Which Fallout radio station reigns supreme?

14.04.2024 - 16:17 / polygon.com / New Vegas

One of the hallmarks of modern Fallout games is getting to listen to a radio while you trek around the Wasteland. The radio is, of course, full of sweet tunes to enjoy, but the radio hosts often take the mic in order to share some fun world-building facts and keep the player company on the road. Many of these songs show up in the Amazon Prime Fallout series — but which radio station is the best listen?

For obvious reasons, we’re only counting radio stations with hosts and music — so no mysterious broadcasts or tragic monologues.

Agatha comes from a long line of talented musicians, and she wants to share her beautiful classical music with the whole Wasteland. She’s lovely — and it’s very nice that she will shout out her friends, like the player, or a guy called Crazy Wolfgang. Unfortunately, her station is kind of a snore. Classical stations return in Fallout 76 and Fallout 4, which is nice for the cultured among us.

One of the first signals that the player picks up is Enclave Radio, where President John Henry Eden gives calming chats to the Wasteland populace. These long-winded speeches are spaced between patriotic songs to get the blood pumping. This is one of the great examples of the radio being used as world-building, but the novelty wears off once you get through all of Eden’s speeches.

The primary radio station of Fallout 76, Appalachian Radio has some good listening. “Mr. Sandman,” “Mister Five by Five,” and “Take Me Home, Country Roads” are all absolute bangers. Appalachian Radio did get a host later on with the Wastelanders update, a polite young woman named Julie. It also includes a bunch of music from previous games, so it’s perfectly pleasant, but not breaking new ground.

This station shows up as Black Mountain Radio, but tuning in reveals a super mutant is at the microphone. Tabitha, the tyrant in charge of Utobitha, takes the role of a broken Mr. Handy robot called Rhonda and then fawningly interviews herself. You can get just the music from Radio Free Utobitha from Mojave Music Radio, if you’re a coward. Personally, I find the State of Utobitha to be one of the funniest parts of New Vegas, and I’ll listen to her thinly veiled propaganda for hours.

Radio New Vegas is helmed by Mr. New Vegas, a host so chill and unshakeable that he seems too good to be true. In a fun wink to the game’s real-world inspiration, Vegas entertainer Wayne Newton voices Mr. New Vegas, sharing both news and music. The playlist is just as sharp, with classics like “Blue Moon,” “Big Iron,” “Heartaches by the Number,” and “Something’s Gotta Give.” It’d be nice to have more variety, but this is a solid choice.

The Commonwealth is served by Diamond City Radio, which is hosted by the nervous and underappreciated