Don't panic: Fallout 3 concept art linked to terrorism

by Ross Miller { May 29th 2008 at 6:30PM }

US-based monitoring group SITE said there has been a video released on Islamic militant forums encouraging terrorists to detonate WMDs in America. According to Australian-based News.com.au, "SITE also released a computer-generated image, showing Washington DC in the aftermath of a nuclear attack, which reportedly appeared on an Islamist forum." If that released image, featured in the article and reprinted above (sans kangaroo, we added that), looks familiar, that's because it's concept art from Fallout 3, released back in May 2007 (a high-resolution image is available here).

To be clear, we're not faulting SITE or anyone else involved in this story -- after all, it's an unmarked piece of concept art that does illustrate the terrorist's goal, and SITE doesn't make any claims as to the origins of the image. It's more of an oddity than a joke, but it's interesting to see how a simple thing such as concept art can be interpreted in different ways.

Gallery: Fallout 3

[Via A Post Nuclear Blog; thanks, Andy]

Tags: al-qaeda, bethesda, fallout, fallout-3, fallout3, terrorism

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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)

PojoMofo @ May 29th 2008 6:36PM

Fallout 3...

homersimpsondrool.gif

tmacairjordan87 @ May 29th 2008 6:36PM

Wait till the republicans catch wind of this :(

Raikage (LDF CRAB BATTLE!!!) @ May 29th 2008 6:38PM

*waits for republican jihad on tmac, get 'em Crono!

*popcorn

Obie @ May 29th 2008 6:58PM

So if GTA4 is a murder simulator, than Fallout3 is a Jihad simulator? How long before Jack Thompson runs with this?

DemonGSides @ May 29th 2008 9:08PM

Republican Jihad? I've never heard such an oxymoron.

Autopsy15 @ May 29th 2008 10:15PM

Obie,

2 days, tops.

t_m @ May 30th 2008 1:16AM

@DemonGSides:
religious fanatics who want to impose their narrow, ideologically based views on everyone else, whether they agree or not. Religious fanatics against gays and other religions and wanting to create laws based on their interpretation of religious text. Religious fanatics starting wars in foreign places to introduce them to their "correct" way of thinking.

colin @ May 30th 2008 1:22AM

*becomes a democrat

yeah, we should just try and reason with the terrorists. if that doesn't work, we could just surrender.

*switches back

http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/story/0,25197,23693121-7583,00.html

Raikage (LDF CRAB BATTLE!!!) @ May 29th 2008 6:36PM

What? No cartoon kangaroos in Fallout 3, well they just lost a buyer.

Defenestrator2.0 @ May 29th 2008 6:39PM

But I am le tired...

Raikage (LDF CRAB BATTLE!!!) @ May 29th 2008 6:43PM

Ok, you can take a nap...

THEN FIRE ZE MIZZIELS!

Sora267 @ May 29th 2008 6:43PM

It'd be hilarious if it was the Islamist forum users who added that kangaroo.

Benny @ May 29th 2008 6:48PM

Nah, all marsupials have to wear hijab.

Nigeria @ May 29th 2008 6:50PM

I'm not that surprised.

I have a friend who plays video games and he just came back from Pakistan 2 or 3 weeks ago. He was staying in a place called Quetta - I think that's how you spell it. Anyway, he was staying in Quetta and he told me on the backstreets certain men will approach you, asking you questions, get to know you sort of thing. My friend started to get know one of these guys. Soon, they were friends. Then they started giving him DVDs. You know, the Jihadi ones.

Let me cut the story short: intercut with the regular footage of truckbombs and the like, my friend says there was footage of Conflict Desert Storm. The game that was on the Xbox. All the footage used was of Army men killing stereotypical Arabs. These people was using footage of the game as recruitment material for their own aims.

Ed @ May 29th 2008 7:20PM

I can believe it, and I'm sure there are many KKK, Neo-Nazi, and skin head groups who'll use the Resident Evil 5 contraversy to further their goals. It's amazing what these nut-jobs can warp to fit their needs.

t_m @ May 30th 2008 1:25AM

well... almost every 360 game ever released does involve killing stereotypical arabs.

dudes are way under-represented in terms of hero figures.

