[WIP] A Better World - Upcoming Huge New World and Quest Mod

[ElijahHouck]

Hi everyone, today I’d like to announce a project I’ve been working on for a long time: a new world modification for Fallout 4 called A Better World. You can find the announce trailer here:

Nine years ago, on October 27, 2011, I released Alton, IL, a post-nuclear recreation of my hometown in Fallout 3. You can find it here. I created the world, quests, and characters of Alton as a solo project, and I’ve always wanted to do something of that scale on my own again. So here we are!

A Better World is a story-driven open-world modification, featuring an extensive main quest, plenty of side quests, and a huge new world full of unique activities and challenges. I’m not going to talk much about the story today, but as a brief teaser: A Better World tells the story of two women on the run from the Institute: Jo and Liz, and their mission to create a better, safer world.

To support this story, A Better World features a dual setting. The first is a derelict, underground pre-war shopping mall: Vault-Tec Plaza. Vault-Tec Plaza opened in 2075 to introduce the citizens of New England to their flagship Vaults, a testament to how the American Way could continue underground. The shipping, operations, and customer service staff were almost entirely automated, thanks to a partnership between Vault-Tec and RobCo. Rumor has it that this was where Jo and Liz were last seen before they relocated to Abbot County, and this is where your search for them begins.

Vault-Tec Plaza announce screenshots:

The second is an entirely new worldspace to explore, the wild and relatively tranquil Abbot County. From the dense coniferous forests of the Nashoba Range, to windy lakeside birch forests, and through the quiet creeks and maple groves in the Nashoba Valley, Abbot County is home to an incredibly varied wilderness. Standing out amongst this wilderness is the town of Bethel, situated in the center of Lake Callahan, the result of years of land reclamation by the denizens of Abbot County.

Abbot County announce screenshots:

A Better World doesn’t yet have a release date, but when I do, I’ll certainly let everyone know.

The trailer features an instrumental cut of the song Midnight by the incredibly talented Radical Face (whose music has largely inspired this project) and brings you on a journey through the world of Abbot County and the sprawling Vault-Tec Plaza. The screenshots are some of my favorite stills from the trailer.

Thanks for stopping by, I’m so excited to finally have everyone on this journey with me.

Elijah

[denzel4444]

My dude if you can do this as a solo project, what the hell are Bethesda doing? :D But seriously this looks amazing! I will for sure be exploring these locals. Do you have a release date?

 

Kudos and Well done ! :yes:

[pepperman35]

Very nice! Looking forward to seeing it get published.

[Numbnumb]

Wow! You should get a tremendous following! Let me know when you release it!!!

[ElijahHouck]

Thanks for the kind words everyone!

 

Here's a super WIP screenshot of what I'm working on today. The idea is that a cascading river has carved its way through a pre-war roundabout and the street beyond. The buildings in the screenshot are temporary stand-ins until I have time to create the final architecture.

 

[NohrScum]

i actually just found out about this project and i'm so excited and curious! man my eyes went wide when i saw that you were the same person who created alton for fallout 3. is abbot county a real place somewhere, or based off a real place somewhere?

[ElijahHouck]

i actually just found out about this project and i'm so excited and curious! man my eyes went wide when i saw that you were the same person who created alton for fallout 3. is abbot county a real place somewhere, or based off a real place somewhere?

 

Thanks NohrScum! Abbot County is a fictional location, but the landscapes are largely inspired by some of my favorite places throughout the world. For instance, the creek at 1:14 is inspired by a set of waterfalls and creeks that I grew up exploring near Alton.

 

Long story short, I spent so many years recreating a real-life location with Alton that it's a nice break to make something original! There will of course be story explanations for why this location exists, but I'm saving the story details for a bit later on.

[ElijahHouck]

 

Hi everyone! A year ago, we announced a big, story-driven new world modification for Fallout 4: A Tale of Jo, Liz, and a Better World. Today, we’d like to share more details and our latest progress in our exciting new development update video.

 

A Better World tells the story of two women on the run from the Institute: Jo and Liz, and their mission to create a better, safer world. After three years of relative safety, their past has caught up with them: they find themselves hunted by retention synths and a rogue, ruthless courser, with everything they’ve worked to build at stake. To support this story, A Better World features a dual setting split between the vast wilderness of Abbot County and the derelict ruins of an underground pre-war shopping center called Vault-Tec Plaza.

 

In other news – we’re also looking to expand our small, highly-experienced team! We are currently looking to fill three roles: a Prop Artist, a Character Artist, and a Quest Designer.

 

Join our Discord to keep up with updates, or apply for a position on our team: https://discord.gg/hsRaBTNF6R

 

Prop Artist

For the prop artist role, we’re looking for someone who can create new assets for us to clutter the world with. This could be things such as mason jars, fences, food objects, and other props you would find lying around the wilds of Abbot County and the buried ruins beneath.

 

You would be proficient in the high to low poly workflow, texturing, working with tiling materials, optimization and how to get your work into the Creation Kit.

 

Character Artist

The character artist role will be key in defining the look of the characters that inhabit the settlements, homesteads, and wilderness of Abbot County. This includes creating new clothes and armor sets, as well as a few custom animals.

 

You will need to know the high to low poly workflow, optimization, rigging, texturing and be comfortable getting your work into the Creation Kit.

 

Quest Designer

For the quest designer role, we are looking for someone with an eye for fun and challenge within the framework of Fallout 4’s gameplay systems.

 

You would be comfortable designing your quest’s gameplay spaces in both the interior and exterior worlds, be familiar with working in Papyrus to script your quest’s behavior from start to finish, as well as handle other technical tasks such as setting up navmesh for your quest AI to utilize.

[pepperman35]

Look good, glad to see so much progress being made.

[TheManrique]

Absolutely gorgeous. If I had some quest-making experience, I'd join your team and work on this piece of art.