fallout 76, the Scorched was the only humanoid enemy faction that players would encounter in the game, replacing the series' standard human raiders. [7]

In the 2024 American post-apocalyptic drama television series Fallout , the first and oldest Ghoul is introduced as former Western actor and Vault-Tec ambassador Cooper Howard, portrayed by Walton Goggins. [17]

Cultural influence

Promotion and merchandise

Feral Ghouls are featured as part of a range of Fallout-themed Funko Pop figurines which were first released in 2015. [18]

Critical reception

Commentators have recognized ghouls, in particular the feral enemy variant, as an iconic and recognizable element of the Fallout media franchise. [18] [4] Tom Baines from PCGamesN remarked that Fallout 4 is a "surprisingly good zombie game" due to its effective use of common zombie mechanics and tropes through player interactions with Feral Ghouls and the game world's post-apocalyptic setting, even though they are not technically zombies in the traditional sense. [4] Lydia McInnes from The Daily Tar Heel concurred that Feral Ghouls have been used very effectively in Fallout 4 as a horror trope and that as enemies they "are scarier than they have any right to be". [19] In a retrospective analysis of the history of the Fallout series' horror elements, Luiz H. C. noted that while ghouls were an integral part of the original games' well-executed blend of body horror and scary atmosphere, the more graphically detailed ghoul character models in recent entries have been used admirably to instill a creepy atmosphere in his view. [2]

A cosplayer portraying John Hancock from Fallout 4 Wondercon 2016 - John Hancock Cosplay (25478327533).jpg
A cosplayer portraying John Hancock from Fallout 4

Individual ghoul characters have received particular acclaim for the way their physiology and psychology are presented within their respective story arcs. PCGamesN staff ranked Dillon and Raul Tejada among their list of best companion characters throughout the entire Fallout series: the former was noted for his useful gameplay utility as well as the moral dilemmas presented to the player due to his presence in their squad, whereas the latter was well received due to the exemplary performance of his voice actor Danny Trejo which they believed lent pathos to the character's tragic backstory. [16] Kate Gray considered John Hancock to be a compelling and interesting character, with praise for his nuanced characterization as an anti-hero, romantic dialogue, and lack of judgmental attitude or behavior towards the player's actions. [12] Samuel Horti praised the writing behind the New Vegas side quest "Come Fly With Me" and its use of an eccentric cast of ghoul characters, including the charismatic Glowing One Jason Bright, as the game's best and most memorable. [5]

The notion of ghouls as playable characters in the Fallout franchise has been of some interest. In his review of the Fallout tabletop RPG, Charlie Hall from Polygon praised the option of playing one to be "inviting". [20] Jordan Forward from PCGamesN is fascinated by the idea of playing a ghoul archetype for the next mainline installment of the Fallout video game series, and deliberated the associated mechanics and limitations surrounding such a character at length. [1]

Fandom

Ghoul characters are popular among Fallout fans as the focus for expressions of fan labor, such as cosplay activities, [21] playable mods, [1] [22] and other media. [9] [23]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Apocalyptic and post-apocalyptic fiction</span> Genre of fiction

Apocalyptic and post-apocalyptic fiction is a subgenre of science fiction in which the Earth's civilization is collapsing or has collapsed. The apocalypse event may be climatic, such as runaway climate change; astronomical, an impact event; destructive, nuclear holocaust or resource depletion; medical, a pandemic, whether natural or human-caused; end time, such as the Last Judgment, Second Coming or Ragnarök; or any other scenario in which the outcome is apocalyptic, such as a zombie apocalypse, cybernetic revolt, technological singularity, dysgenics or alien invasion.

<i>Fallout</i> (franchise) Video game seriеs

Fallout is a media franchise of post-apocalyptic role-playing video games created by Tim Cain and Leonard Boyarsky, at Interplay Entertainment. The series is set during the first half of the 3rd millennium, and its atompunk retrofuturistic setting and artwork are influenced by the post-war culture of the 1950s United States, with its combination of hope for the promises of technology and the lurking fear of nuclear annihilation. A forerunner of Fallout is Wasteland, a 1988 game developed by Interplay Productions. Fallout is regarded as a spiritual successor to Wasteland.

<i>Fallout 2</i> 1998 video game

Fallout 2: A Post Nuclear Role Playing Game is a 1998 role-playing video game developed by Black Isle Studios and published by Interplay Productions. It is a sequel to Fallout (1997), featuring similar graphics and game mechanics. The game's story takes place in 2241, 80 years after the events of Fallout and 164 years after the atomic war which reduced the vast majority of the world to a nuclear wasteland. The player assumes the role of The Chosen One, the grandchild of the first game's protagonist, and undertakes a quest to save their small village on the West Coast of the United States.

