Bethesda Studios’ open-world games have long been renowned for bursting at the seams with dense lore and narratological detail, and Fallout 4 is no exception. Every pile of wreckage has a story, every corpse a killer, and every room feels hauntingly lived in.
One such harrowing story can be found early in the game at the Concord Speakeasy. Though no quests, cutscenes, or firefights occur here, a mysterious and disturbing scenario is displayed by the remnants of this abandoned pub. I myself don’t know what to make of what I witnessed here, but it has haunted my thoughts ever since.
The Concord Speakeasy
Upon walking into the speakeasy, you’ll see a group of skeletons sitting around a coffee table, as if chatting over a pint. One of them even has a half-smoked cigar lodged in his jaw. This seems odd – as if they had been set in place.
The flat upstairs explains what’s happened – and it will chill you right to the bone. In the wash room, you’ll find a group of mannequins arranged around a tub, each wielding a machete (and one with a plunger). In the tub: a headless corpse. Turn around to the master bedroom, and you’ll see another mannequin (female) in the bed. This one is caressed by another corpse, with X-Cells surrounding them both.
Well, hello there! Lovely day.
It would appear that this was the man arranging the mannequins, and possibly the bodies, in this eerie fashion. But why? Perhaps the other bodies were of his family and friends, and driven mad from loneliness, he arranged the carcasses (real and false) in ways which comforted him in his last moments. Maybe the corpses are of his last victims, and the mannequins a scapegoat for him to blame in his insanity. Whatever the story behind this upsetting scene, it shows just how much thought Bethesda puts into each and every crevice of their games.
What do you think? Is the man with the mannequin a lone survivor or a mad killer? Have you found the answers to these questions? What other untold tales have you found in the Wasteland? Post your stories and thoughts in the comments below!
