Paradox Interactive has emphasized that its upcoming post-apocalyptic grand strategy game, Afterworld, takes significant inspiration from the Bronze Age collapse rather than the Fallout series. While the initial announcement led to comparisons with Bethesda's RPG franchise, developers state the game's world is more focused on the remnants of an ancient empire and their struggle to understand their past.
Luke Bean, Afterworld's content designer and "elder lore keeper," explained that the inhabitants of the game's North America are not direct descendants of modern Americans but rather people who remember them as an "ancient empire." This historical perspective shapes their understanding of the past, where the "ancients" – modern humans – possessed advanced science but ultimately vanished. The central mystery for these tribes is understanding why such capable beings ceased to exist, leading to speculation that they "must have wanted to die."
Players will engage with the remnants of pre-Fall technology and define their tribes by interacting with the past. The game's setting encompasses what remains of present-day Canada, though it will not be a primary focus. Other regions, such as Mexico, are described as heavily impacted by the cataclysm.
Bean elaborated that a significant part of the gameplay involves rediscovering and interpreting the history and culture of the vanished empire. Tribes will grapple with questions of identity, such as whether they are "new Americans" or a completely new civilization, and decide whether to revive old religions or forge new ones. This process has been likened to writing "the Bible of a people."
Addressing comparisons to Fallout, Bean stated that the RPG series is "not in the top five reference points" for Afterworld. He distinguished Afterworld's "Bronze Agey mystical cyberpunk ruins take on the post-apocalypse" from Fallout's retro-futuristic interpretation. The game will feature diverse factions, including descendants of the US Pacific Fleet, Indigenous nations, and groups originating from Amish and Mormon communities.
The game's world generation incorporates procedural elements, simulating 100 years of calamity before each campaign begins. "The Fall ended the world with a war," Bean noted, "But it wasn't just a war, and it's a little different every game." Regional disasters unique to the Fall will shape different areas, leading to varied gameplay experiences from one campaign to another. Paradox has previously detailed these dynamic historical elements, explaining that the game's history changes with every playthrough.