The Fallout games are known for being weird and for having things that stand out due to the radiation effects, however, it did not get as weird as it could have. Instead, there was one big cut in the first game that led to the franchise being much different than it could have been. This cut content is something that hasn’t been seen in many other places in the franchise, and it makes for an interesting part of Fallout history.

The history of Fallout is strange enough as it is, but a different bit of content could have made it even weirder. The world is already full of Ghouls, Mole Rats, and Super Mutants that players must find and face. However, despite the strangeness of the world, it remains fairly serious, and the tone can become quite dark at times. One change alone could have made that tone very different.

S’Lanter Were A Wild Fallout Concept That Got Cut

One Group Of Creatures With A Cartoon-Like Origin

S’Lanter were creatures that were originally supposed to be in the first Fallout game. These creatures were mutated raccoons, but they were also bipedal and intelligent enough to speak​​​​​​, much like Rocket Raccoon in the Marvel Universe. In game, these creatures were supposed to be descended from pairs of experiments that escaped and were never found.

This pair in turn ran off and started Burrows where they became extremely intelligent and skilled hunters. The games have left a couple of nods to them in some of the spinoffs, but otherwise, this intended group of creatures was cut entirely from the franchise. To learn more about the S’Lanter lore, YouTuber Synonymous has a great breakdown of the subject.

Why they were cut is somewhat subjective, as different people have given answers that don’t line up. Some have said it was due to a lack of resources, others say they just didn’t fit into the world they were building. Whichever it was, the S’Lanter were left on the cutting board and never made it back into the games. However, it is safe to say that having a group of intelligent, talking raccoons would have changed the franchise significantly.

Talking Creatures Have A Complicated Fallout History

Other Attempts At Bringing Talking Creatures To The Series Has Not Ended Well

Having these talking, fairly silly creatures in the franchise from the beginning would have changed the tone of the games and set a precedent for the games that followed. Since the S’Lanter were never introduced, the speaking Deathclaws in Fallout 2 didn’t land quite as well as they might have. Both creatures were supposedly from FEV experiments, so that could have been a tie between them and the two games.

There was also a sentient plant named Seymour in Fallout 2, which didn’t have a large part to play and was likely a nod to Little Shop Of Horrors. Likewise, the same professor that has Seymour has a Radscorpion that will attempt to beat the player in chess. The Professor’s testing seems to be like many of the other experiments, so these came from a similar concept.

Also in Fallout 2 were Brain and Keeng Ra’at, two intelligent mole rats who had their own cult in a ghoul town. The player can interact with them and even complete a quest for them, but neither shows up ever again. All of these are somewhat silly, but nothing like the cartoonish idea of a sentient raccoon. However, the fact that none of them have appeared since seems to suggest that they did not go over well, but that might have been different if the idea was introduced in the first game.

The Fallout Franchise Could Have Looked Completely Different

A Franchise That Took Itself Less Seriously – Or More

Instead of the much more serious and darker version of the world that players got, with the addition of the S’Lanter, the whole series could have had a lighter, more sarcastic tone from the beginning. The S’Lanter could have acted more as comic relief, or had a bigger presence. It also could have changed how the radiation effects worked, if instead, it allowed more animals and creatures to evolve into intelligent beings.

On the other hand, despite the cartoonish appearance of the S’Lanter, the story could have taken it in an even darker tone. They could have taken themselves very seriously, gathering a following of creatures that had been experimented on and rising up against the humans that had done that to them. The combination of a funny, intelligent creature versus a dark storyline has been used in many different pieces of fiction to great effect, which Fallout could have done as well.

This could have even set up the strange experiments in Fallout 2 so that they wouldn’t feel as out of nowhere. In fact, most of them are less ridiculous than a bipedal raccoon, so players would have just accepted them for what they were as opposed to the other way around. Seymour and Brain would have both been more than just nods to other franchises, as they would have had a stronger place in the world due to the precedence. It might have meant they stuck around, and perhaps Brain’s cult could have played a much bigger role.

The silliness of what they were would have felt less out of place with a precedent. Or, the entire series could have taken a lighter tone, having more fun moments, much weirder creatures, and light humor to accent the world. Players could have purposely carried around cheese puffs to entice creatures like Brain, and would not be surprised when they encountered a strange, talking creature. The point is, there are multiple different routes the S’Lanter could have taken the franchise in, but would it have made that much of a difference?

The inclusion of similar creatures in Fallout 2 seems to suggest it might have. The idea seems to be abandoned after that point, but if there had been an expectation before that, more and more of them might have appeared and had similar types of designs. Who knows how many animals would have eventually made it into the game in an intelligent format, but it would have been more than just a pop culture reference. It is just speculation, but the Fallout franchise could have had a very different tone and setting if the S’Lanter had stuck around.