New info from a Todd Howard Interview
By draft_ribbon
Honestly, it feels like the best possible outcome could be the only one.
Reader discussion: Omega: The Last days of the World
Public reader discussion about Omega: The Last days of the World in the WeRead Catalog by Camille Flammarion.
Gameplay/Story Basis Hidden in Trailer Books?
By TinyLynx
Lots of devs seem to like grabbing ideas like this. The first one feels pretty easy to connect: It’s a memoir about the first guy to sail around the world alone, which kind of matches a single-player “go chart the stars / figure things out” kind of expedition vibe. Quick extra note: I guess Slocum disappeared during a 1909 trip on the same boat, so that adds a weird twist too. The second book also feels like it could line up with some bigger story beats, even if I’m not totally sure yet. It’s that 1894 sci-fi about a comet collision that wipes out life on Earth, plus all the political/philosophical fallout. And honestly, I doubt they’d toss in some random obscure 19th-century French sci-fi for nothing. Edit: I’m not sure what we’d know that could really contradict it, but “finding a new place for humanity when the world’s ending” sounds like a pretty good reason for someone to start looking up at the heavens.
Omega: The Last Days of the World, and Will Shen's comments about what happened to Earth
By springTiger9
Sorry if someone’s already dug into this to death, but I just had a quick “wait, what?” moment. In that release date video, one of the books on the shelf looked like Camille Flammarion’s *Omega: The Last Days of the World*. From what I can tell, it’s about Earth as this super academic utopia, and it gets threatened by a brand-new comet. Also, Will Shen mentions in the chat with Jess Finster that an early quest sends you to “the old neighbourhood” to figure out what happened to Earth. And yeah… I’m getting a really bad feeling about where this is going.
I just read the books in the trailer
By MuddyHeron68
I really liked both of these books a ton, and honestly I’d still recommend them even if you never cared about the game. No spoilers for anything specific, but I do think there are some themes that might line up with what the game is going for. For one, both books feel pretty hopeful. They put a lot of emphasis on learning things yourself and questioning whatever “everybody knows” kind of beliefs people were stuck with back then (and probably way before). That said, I don’t feel like either one is preachy. The stuff about beliefs and education just doesn’t take over the whole book. Also, both authors write in this kind of romantic way about smart, well-read people with real experience. They both kind of nod to intellectual circles too, like a softer, more classic version of The Academy vibe from Dishonored. **Omega: The Last Days of the World (Camille Flammarion)** This one is sci-fi, but it’s written by an actual astronomer, which is just neat. The story is about a comet coming and how people respond to it. It gives you that old-school “retro future” tech feeling, and there’s also some psychic power stuff, which reminded me a little of the Prey reboot. What I liked is it doesn’t play out like your usual doomsday story, and the author gets really detailed about real science to back up the points. I personally liked that, but I can totally see how it could feel slow or tedious to someone else. **Sailing Alone Around the World (Joshua Slocum)** This one felt really warm and human. It’s about Slocum doing the solo trip around the world—the first one ever, which is wild—and the whole book just gives this sense of wonder about the world, people, and life. His writing is super charming, and most of it reads like this romantic, port-to-port travel story. You get to see different places, meet the people there, and hear about the problems and surprises he runs into. I also thought he came off pretty genuine and honest. And yeah, it also gets into a lot of sailing detail, which I only appreciate because I’m not a sailor, so I’m probably the target for the learning-by-reading part (I tried once and it was… not great). Overall, I think Bethesda made a solid choice pairing these as inspiration. From the trailer, I’m getting the feeling the game is going to be this more uplifting, “sailing/exploring” kind of story—meeting curious, friendly people and going on adventures. I’ve seen people speculate it might bring in Slocum’s disappearance at sea somehow, even though that part didn’t happen in the book until later. And it also feels like the game might push back on pessimism and fear that people cling to. One more thing: both of these books aren’t that long, so they seem like a good option even if you’re not super comfortable reading yet.
Looking for the 'world is ending' novels.
By patientjar1997
Not totally looking for post-apocalyptic stuff only—I’m mostly into books that show society falling apart. I’m even more into it if there’s a rebuilding part and lots of world building. And if there are LGBTQ+ main characters, that’s a huge extra bonus. I also really like relationship drama, whether it’s romance or more family/friends. I’ve read a ton of the classic apocalypse/dystopia novels, but I’m struggling to find newer, actually well-written ones. Of the handful (like a dozen-ish) I’ve read recently, my favorites were *The Book of the Unnamed Midwife* and *Leave the World Behind*. Thanks in advance—also idk why, but these have been feeling weirdly comforting lately lol. Edit: Seriously, thank you everyone. You gave me an awesome list and I’ve already read 4 of them. I’ll try to reply to everyone individually, but if I miss a few, just know I really appreciate it. ❤