5 Best Post-Apocalyptic Video Games That Aren’t Fallout

One of the first video game properties that comes to mind whenever post-apocalyptic premises are involved is “Fallout.” Starting in 1997, the series takes place in a retro-futuristic world devastated by nuclear warfare, with much of humanity taking cover in subterranean fallout shelters. The games feature largely open-world gameplay encouraging a tremendous amount of freedom for players to proceed as they scour the wasteland. Of course, “Fallout” isn’t the only post-apocalyptic game franchise around, and we’re looking at standout titles from outside the Bethesda Softworks’ series.

From survival horror games to interactive story experiences, there is no shortage of primo post-apocalyptic games available. Each of the games we’re listing here unfold after modern civilization has collapsed in the face of a global cataclysm, with players trying to survive in the aftermath. If you’re looking for video games to play while waiting for “Fallout 5,” these titles have got you covered. 

Here are the five best post-apocalyptic video games that aren’t “Fallout” that fans should check out next.

S.T.A.L.K.E.R.: Shadow of Chernobyl

Before “Dying Light,” there was the “S.T.A.L.K.E.R.” series, a survival horror-tinged post-apocalyptic game developed and published by Ukrainian studio GSC Game World. The first game in the series is 2007’s “S.T.A.L.K.E.R.: Shadow of Chernobyl,” initially released as a PC exclusive. The story is set in a world where the titular nuclear reactor endured a second catastrophe, spreading the radioactive contamination and causing paranormal changes to the surrounding area. The player character awakens in the exclusionary zone suffering from amnesia, trying to remember who they are and their connection to this eerie setting.

While not featuring the globe-spanning scope of other titles on this list, “S.T.A.L.K.E.R.: Shadow of Chernobyl” definitely evokes games like “Fallout.” The irradiated environments and monsters mutated by the nuclear waste are terrifying enemies to contend with, keeping the suspense high throughout the game. The 2007 title spawned an entire series which continues to thrive today, expanding the intense action while maintaining the sheer horror. An appropriately bleak experience that’s tautly executed with laser-focused first-person action, “S.T.A.L.K.E.R.: Shadow of Chernobyl” brings a distinctly Eastern European grimness to the genre.

Left 4 Dead

Whenever Valve Corporation develops and publishes its own titles, the venerable studio behind “Half-Life” and “Counter-Strike” has our full attention. The company released its most horror-oriented title yet with 2008’s “Left 4 Dead,” a cooperative first-person shooter set during a zombie apocalypse. A group of four survivors make their way to safehouses or paths to escape a given level, blasting through waves of zombies along the way. In competitive online modes, players can also control undead with unique abilities as they try to prevent survivors from escaping.

Honestly, either “Left 4 Dead” or its 2009 sequel could’ve made this list, but we’re giving it to the original for its foundational wow factor. Built from the Source engine like “Half-Life 2,” the game looks and feels great to play, while the developers really dial up the tense atmosphere of a world overrun by ravenous undead. Valve may have never released a “Left 4 Dead 3,” but at least we got a spiritual successor in 2021’s “Back 4 Blood,” also worth playing. In the meantime, the series’ two official games are both readily available and still a lot of fun to play with friends.

The Walking Dead

“The Walking Dead” has become a bonafide multimedia phenomenon, stemming from the best-selling comic book by Robert Kirkman, Tony Moore, and Charlie Adlard. This includes several video game tie-ins, with the best of them by a longshot being the episodic interactive story series initially developed and published by Telltale Games. Launched in 2012, the title follows a young orphan named Clementine as the global zombie epidemic reaches Georgia. The game places a strong emphasis on conversations between characters and narrative decisions shaping the course of Clementine’s journey.

“The Walking Dead” is one of the best interactive story games of all time, both organically fitting within the world of the comics while perfectly accessible as a standalone experience. Kirkman himself provided input on how the game should align with the comics narrative, with his company Skybound Games publishing the game after everything that went wrong with Telltale separately. Given these behind-the-scenes issues at Telltale, it’s remarkable that the game came out as consistently well-crafted as it did, maintaining its quality through to the end. A story-driven game where it truly feels like those individual choices do matter, “The Walking Dead” is an emotional masterpiece.

The Last of Us

Sony Interactive Entertainment

When it comes to post-apocalyptic games, few have left as profound a mark on the industry today than “The Last of Us.” The first game in the series was released for the PlayStation 3 in 2013, introducing a world where a fungal outbreak has turned the afflicted into zombie-like monsters. Set 20 years after the outbreak on the “Last of Us” timeline, survivor Joel Miller is tasked with escorting Ellie, a teenager immune to the fungus, across North America. This cross-country trek has the duo contend with other hostile survivors and, of course, the infected hordes lurking in the ruins of civilization.

With its hardscrabble world where the lines of morality have eroded along with modern society, “The Last of Us” provides players with a delightfully grim post-apocalyptic tale. The action and individual player decisions all feel gravely consequential and the infected definitely keep the tension raised. The game’s 2020 sequel further explores these themes while doubling down on the cost that brutal violence has on the soul. While we still don’t know if we’ll get “The Last of Us Part III,” the original game offers fans an uncompromising post-apocalyptic world where survival is the only reward.

Horizon Zero Dawn

Sony Interactive Entertainment

In contrast to the other games on this list, which has the apocalypse occur relatively soon before the start of the game, “Fallout” takes place over a century after armageddon. The 2017 PlayStation 4 game “Horizon Zero Dawn” is set in a distant future long after its technologically fueled cataclysm. In the time since the apocalypse, humanity has descended to live in primitive tribes while sentient machines roam the landscape like wild animals. The game follows Aloy, a hunter who stands between a malevolent artificial intelligence from turning the machines to wipe out organic life.

With its sumptuously realized environments, “Horizon Zero Dawn” is one of the best open-world titles on the PlayStation 4. The level of detail in the art design and variety in machine types underscores how richly immersive the experience truly is. This helps make the action all the more engaging, with its variety in weapons and third-person movement well-staged. The 2022 sequel “Horizon Forbidden West” is one of the best PS5 games, but this is a story worth experiencing from the beginning.