Summary
One way to get inspiration for side stories in a video game is to look at existing literature and create one’s unique interpretation of it. For theFalloutfranchise, the work of authors like H.P. Lovecraft, Walter M. Miller Jr., and Richard Matheson is often referenced. The protagonist and Dogmeat inFallout 4were likely based on the duo from Matheson’sI Am Legend, while theBrotherhood of Steelis based on the organization that was formed in honor of the main character inA Canticle for Leibowitzby Miller. However, one of the more intriguing literary references in the game comes in the form of a side quest that plays out a lot like a horror game because it’s inspired by the works of none other than H.P. Lovecraft.
The Lovecraft homage started inFallout 3with a mining corporation that references one of the author’s most popular works. The company also appears inFallout 4, complete with a side mission that explains its origins further. As the player goes deeper into the mystery of this corporation, they’ll slowly uncover the frightening mystery of what it planned to excavate before the war broke out.
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The Horrors of Fallout 4’s Dunwich Borers
Fallout 4players can come across aquarry named Dunwich Borerswhen they explore westward from the Kingsport lighthouse. Keen readers of Lovecraft will notice that the name is a reference to the author’s novella “The Dunwich Horror”. Some may hear a gunshot and the dead body of a man named Hugo in a small living space in the area. He left behind a holotape describing his final thoughts before his death. He seems to be a former worker of the mine and is contemplating going back in because someone is calling him to do so. Hugo further stated that the people guarding the area wouldn’t let him in any way. As such, his only resolve was to take his own life.
Upon further inspection of the mine, one will find that the quarry is now overrun with raiders who are using it to harvest Iron deposits. The player can piece together the history of the quarry before the war using the terminals, as well. They’ll find that it was riddled with safety issues that were raised by employees and deferred by management. One can also find an eerie terminal message from one of the raider leaders stating that they’re safe in the light. This is because the area is overrun withferal ghoulswho are better fought in well-lit spaces.
Explaining the Lovecraftian Parallels of Fallout 4’s Dunwich Borers
A holotape of one of the quarry’s project managers in Station 4 also reveals that the executives are using the excavation for something more sinister than mining. A brief flashback shows a man brandishing a knife in front of an audience of kneeling people bound in handcuffs, which looks straight out of a scene fromThe Dunwich Horror’s 1970 movie adaptation. As the player snaps back to reality, they’ll find that those people have turned into feral ghouls. TheLovecraftian horrorscontinue after the player defeats the ghouls. They’ll see that the podium has turned into a puddle, where they’ll find what looks to be an exposed portion of a giant face. This is clearly what Dunwich was trying to collect all this time, as evidenced by the crane it placed above the puddle.
The statue might be a representation of an entity known as Ug-Qualoth, who had an obelisk dedicated to them in theDunwich building inFallout 3. This eldritch being is also the god worshiped by the swamp folk in the Point Lookout DLC. Ug-Qualoth seems to be based onThe Dunwich Horrors’ Yog-Soloth, a cosmic entity that often brings disaster to the mortals who dare to seek its audience. It seems that the executives in the Dunwich Borers company suffered the same tragic fate for their hubris.
Fallout 4is available now on PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.
