Here’s how players can find the elusive Vault 13 on the vast Fallout 2 map. Fallout is a franchise that casts players as the survivor of a nuclear war, who emerges from an underground vault decades later and must learn to survive the bleak new world. The series is typically made up of role-playing action, where players have to explore a vast open world and battle raiders, mutated creatures and the unforgiving landscape itself.
The original Fallout was released in 1997 and the series has branched out in unique – and bizarre – ways ever since. There have been action heavy spinoffs like Fallout: Brotherhood Of Steel and the multiplayer shenanigans of 2018’s Fallout 76. Bethesda Softworks (Skyrim) took over the franchise starting with 2008’s Fallout 3. This title proved to be somewhat controversial, as while it introduced a bigger audience to the franchise, the changes it brought to the series irritated fans of the original games.
Fallout 2 was released in 1998, the year after the original. The game was considered a big improvement on the first Fallout, telling a more ambitious story, in addition to gameplay improvements and a larger map. While a rushed development period led to some bugs, the sequel also introduced the franchise’s warped sense of humor. The sequel takes place 80 years after the first game, where The Chosen One – the descendant of Fallout’s original hero – is tasked with finding Vault 13 to retrieve a device called the GECK that could save their dying village.
Of course, the first thing players need to do is actually find Vault 13, which isn’t displayed on the Fallout 2 map. There are a few ways to unlock its location. The first method involves giving a drink to a character called Saltbeef Bob at Roger Westin’s ranch. Bob will reveal Doc Jubilee stole his map to Vault 13, so The Chosen One can later talk to the doctor and if he buys his Elvis painting, the map will be found hidden inside.
The second is to work for Sheriff Dumont and accept the quest to stop the brahmin raids. If players have 100% on their Outdoorsman skill, they’ll be able to hunt down the Deathclaws behind the raids straight to Vault 13. The final option is to go to Vault 15, where a computer room on level 3 can be hacked – so long as players have a high enough science skill. Finding the location of Vault 13 is one thing, but what players find inside opens up a new world of craziness.
Sadly, players can’t just stumble onto Vault 13’s entrance by exploration, and it has to be added to the Fallout 2 map first. Part of the fun of a Fallout game is exploring the vast world and having adventures, so there’s no need to rush to get to Vault 13 anyway.