Bloodsoaked Media Returns

After being gone for 6+ years from the blog space, reviving something as massive to me as Bloodsoaked Media had to begin with two rules.

Rule one was making sure I did this place justice. I wanted the page to ooze character, intrigue, and a thin layer of dust. The kind that reminds you of finding a loved but abused paperback copy of your favorite childhood book years later.

Rule two was staying true to what made me the person I am. Not just today, not through maturity or age, and not through the self-discovery that came with my early twenties. It needed to come from a place that could only be channeled through the media I've grown deeply attached to over the years.

Fallout is that piece of art for me in a variety of ways, and has been for as long as I can remember. Because of that, I'm currently working on a piece covering Fallout: Sonora, a 2020 total conversion project for Fallout 2 from the mod collective Nevada Band Studio. More on that below.

Returning to the Wastes

Four years after the initial release of Sonora, I was coming off the incredible fantasy high of 2023's Baldur's Gate 3 from Larian Studios. I had always loved Fallout: New Vegas. For over a decade it was the RPG I returned to whenever I needed to escape from the real world. Baldur's Gate 3 left me wanting something else entirely, however, and it became apparent that another CRPG was the only thing that could fill that void.

I'd tried to play Fallout and Fallout 2 several times throughout my life, but to be honest, I couldn't for the life of me truly git gud. Yes, for those aware of the classic Fallout experience, that meant repeatedly dying to the rats outside Vault 13 because I kept missing punches in VATS and getting absolutely creamed.

That itch never really went away, though. Eventually, despite the friction, I accepted the game on its own terms and pushed through. I beat Fallout, before I knew Fallout et Tu existed of course, and moved immediately into Fallout 2.

If I were to sit here and tell you Fallout 2 changed my perspective on the RPG genre as a whole, I'd be underselling what Fallout 2 actually did for me.

I bounced around a bit after finishing it. I played through it several more times, but eventually found myself wanting more. That led me down the rabbit hole of total conversion projects: Fallout: Nevada, Fallout: Yesterday, and finally, Fallout: Sonora.

I bounced off Nevada. The pacing wasn't really doing much for me, and I found myself drifting through the experience without really enjoying it. Then I tried Sonora.

I was skeptical at first considering it came from the same team behind Nevada, but what followed became one of my favorite Fallout experiences of all time. What's even more impressive is that it isn't official, endorsed, or backed by Bethesda in any capacity. Like Fallout: London, which I'll save for another article, Sonora is a fan project. Yet for me, it surpasses most official entries in the franchise as a lifelong fan of the world, the lore, and the experiences Fallout has given me over the years.

Personally, I can't wait to gush about Sonora with everyone, and finally be back at Bloodsoaked Media to give it the write-up it deserves and realize the full vision 19-year-old me had when this place first soft-launched all those years ago.

Stay tuned. More very soon.

Love you all.

• D.