I write to you with the saddest of hearts. The Fallout community has been consistently let down when it comes to the third installment of our beloved franchise. That's why today's news isn't really that much of a surprise, but it still stings none the less.

I regret to inform you that Bethesda has cancelled production of Fallout 3. Citing many reasons, including hostile fan feedback, the leadership at Bethesda has decided that it is no longer commercially viable to make the game.

Here's what they had to say:

April 1, 2007 (Rockville, MD) -- Bethesda Softworks® announced today that it cancelled development of Fallout® 3 -- a sequel to the highly popular Fallout® role-playing game franchise. Bethesda licensed the rights to the Fallout® franchise from Interplay Entertainment Corp. (OTC Bulletin Board: IPLY) in 2004.

“We’re extremely disappointed about the way this turned out, and what it means both for Bethesda and for Fallout fans around the world,” said Vlatko Andonov, president of Bethesda Softworks. “Fallout is one the great RPG franchises. Millions of Fallout games have been sold worldwide, and fans have been eagerly awaiting the release of a Fallout 3 title. However, after our experience with the Elder Scrolls® series, we have decided that the next chapter of Fallout will not be made.”

Originally released in 1997, Fallout places a player in the role of a Vault-dweller, who ventures from his secluded, underground survival Vault into a post-apocalyptic world of mutants, radiation, gangs and violence. The game has been widely hailed as one of the outstanding role-playing games and video games of all time with its unique gameplay, style, and setting.

Commenting on this development, Interplay Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Herve Caen said, “This is a good development for both companies and for gamers. Although Bethesda had a high level of interest in licensing and developing Fallout, we at Interplay have decided to give it another try and make Fallout 3 ourselves.”

“We are really depressed,” said Howard. “Fallout is one of my favorite games, and we had planned to develop a visually stunning and original game for Fallout 3 with all the hallmarks of a great RPG: player choice, engaging story, and non-linearity. But things didn't work out. The fans got really intense and would jump on the slightest thing, claiming impending doom. It got almost impossible to work after a while, constantly second guessing yourself, wondering if some angry fan would try to flame me on the forums.”

Bethesda would like to remind fans, however, that the Windows version of Shivering Isles is available at retail and is co-published by Bethesda Softworks and 2K, while the Xbox 360 version is available through Xbox Live® online entertainment network by Bethesda Softworks. For more information on Oblivion, Shivering Isles, or The Elder Scrolls, visit the official web site: www.elderscrolls.com.

Future announcements about the release of Fallout 3 will be made by Interplay Entertainment.

It'll be tough to try and recover from this as a community, but I think we can pull through.