The best way to watch the Fallout TV show is to play this building and management sim alongside it

GamesSimFallout ShelterThe best way to watch the Fallout TV show is to play this building and management sim alongside itWhen you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.Here’s how it works.

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(Image credit: Bethesda)

People queuing up to enter a vault

So far, I’ve enjoyed watching Lucy, Maximus, and The Ghoul explore the Wasteland and slowly uncover the truth behind this lawless land. The only problem is that I can’t help but feel a little left out.

We can’t control the characters in this TV show like we can in the games, so obviously, this loss of agency leaves something to be desired. And while the show doesuse three archetypal main charactersto try and make up for this lack of control, it’s just not the same as exploring the Wasteland for yourself. But I think I’ve found the solution. After the first episode, when I was debating downloading Fallout 4 again, I remembered that I already had the best Fallout game on my phone—it’s time to start a new vault in Fallout Shelter.

Fallout Shelter was released in 2015, but in a way, I feel like it’s always been with me. And while it may not be a fancy RPG like the rest of the Fallout games it provides the control that I crave. This free-to-play building and management simulation game has been something I have consistently dropped in and out of since I first downloaded it nine years ago. It follows the same life cycle that Minecraft does in that every so often, I remember it exists again, and then all I do for the span of two weeks is play this game.

(Image credit: Bethesda)

Vault dwellers working in a water treatment station

I began my new Fallout Shelter Vault 33 (original, I know) three days ago when I started watching the TV series. Since then, I have amassed 30 dwellers, unlocked 14/24 rooms, and am slowly collecting all the pets available, although so far I only have a Pallas cat and a German Pointer. You can also grab a Vault 33 jumpsuit for one of your dwellers to wear right now.

It’s no Battle for Boston Airport, but fighting your way through various derelict rooms and taking on raiders, radroaches, and mole rats isn’t easy. I’ve nearly lost my favourite exploring dweller, Philip Frosts, a few times now, and if it weren’t for my piles of stimpacks he’d probably already be dead. But it’s always worth it just for the bits of junk or new weapons you can bring back from adventures.

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Taking part in the life-or-death missions and customising my vault while watching the series has been a nice way to pass the time. I can enjoy watching Walton Goggins be the coolest ghoul in the Wasteland, and Lucy venturing forth into unknown locations without becoming agitated every time someone forgets to forage for loot or pick up a lockpick because now I can do it all for myself in Fallout Shelter, or get my dwellers to do it for me.

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