Japan

Japan was a pre-War country located on an island incorporated into the continent of Asia. It is mentioned multiple times in the Fallout series.

Background[]

Pre-War[]

Sometime during the Azuchi-Momoyama period (A.D. 1568—1603), Toshiro Kago, a samurai of the Oda clan born sometime before 1562 during the Sengoku period, was abducted by the Zetans and placed in cryogenic suspension aboard their mothership Zeta, where he was separated from his personal weapon.^[1]

In 1941, during World War II, as part of the Axis Powers, the Empire of Japan attacked the United States at Pearl Harbor.^[2] One year later, the Sierra Army Depot was constructed to defend the United States should Japan attack the West Coast.^{[Non-game 1]} The pre-War Battle of Iwo Jima is depicted on a mural in the Museum of Freedom in Concord, and the Battle of Okinawa is mentioned in tandem with other pre-War conflicts such as the Battle of Anchorage, Antietam and Amiens.^[3] In 1945, the United States military dropped two atomic bombs on the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, the bombs being named "Little Boy" and "Fat Man" respectively.^[4] This was the first time nuclear weapons had been deployed in combat between nations, and the only such event to occur before the Resource Wars.

The Pioneer Scouts codebreaker exam provides Japanese as a possible answer to the question, "Which of these patriotic languages did our fine fighting men use as an unbreakable code during World War II?" The Pioneer Scout herpotologist exam also mentions the Japanese giant salamander. Mount Fuji, a major volcano on the island, is an incorrect answer to one of the questions in the Pioneer Scout exams.^[5]

The Watoga High School marching band was set to go on a field trip to the country before the war.^[6]

Two adolescent girls in the Clarksville area, known to have spent a lot of time near a local river, went missing. Calvin van Lowe suspected that they might have been taken by kappas, river monsters from Japanese folklore.^[7] The Japanese gashadokuro, a skeleton spirit in the country's mythology, is the subject of episode 75 of the Rip Daring radio play. The episode also references Japanese yokai, yuma and the yuki-onna.^[8]

Post-War[]

In 2241, descendants of members of the Yakuza, the pre-War Japanese mafia, inhabited the area around New Reno, perpetuating the tradition of their expertise in swordplay and throwing weapons. They wielded short swords known as wakizashi. They had no known headquarters and traveled in small bands, fighting against the crime families lording over the city and scouting the wasteland around New Reno. Additionally, prostitutes in New Reno have knowledge of anime, a style of animation from Japan, and will mention it when being approached by the Chosen One in power armor.^[9]

Cookbooks on the preparing of sushi were popular enough before the Great War for some to have survived in the wasteland. One of these cookbooks was found by Margaret Primrose of Tenpenny Tower, who attempted some of the recipes with mirelurk meat and served them to her customers, much to the dismay of Doctor Julius Banfield.^[10]

Weapons of Japanese ancestry have been reproduced by post-War weaponsmiths including the katana and throwing stars.

Some robots in the Commonwealth are programmed to speak the Japanese language. In 2282, Takahashi, a Protectron, has been set up to work at Power Noodles in Diamond City where the only thing he can say is "Nan-ni shimasu-ka?" (なんにしますか？), translated as "What will you have?" in Japanese; Mayor McDonough notes that this limited vocabulary could be due to malfunction, thus implying Takahashi can speak fluent Japanese. The Miss Nanny assigned to Vault 81, Curie can ask Takahashi about the menu if brought to his food stand. When he responds with his usual greeting, she will introduce herself to him in Japanese, saying "Watashi wa Curie desu" (私はキュリーです), meaning "I am Curie."

Japanese characters[]

• A man named Mr. Matsumoto worked at the H&H Tools factory in 2053.
• Kiyomi, Jonah Ito and Kaede Ito residing in Appalachia in 2103 have Japanese names. Additionally, Hailey Takano is said to live on the West Coast.
• Grandma Junko is of Japanese descent and resides in Appalachia in 2104.
• Toshiro Kago is unfrozen from his cryogenic suspension by the Lone Wanderer after their abduction from the Capital Wasteland by the Zetans in 2277, requesting help finding his sword.^[11]
• Paladin Sato of the Mojave Brotherhood has a last name of Japanese origin.
• The Nakano family in the Commonwealth, including mother Rei, father Kenji, grandfather Taichi, and daughter Kasumi, have names that are of Japanese origin as well as Kenji having a Japanese accent, though their origins are left unclear.

Appearances[]

Japan is mentioned in Fallout 2, Fallout 3 and its add-on Mothership Zeta, the Fallout: New Vegas add-on Gun Runners' Arsenal, Fallout Tactics, in Fallout 4 and in Fallout 76. It would have also appeared in the canceled Fallout Extreme.

Gallery[]

Kamikaze trait from Fallout

Ninja perk Vault Boy from Fallout 3 and Fallout: New Vegas

Ninja perk from Fallout 4, Fallout 76, and Fallout: The Roleplaying Game

Nuclear detonation over Japan by the U.S. in World War II, as depicted in the Fallout 4 intro

Battle of Iwo Jima, as depicted in the Museum of Freedom mural

Samureye, a member of the Hubris Comics villain group, The Diabolicals

The Yakuza

Toshiro Kago, a Japanese samurai

Wakizashi

Throwing stars

References[]

Non-game