Tim Cain, the legendary developer behind 1997’s seminal RPG Fallout, has withdrawn from his semi-retirement to return to his former haunt, Obsidian Entertainment, as a full-time employee. In a video posted to his popular YouTube channel, Cain explains that he’d moved back to Southern California to rejoin the studio, and is already at work on new projects.
Cain’s legacy in video games is deeply enviable. Not only did the dark chocolate-loving developer blast out of the gate with credits on ’90s classics like Stonekeep and Star Trek: Starfleet Academy, but almost immediately hit a home run with his leading role on the all-time great RPG, 1997’s Fallout. Since then, he project led the fantastic (and fantastically named) Arcanum: Of Steamworks & Magic Obscura, was a senior programmer on the sublime Vampire: The Masquerade – Bloodline, and was co-director of Obsidian’s 2019 hit, The Outer Worlds. Along the way, he had a hand in The Temple of Elemental Evil, South Park: The Stick of Truth, and Pillars of Eternity.
In the video, Cain really buries the lede about his return to Obsidian after leaving in June 2020, making sure to first inform viewers of the squirrel that bullies him out of walnuts every time he enters his new home. But that more important detail out of the way, Cain explains that he’s fully back at RPG specialists Obsidian, full-time, and in the office, after having contributed work to the recently released The Outer Worlds 2 remotely as a contractor.
There’s no word yet on which projects Cain might be working on at the studio, but given the only game we know currently in development is Grounded 2, it’s probably a secret. Here’s hoping for Avowed 2, of course, or even a straightforward isometric Pillars follow-up, given that’s Cain’s specialty.