<i>Fallout Tactics: Brotherhood of Steel</i> 2001 video game

Fallout Tactics: Brotherhood of Steel, also called Fallout Tactics, is a turn-based real-time tactical role-playing game set in the post-apocalyptic Fallout universe. Developed by Micro Forté and published by 14 Degrees East, Fallout Tactics was released on 14 March 2001 for Microsoft Windows. It had sold over 300,000 units worldwide by 2008.

Dogmeat (<i>Fallout</i>) Non-player character dog in the Fallout series

Dogmeat is the name given to various dogs featured in the post-apocalyptic role-playing game series Fallout. Dogmeat was introduced as an optional companion to the player character in the original Fallout (1997), and made a cameo appearance in Fallout 2 (1998). Other dogs named Dogmeat are featured and serve similar roles in Fallout 3 (2008), Fallout 4 (2015), and in the American post-apocalyptic drama television series Fallout (2024).

<i>Van Buren</i> (video game) Video game

Van Buren was the codename of a canceled role-playing video game developed by Black Isle Studios. It was intended to be the third game in the mainline Fallout series. Set in the year 2253, the plot of Van Buren revolved around a prisoner who would explore the American Southwest while being chased by robotic prison guards. The main antagonist was a mad scientist named Victor Presper, who planned on using the prisoner as an inadvertent vector to spread a deadly virus. Gameplay would have included a mixture of real-time and turn-based combat. The player would explore the map with a team of non-playable character (NPC) companions. Each NPC would make their own independent decisions which would affect the story.

<i>Fallout</i> (video game) 1997 video game

Fallout: A Post Nuclear Role Playing Game is a 1997 role-playing video game developed and published by Interplay Productions, set in a mid-22nd century post-apocalyptic and retro-futuristic world, decades after a nuclear war between the United States and China. Fallout's protagonist, the Vault Dweller, inhabits an underground nuclear shelter. The player must scour the surrounding wasteland for a computer chip that can fix the Vault's failed water supply system. They interact with other survivors, some of whom give them quests, and engage in turn-based combat.

<i>Fallout 3</i> 2008 video game

Fallout 3 is a 2008 action role-playing game developed by Bethesda Game Studios and published by Bethesda Softworks. The third major installment in the Fallout series, it is the first game to be developed by Bethesda after acquiring the rights to the franchise from Interplay Entertainment. The game marks a major shift in the series by using 3D graphics and real-time combat, replacing the 2D isometric graphics and turn-based combat of previous installments. It was released worldwide in October 2008 for Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 3, and Xbox 360.

<i>Fallout: Brotherhood of Steel</i> 2004 video game

Fallout: Brotherhood of Steel is a 2004 action role-playing game developed and published by Interplay Entertainment. It was released for the PlayStation 2 and Xbox, and was the first entry in the Fallout series to be released for home video game consoles. Set in the year 2208, the player controls an initiate of the Brotherhood of Steel, a militant organization that attempts to bring order to a world that has been decimated by nuclear warfare. Critics often compared Fallout: Brotherhood of Steel to a hack and slash game, due to its emphasis on fast-paced combat and encounters with large groups of enemies. Fallout: Brotherhood of Steel does not feature an open world map like other Fallout games, and is instead linear in design.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Zombie apocalypse</span> Subgenre of apocalyptic fiction

Zombie apocalypse is a subgenre of apocalyptic and post-apocalyptic fiction in which society collapses due to overwhelming swarms of zombies. Typically only a few individuals or small bands of survivors are left living. In some versions, the reason the dead rise and attack humans is unknown, in others, a parasite or infection is the cause, framing events much like a plague. Some stories have every corpse rise, regardless of the cause of death, whereas others require exposure to the infection.

<i>Ghosts n Goblins</i> Video game series

Ghosts 'n Goblins, known in Japan as Makaimura, is a run-and-gun platform video game series created by Tokuro Fujiwara and developed by Capcom. The first entry in the series was Ghosts 'n Goblins, released in arcades on July 7, 1985. The series has subsequently been ported to and released on a variety of personal computers, game consoles and mobile platforms and spawned several sequels and spin-offs.

