Fallout New Vegas gets gorgeous ray-traced lighting upgrade in brilliant fan project    

Obsidian’s now 15-year-old masterpiece Fallout New Vegas has been subject to a multitude of graphics mods over the years, but this new fan project takes the cake. 

Using the powerful new RTX Remix tools, modder and YouTuber skurtyyskirts is working on a full-fledged ray-traced remaster of Obsidian’s RPG for PC players to enjoy in the future. 

Fallout New Vegas RTX revealed 

Currently in very early development, the Fallout New Vegas RTX project uses the RTX Remix pipeline to inject new lighting solutions into the aging RPG. This means players will be able to benefit from realistic lighting, and shadows for a massively improved realistic look. 

Alongside the new lighting, modder skurtyyskirts is also working on texture overhauls that will make the game look significantly higher quality. Fallout New Vegas, like many Bethesda RPGs of its time, is well known for its inconsistent asset quality, and this mod could fix all of that. 

However, as is the case with many other RTX remasters of old games, something is missing: the orange-brown western colour scheme of the original. New Vegas’ pre-baked lighting game with a muddy, murky brown filter that really cemented its theme as a post-apocalyptic western, and that’s completely gone with the realistic lighting solution. 

Right now, the game almost feels too clean without its brown colour scheme, but the project is still in early development. Hopefully, with enough work, the game can benefit from both realistic lighting and the filthy dirt look the game is known for. 

As it stands, specific shots of Fallout New Vegas RTX look fantastic, although that’s largely during interior sections. Standing next to the jukebox in Goodsprings results in a harsh blue glow exuding from its neon tubes, filling the bar with light. 

Of course, some of this shows the limits of RTX Remix. As a realistic replacement for existing light sources it often feels like the realism detracts from the artistry that was done before. That’s not to say ray-traced lighting is bad. In fact, it’s saving developers time while still allowing them to make gorgeous games like Doom: The Dark Ages, but it doesn’t quite match the placement of lights in older games that were once needed to fake everything. 

For more Fallout coverage, read about the stunning first-person recreation of the original game in Fallout: Bakersfield, or check out the artist’s in-development classic Fallout successor. Additionally, read about how the fifth game is now in pre-production, but it’ll still be a while until we get it.