Fallout: Equestria

{{Infobox book

| name = Fallout: Equestria

| image = Fallout Equestria.png

| author = Kkat (pen name)

| language = English

| genre = Post-apocalyptic, atompunk, sci-fantasy, supernatural fiction

| media_type = Fan fiction

| pub_date = April 12, 2011

| pages = 2,062

| website = https://fallout-equestria.com

}}

Fallout: Equestria is a post-apocalyptic fan fiction novel based on the Fallout and My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic series. It was originally published by pseudonymous user Kkat on April 12, 2011.{{Cite book|chapter=Introduction: fiction, invention and hyper-reality in new religions and spiritualities|date=2016-11-18|chapter-url=https://www.taylorfrancis.com/chapters/edit/10.4324/9781315582283-6/introduction-fiction-invention-hyper-reality-new-religions-spiritualities-carole-cusack-pavol-kosnácˇ|doi=10.4324/9781315582283-6 |title=Fiction, Invention and Hyper-reality|pages=15–26|location=New York |publisher= Routledge|isbn=978-1-315-58228-3|access-date=2021-07-09|first1=Carole M. |last1=Cusack|first2= Pavol|last2= Kosnáč|editor-first1=Carole M. |editor-last1=Cusack|editor-first2= Pavol|editor-last2= Kosnáč}} It is split into five volumes, totalling 620,000 words across more than 2,000 pages. The novel has been published as an ebook, an audiobook, and also as a physical hardcover novel.{{Cite web|date=2013-01-31|title=What's real anymore? My Little Pony / Fallout novels|url=https://www.destructoid.com/whats-real-anymore-my-little-pony-fallout-novels/|access-date=2021-07-09|website=Destructoid|last1=Ponce|first1=Tony}} The novel is considered to be one of the most popular My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic fanworks, having developed a large following of its own.{{Cite news|date=2012-10-08|title=Behind 'Fallout: Equestria,' the ultimate 'My Little Pony' tribute|work=The Daily Dot|url=https://www.dailydot.com/unclick/fallout-equestria-fim-kkat-interview/|access-date=2021-07-09|last1=Orsini|first1=Lauren Rae}}

Synopsis

The series is a transformative fanwork, based on the Fallout video game franchise and the animated series My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic.{{Cite journal|last=Peck-Suzuki|first=Theo A.|date=2016|title=Cuteness, friendship, and identity in the brony community|journal=Transformative Works and Cultures|volume=22|url=https://journal.transformativeworks.org/index.php/twc/article/view/674|doi=10.3983/twc.2016.0674|doi-access=free}} Fallout: Equestria places the magical ponies of the Friendship Is Magic franchise within the post-apocalyptic setting of the Fallout games. In the novel, the fictional world of Equestria enters a resource war with the Zebra Empire. The resulting conflict leaves both continents as mutant-filled wastelands, with survivors living in underground fallout shelters called "Stables". Within this setting, the novel combines various cyberpunk, atompunk and retrofuturistic elements with the fantasy elements of Friendship Is Magic. The incorporation of more violent and mature content contributes to a darker overall tone than the Friendship Is Magic source material.{{Cite book|last1=Edwards|first1=Patrick|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Pb6tDwAAQBAJ&dq=fallout+equestria&pg=PA290|title=Meet the Bronies: The Psychology of the Adult My Little Pony Fandom|last2=Chadborn|first2=Daniel P.|last3=Plante|first3=Courtney N.|date=2019-08-28|publisher=McFarland|isbn=978-1-4766-6371-5|pages=94|language=en}}

Reception and influence

The novel is considered to be a major cornerstone of the My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic fandom, due to its scale and popularity. This has been reflected in the immense amount of fanworks that have been undertaken since 2012, including music, fan art and non-canonical spin offs or side stories. A fanmade video game based on the novel was developed by The Overmare Studios, titled Ashes of Equestria. It was originally considered a mod, but eventually became a stand-alone project, which is still in production. It uses a modified version of the 3D graphic engine Unity; however, there has been some confusion regarding it, as it looks similar to the Gamebryo engine used for Fallout 3, a game developed by Bethesda Game Studios.{{Cite book|last=Connelly|first=Sherilyn|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=yXRPDgAAQBAJ&q=fallout|title=Ponyville Confidential: The History and Culture of My Little Pony, 1981-2016|date=2017-03-21|publisher=McFarland|isbn=978-1-4766-2686-4|language=en}} Zachary D. Palmer, in an article for the journal Men and Masculinities, discussed the fandom around the novel as an outlet for male fans of My Little Pony to combine traditionally masculine interests like guns and first-person shooter games with the more traditionally feminine content of the original series.{{Cite journal |last=Palmer |first=Zachary D. |date=April 2022 |title="I'm Going to Love and Tolerate the Shit Out of You": Hybrid Masculinities in the Brony Community |url=http://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/1097184X211031969 |journal=Men and Masculinities |language=en |volume=25 |issue=1 |pages=87–105 |doi=10.1177/1097184X211031969 |s2cid=237771912 |issn=1097-184X|url-access=subscription }}

Fallout: Equestria was the theme of the 2017 Trotcon, a convention based on the show in Columbus, Ohio.{{Cite thesis|last=Palmer|first=Zachary D.|date=2019|title=Gender in Equestria: An Examination of Reconstituted Form of Masculinity and Their Consequences for Gender Relations in the Brony Community|publisher=Purdue University Graduate School|type=PhD}} As of 2012, the novel has been translated into seven languages, and had inspired fanworks and fanart. Despite the popularity of Fallout: Equestria, the novel's author has remained anonymous, choosing not to reveal their real name or gender.