<i>Fallout: New Vegas</i> 2010 video game

Fallout: New Vegas is a 2010 action role-playing game developed by Obsidian Entertainment and published by Bethesda Softworks. It was released for Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 3, and Xbox 360. Set in the Mojave Desert 204 years after a devastating nuclear war, the player controls a courier who wakes up after being shot in the head by an unknown assailant. While tracking down their assailant, the courier becomes embroiled in a larger conflict between different governing factions vying for control of the region. Fallout: New Vegas features an open world map that the player can freely explore. Much of the gameplay revolves around combat, and there are a variety of weapons the player can use, such as melee weapons, conventional guns, and energy-based weapons. An optional difficulty level is Hardcore Mode, which adds survival mechanics such as a need to routinely eat, drink, and sleep.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Vault Boy</span> Mascot of the Fallout series

Vault Boy is the mascot of the Fallout media franchise. Created by staff at Interplay Entertainment, the original owners of the Fallout intellectual property, Vault Boy was introduced in 1997's Fallout as an advertising character representing Vault-Tec, a fictional megacorporation that built a series of specialized fallout shelters throughout the United States prior to the nuclear holocaust that sets up the world state of the Fallout universe. Within the video game series, Vault Boy serves as a representation of the player character's statistical information within user interface (UI) menus, and is a recurring element in Vault-Tec products found throughout the fictional Fallout universe. In the 2024 Fallout television series, Vault Boy is depicted as having been inspired by Vault-Tec advertisements featuring fictional actor Cooper Howard.

A ghoul is a mythical creature originating in pre-Islamic Arabia, often described as hideous human-like monster that dwelt in the desert or other secluded locations in order to lure travellers astray. It was not until Antoine Galland translated the Arabian Nights into French that the western idea of ghoul was introduced. Galland depicted the ghoul as a monstrous creature that dwelled in cemeteries, feasting upon corpses. This definition of the ghoul has persisted until modern times, with ghouls appearing in literature, television and film, as well video games.

Archaon, also known as Archaon the Everchosen, is a fictional character in the Warhammer franchise, leader of the forces of Chaos, and one of the primary antagonists in multiple settings and mediums owned by Games Workshop. He is considered one of the most powerful characters in the Warhammer multiverse, having brought about the fabled End Times, and is a major antagonist in Warhammer Fantasy Battle, Warhammer Age of Sigmar, Total War: Warhammer, and Total War: Warhammer II.

Modiphius Entertainment is an RPG and tabletop game publisher based in Fulham, London. Modiphius was founded in 2012 by husband-wife team Rita and Chris Birch to publish their first game, Achtung! Cthulhu. The company have since published a number of product lines based on independent licenses and established brands.

<i>Mutant Year Zero: Road to Eden</i> 2018 video game

Mutant Year Zero: Road to Eden is a turn-based tactical role-playing video game developed by Swedish studio The Bearded Ladies and published by Funcom. Based on the tabletop role-playing game Mutant Year Zero, the game was released for Windows, PlayStation 4 and Xbox One in December 2018. A Nintendo Switch version of the game was released on July 30, 2019.

<i>Fallout</i> (American TV series) 2024 American television series

Fallout is an American post-apocalyptic drama television series created by Graham Wagner and Geneva Robertson-Dworet for Amazon Prime Video. Based on the role-playing video game franchise of the same name created by Tim Cain and Leonard Boyarsky, the series stars Ella Purnell, Aaron Moten, Kyle MacLachlan, Moisés Arias, Xelia Mendes-Jones, and Walton Goggins.

Zombies in <i>Resident Evil</i> Video game antagonists

Zombies are recurring antagonists within the fictional universe of Japanese video game company Capcom's multimedia franchise Resident Evil, known in Japan as Biohazard. First appearing in the 1996 video game Resident Evil, they are mutated creatures with cannibalistic urges and severe epidermal necrosis, and their origins are explained from a scientific perspective. In contrast to zombies in other horror and fantasy genre works where they are traditionally presented as corporeal revenants with mythological and supernatural origins, zombies in the Resident Evil series are usually created through the use of biological weaponry, genetic manipulation and/or parasitic symbiosis. Subsequent sequels have featured other types of zombies as well as related creatures which are presented as more agile, vicious, and intelligent opponents.

