The auspicious beginning of the Fallout game series was all the way back in 1997. Since then the game has undergone a number of changes, from isometric to first person view, developer Bethesda taking over production and a huge and continually growing fanbase.

Detailing the six year journey of making the new game, Dark Horse has released the 370+ page The Art of Fallout 4. Detailing everything from conception and pencil sketches to full 3D models of in-game assets, this monolithic volume hopes to shed light on every inch of the visual creative process behind the game and its world. One question though: is it good?

The Art of Fallout 4 (Dark Horse Comics)

Fallout 4 is an impressive game and The Art of Fallout 4 evokes that same sense of awe. Broken down into chapters covering conception, characters, enemies and environments, the sheer amount of art and its quality is simply breathtaking. Particularly impressive are the gorgeous water colors throughout. The retrofuturistic 1950’s look gives the entire world of Fallout its visual identity and in later chapters you will get pages upon pages of ads, magazine covers and in-game comics embodying these ideals and style. Most impressive of all is that these features are available to enjoy in fine detail and in a way you wouldn’t be able to enjoy them in the game.

Fans of the game will certainly enjoy the brief chapter headers and various captions explaining everything from weather lighting to clothing choices, but I’d be remiss to say this is just for fans of the series. An incredibly talented art team spent six years drawing, painting and modeling the Boston commonwealth post-apocalypse and then picked only the finest from those labors to collect it here. Anyone will be blown away by the sheer amount of work that went into this. You know the kind of art that stands out and makes you remember a favorite page of a graphic novel long after you’re done reading it? That seems to happen with almost every page of this book. There are concept pages, character evolutions, captioned storyboards and stunning landscapes. The detail is overwhelming.

Is It Good?

In short, The Art of Fallout 4 a beautiful book that does exactly what it sets out to do. The quality of art is amazing. Many of the pages in this book I would love to own as standalone art, framed on my wall. The book tells the story of the labor and creative decisions a group of people put into making a triple-A video game over the six years it took to complete it, with with only a handful of words. This book is more than good — it’s something that should enthrall fans of the game and newcomers alike.