(which makes me wonder, if there were more positive portrayals of arabs in western media, maybe the kids wouldn't end up feeling so disaffected. (or maybe not))

doboy091 @ May 29th 2008 7:32PM

First they say Rachel Ray is a terrorist because she wears a middle eastern style scarf...now this is promoting terrorism. BS. I wuldnt be surprised if oour own gov. bombed the U.S. again like they attacked us on 9/11.
p.s. inside job

markhill66 @ May 29th 2008 7:39PM

Agreed. Everyone is walking on red, white, and blue eggshells now because anything can be linked to terrorism. It's modern-day McCarthyism, and it's really sad.

WRE (PSN: WorstReviewEver; Gamertag: HaloKissesBoys; Wii Friend Code: 4204-4590-6106-3583) @ May 29th 2008 8:12PM

I'm sorry, but do you guys even watch the news or, you know, participate in conversations with real-life people? Maybe what you're saying was true right after 9/11, but not now. Try again, please.

Microswirl @ May 29th 2008 7:45PM

Too bad Fallout 3 has to so effectively parallel the times we live in... why can't Bethesda just make a swords n' sorcery-type game which takes place in a fictional distant past in a fictional distant land, which in no way can be tied to the modern world in which we live? Then the media would have nothing to complain about... oh well...

tmacairjordan87 @ May 29th 2008 9:14PM

I'm glad someone's doing this. While I doubt this was their goal at all, it's good to have people say fuck you and not buckle under the weight of republicans and their made up patriotism bullshit and saying everything is unpatriotic or terrorism. No one was very patriotic until after 9/11...odd.

Syzygy @ May 29th 2008 7:52PM

Check out a UK newspaper's misinterpretation of the same image - I just had to comment!

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/worldnews/article-1022840/Pictured-Al-Qaedas-terrifying-vision-devastated-America-wake-nuclear-attack.html

Benny @ May 29th 2008 8:09PM

The Daily Mail posting scare-mongering, bullshit-ridden stories? I'm shocked.

Benny @ May 29th 2008 8:10PM

And lest I remind you, this is the same publication that went beserk over Sony's God of War promotional goat...

Courtney @ May 30th 2008 11:48AM

I added a comment to that story pointing out the source of the image last night and as of this morning they haven't put it up (but did put up several other comments).

superberg @ May 29th 2008 8:17PM

How soon we forget the whole "Bert is Evil" controversy..

Mr.ESC @ May 29th 2008 8:24PM

There are like a ton of novels which describe a world where all mayor cities in the world are destroyed in nuclear fire and they are very especific about how many U.S cities are destroyed but nobody gives a damn maybe because the people who believe this crap don't like to read.

By that logic Terminator 3 was terrorist propaganda as well.

Anyway it looks espectacular.

TheRealStuff @ May 29th 2008 9:07PM

The funny thing about all the people who scream 'McCarthyism!' is that you don't keep up with the facts: declassified documents have shown McCarthy was right. The Soviets had a HUGE operation underway to infiltrate the US government with spies and sympathizers.

But keep believing the liberal dream, just like everyone does now - the basic story of this article is that TERRORISTS ARE RECRUITING PEOPLE, and what is taken away? Oh ha ha that's a screenshot from a game! You is stoopid! Head back in the sand.

fred @ May 30th 2008 7:58AM

You're not good with the whole "cognitive thing" are you?

I Like Corn @ May 29th 2008 9:16PM

This for for each commenter that says anything along the lines of:

- OMG GOV'T IS ALL HATIN' ON FALLOUT WTF IT'S NOT TERRORIST PROPOGANDA BTW BUSH SUX

- STUPID HATE-MONGERS HATING ON VIDEOGAMES OMG

or anything of that sort.

The source does not call out Fallout as propoganda.

The source doesn't even KNOW.

They just say "This computer-generated image of a destroyed DC was posted on this website".

For all they know, the terrorists have a graphic design team on their hands.

So, uh, where the hell is anyone putting blame on the game? I mean, jeez, autofire at the mention of government and terrorism much?

tmacairjordan87 @ May 29th 2008 9:18PM

yeah brother bush was right. We gotsa follow what he says!

http://www.vintagevantage.com/uploads/rednecks.jpg

tmacairjordan87 @ May 29th 2008 9:19PM

How that went under your comment I have no idea. Yours wasn't even posted yet when I was typing that.

Poisoned Al @ May 29th 2008 9:22PM

Heh, that's almost as bad as ripping off a student's old theses and calling it "proof" of WMDs in Iraq, but nobody would be stupid enough to do THAT...