<i>Fallout: London</i> 2024 video game modification

Fallout: London is a 2024 total conversion mod developed by Team FOLON for the 2015 Bethesda Softworks action role-playing game Fallout 4. The mod takes place in a post-apocalyptic rendition of London, and is notable for its departure from the series' typical United States setting. Reviewers praised the scope and detail of Fallout: London for a free project, praising its use of British locations, themes and cultural references in the Fallout setting, although critiquing the mod's bugs and performance issues upon release.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Forward, Jordan (May 22, 2021). "What if: Fallout 5 lets you play as a ghoul". PCGamesN. Retrieved May 28, 2021.
  2. 1 2 3 4 H.C., Luis (January 5, 2021). "Revisiting the Post-Nuclear Horrors of the 'Fallout' Franchise". Bloody Disgusting!. Archived from the original on January 17, 2021. Retrieved May 28, 2021.
  3. ↑ Devore, Jordan (March 14, 2009). "First footage of Fallout 3's 'The Pitt' is very orange". Destructoid. Retrieved May 28, 2021.[ permanent dead link ]
  4. 1 2 3 Baines, Tom (September 6, 2016). "Fallout 4 is a surprisingly good zombie game". PCGamesN. Retrieved May 28, 2021.
  5. 1 2 Horti, Samuel (September 6, 2016). "Come Fly With Me is the finest Fallout: New Vegas side-quest". PCGamesN. Retrieved May 28, 2021.
  6. ↑ "Pew! Pew! Preview!: Fallout 3 (Part II)". Destructoid. April 10, 2008. Archived from the original on April 6, 2020. Retrieved May 28, 2021.
  7. 1 2 Ridsdale, Jack (June 14, 2018). "Gun-toting ghouls replace raiders in Fallout 76". PCGamesN. Retrieved May 28, 2021.
  8. ↑ Yin-Poole, Wesley (November 20, 2018). "Fallout 76 review - a bizarre, boring, broken mess". Eurogamer. Retrieved May 28, 2021.
  9. 1 2 Good, Owen (November 22, 2015). "100 super mutants! 10,000 ghouls! Who's left standing in Fallout 4's biggest battle so far?". Polygon . Retrieved May 28, 2021.
  10. ↑ Muir, Allan (September 2011). "Fallout: New Vegas – Lonesome Road DLC Review". JustPushStart. Archived from the original on November 26, 2021. Retrieved May 28, 2021.
  11. 1 2 Jones, Ali (January 31, 2018). "Fallout 3's ghouls were made using photos of real chicken flesh". PCGamesN. Archived from the original on April 27, 2021. Retrieved May 28, 2021.
  12. 1 2 3 4 Gray, Kate (August 4, 2018). "The Fallout 4 Character Who Broke My Heart". Kotaku. Archived from the original on April 22, 2021. Retrieved May 28, 2021.
  13. ↑ Purchese, Robert (September 13, 2017). "Fallout: New Vegas was once Fallout: Sin City and had three playable races". Eurogamer. Archived from the original on March 13, 2020. Retrieved May 28, 2021.
  14. ↑ Callum Bains (May 14, 2021). "The Fallout tabletop RPG lets you play as a ghoul, super mutant or robot". Wargamer. Archived from the original on June 2, 2021. Retrieved May 28, 2021.
  15. ↑ Stalberg, Alison (December 19, 2020). "Fallout 4: 10 Amazing Pieces Of Concept Art". TheGamer. Archived from the original on June 3, 2023. Retrieved May 28, 2021.
  16. 1 2 "The best Fallout companions ever". PCGamesN. September 7, 2020. Archived from the original on May 10, 2021. Retrieved May 28, 2021.
  17. ↑ https://www.escapistmagazine.com/fallout-season-1-what-a-ghoul-is-explained [ bare URL ]
  18. 1 2 Saed, Sherif (July 21, 2015). "Fallout gets cute figurines featuring iconic characters". VG247. Archived from the original on June 2, 2021. Retrieved May 28, 2021.
  19. ↑ McInnes, Lydia (November 18, 2015). "Review: Fallout 4 ghouls are scarier than they have any right to be". Daily Tar Heel. Archived from the original on September 27, 2020. Retrieved May 28, 2021.
  20. ↑ Hall, Charlie (April 9, 2021). "The new Fallout tabletop RPG makes wasteland combat fun again". Polygon . Archived from the original on April 27, 2021. Retrieved May 28, 2021.
  21. ↑ Liana Ruppert (September 20, 2018). "This 'Fallout 4' Hancock Cosplay Is Ghoulishly Stunning". Comicbook.com. Archived from the original on April 22, 2021. Retrieved May 28, 2021.
  22. ↑ Boudreau, Ian (June 2, 2019). "Feral ghouls invade DC in this trailer for the Fallout 4 mod Capital Wasteland". PCGamesN. Archived from the original on April 27, 2021. Retrieved May 28, 2021.
  23. ↑ Tom Goldman (December 18, 2010). "Fallout: Nuka Break Trailer Persuades You to Love It". The Escapist . Archived from the original on November 9, 2013. Retrieved March 3, 2012.

Further reading

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.