If you haven’t been following along with the video game trends the last few years, the Mountain State’s name, image, and likeness have been spreading across the globe thanks to Bethesda Softworks’ Fallout 76.
According to Wikipedia, Fallout 76 is a narrative prequel to previous Fallout games. It is set in an alternate history and takes place in 2102, twenty-five years after a nuclear war that devastated the Earth. The player character is a resident of Vault 76, a fallout shelter that was built in West Virginia to house America’s best and brightest minds. The player character exits the Vault on “Reclamation Day” as part of a plan to re-colonize the Wasteland. Numerous West Virginia landmarks are present in their post-apocalyptic state.
A group of German young people recently came to West Virginia to see the actual sites Fallout 76 is based on.
“My friends and I traveled to West Virginia two weeks ago to see the locations from the [Fallout 76] game in real life,” Philipp Billen said. “We had the fun of our lives. You guys have a lot of cool places to explore and you’re super friendly people! Many we spoke to said they hadn’t seen most of the places we looked at, even though they’ve lived in West Virginia all their lives. You should definitely change that. You have a wonderful country, and you are wonderful people! I hope, we will come back one day. Greetings from Germany”
Mr. Billen attached a copy of their trip iternerary and we at DowntownHuntington.net encourage all West Virginians to see as many as they can for themselves. Below is their itinerary and photos from the trip.
Fallout 76 – West Virginia Trip Itinerary
Harpers Ferry, Eastern Panhandle. Photo courtesy Philipp Billen.
Berkeley Castle, Berkeley Springs. Photo courtesy Philipp Billen.
Woodburn Hall at West Virginia University in Morgantown. Photo courtesy Philipp Billen.
Prabupada’s Palace of Gold, Moundsville. Photo courtesy Philipp Billen.
Former West Virginia State Penitentiary, Moundsville. Photo courtesy Philipp Billen.
Prickett’s Fort State Park, Fairmont. Photo courtesy Philipp Billen.
Grafton. Photo courtesy Philipp Billen.
Tygart Dam, Grafton. Photo courtesy Philipp Billen.
Clarksburg Splash Zone. Photo courtesy Philipp Billen.
Seneca Rocks. Photo courtesy Philipp Billen.
Trans-Allegheny Lunatic Asylum. Photo courtesy Philipp Billen.
Braxton County Monster, Sutton. Photo courtesy Philipp Billen.
Helvetia. Photo courtesy Philipp Billen.
Summerville Lake Lighthouse. Photo courtesy Philipp Billen.
New River Gorge Bridge. Photo courtesy Philipp Billen.
Lewisburg. Photo courtesy Philipp Billen.
Lost World Caverns. Photo courtesy Philipp Billen.
Green Bank Observatory. Photo courtesy Philipp Billen.
The Greenbrier. Photo courtesy Philipp Billen.
Beckley Exhibition Coal Mine. Photo courtesy Philipp Billen.
West Virginia State Capitol. Photo courtesy Philipp Billen.
Mothman, Point Pleasant. Photo courtesy Philipp Billen.
Camden Park, Huntington. Photo courtesy Philipp Billen.
Griffith Pumpkin House, Kenova. Photo courtesy Philipp Billen.
How many of these locations have you been to? How many do you plan to visit??
