Fallout: New Vegas director debunks 13-year-old theory about the RPG's most infamous areas: "They were there for players to Git Gud or Die"

Fallout: New Vegas
(Image credit: Bethesda)

Fallout: New Vegas director Josh Sawyer has laid to rest a fan theory that's persisted since launch about two of the game's most notoriously challenging areas.

Getting to the Las Vegas strip will naturally be one of your top priorities in Fallout: New Vegas pretty early on - it's in the damn title. And as much as the famous resort city already resembles a post-apocalyptic hazard zone at certain times of the night, I remember being keen on taking a stroll through Obsidian's take on the strip right from the get-go. 

There are a number of shortcuts you can take to get to New Vegas quickly, but they're all incredibly dangerous due to threats from Cazadors, Powder Gangers, and Deathclaws. The paths through Black Mountain and Quarry Junction to Freeside in particular are so treacherous that some have questioned whether they were intended to be traversed at all.

"Not a glitch," Sawyer confirmed succinctly. "When F:NV launched, players thought that Black Mountain and Quarry Junction were there to keep players from getting to The Strip. Wrong. They were there for players to Git Gud or Die."

"Same with Scorpion Gulch," he added in a follow-up tweet. "You can get through it. You just have to pace yourself and be prepared."

And just like that, a 13 year-old mystery has been solved. Taking shortcuts to the strip in Fallout: New Vegas is perfectly legitimate - you just have to learn how to not suck at the game to be successful.

Need some assistance in that department? Fear not, here's our expertly curated Fallout: New Vegas character build guide to help you get started.

Jordan Gerblick

After scoring a degree in English from ASU, I worked as a copy editor while freelancing for places like SFX Magazine, Screen Rant, Game Revolution, and MMORPG on the side. Now, as GamesRadar's west coast Staff Writer, I'm responsible for managing the site's western regional executive branch, AKA my apartment, and writing about whatever horror game I'm too afraid to finish.

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