Unmarked Spoilers, read at your own risk!
You may want to get comfy. This game has a lot to offer.
General
- The atmosphere of the game is very bleak, to say the least. Crumbling ruins, stranded ships, crashed planes and the knowledge that people lived normal lives in what is now a desolate hellscape.
- Max does not fuck around when it comes to fighting, every punch - even his lightest jab - is meant to kill, not scare, wound or harm, just kill. The sheer brutality of his blows is made clear by each of them doing a very sound Sickening "Crunch!".
- Scabrous Scrotus, the primary antagonist of the game, is a hulking, muscular brute of a man that makes his father, Immortan Joe, look like a pushover. His War Boys have made the wasteland even worse than it already was with their roving war parties and massive "scarecrows" - flaming totem poles made of scrap metal and human corpses. He is perpetually angry, responds to any obstacle with extreme violence and wears a razor-sharp codpiece that makes it look like he has an elephant's tusk between his legs. And he only gets worse after he somehow survives getting his brain torn in half by a chainsaw.
- Jeet is a "ferret-like" young man that rules over his share of the dry seabed, prone to angry outbursts and terrible migraines. Because of the lack of medicine, he remedies these problems by threading arrowheads into his skin. And that's not mentioning the gigantic mass of scar tissue that covers half of his body.
- Gutgash is a haggard, cynical old man and the head of a large water cult that believe the seas will return one day. It's implied that he knows this to be completely untrue and while he is slightly less hostile than Jeet, he has no qualms whatsoever against buying and owning slaves. Including children.
- Stank Gum is the post-apocalyptic version of Leatherface. He wears the faces of his victims on his own and cuts fiendish symbols into himself with knives and syringes he uses for torture and sexual purposes. He gets his name from his complete lack of oral hygiene, his bio describing his teeth as "little black nails". Not to mention his habit of collecting skin, scalps, hair and ears.Stank Gum: Out here I do master Scrotus' bidding, but the pleasure of the peel is all mine!
- The Outcrier is the announcer and master of ceremonies for the lethal Gastown Races. While admittedly, his enthusiasm and extravagant habit of decorating himself with Christmas lights are somewhat uplifting, he carries his hapless "lover," 'Lectricy Boy around with him on a leash to keep his lights and speakers on with a portable generator. By his sullen disposition and the way the Outcrier yanks him around like a stubborn dog, it's doubtful that their relationship is consensual.
- Griffa is a wandering mystic with absolutely zero backstory aside from his fixation on Max and willingness to help him face his inner demons. Wherever he is found, the screen turns an odd tint, ethereal screams are heard in the far distance and images of atomic shockwaves, corpses and salamanders appear on every surface in the style of Aboriginal cave paintings. As soon as you upgrade Max's abilities after talking with him, Griffa and his "hauntings" disappear. What does he want? Where does he come from? And is he even real?
- The only known surgeon in the wasteland is the aptly-named Abdominus, Gastown's resident "organic mechanic." His loud, slurring bark of a voice is bad enough, but whether or not he saves your life or saws you apart depends on how much nitrous oxide he's been huffing. His tenure in Gastown's "Underbelly" stems from an incident where he got so stoned that he accidentally left a War Boy burn to death on his operating table.
- His "bloodbag," Scab, is a disgraced War Boy driven mad by his hatred for his former master. After his blood is used to revive Max for his final fight against Scrotus, Scab starts screaming his lungs out for vengeance.
Scab: MY BLOOD COMES FOR YOU!!! - With no arable land or livestock to be found, wastelanders now subside on a diet of insects, molluscs, grease, rats, lizards, dogs, dog food, maggot gruel, and sometimes, just sometimes, each other.Max: We do not eat the long pig.
- Deep Friah runs a pyromaniacal cult just outside of Gastown, where his deranged followers aspire to cleanse themselves by burning themselves alive. The only reason Scrotus hasn't wiped them out is that his unhinged preaching keeps the Gastown residents relatively docile.
- One of Scrotus' Top Dogs, Stump Grinder, is a sadistic eunuch and dedicated necrophile (all but outright stated by the corpses on his bed and his threats to Max) that enjoys compensating for his loss by returning the favour to anyone who gets in his way.
- The Top Dog Pig'n'Sticker isn't much better: a foul-smelling master torturer who practices on his own War Boys.
- And then there's Gut Noose. Formerly known as Dog Food, he earned his title in a gladiatorial arena by strangling his foes with their own entrails.
- For some reason, Glory's bio page makes it look like she has an adult's head on her child body.
- Stank Gum tortures Chumbucket into revealing the location of Max's newfound "family" under Scrotus' orders, throwing Max into a blind rage while Chumbucket is left howling to the Angel Combustion for forgiveness. By the time Max arrives at Deep Friah's stronghold, Glory and Hope are barely alive from whatever hell Scrotus put them through and they die in Max's arms. And, just like that, Max's grip on reality is shattered into pieces.
The Wasteland
- Many wastelanders have taken a shine to string up seared, dismembered corpses around their territories like wind-chimes. Fun.
- Taken further with the Scarecrows, flaming beacons with dozens of corpses strapped to them, designed to intimidate those who'd dare challenge Scrotus. The massive ones even feature branches with even more corpses strapped on.
- Found in numerous camps are bathtubs filled with blood and body parts used to farm maggots for food. One Stronghold Upgrade is just a bunch of plastic containers filled with maggots and dead flesh. Also, Max can eat maggots right out of CORPSES to refill his health.
- The living conditions seen across the camps and strongholds make the Fallout universe look snug and cozy. People have been reduced to sleeping in tires and eating maggot gruel, marching across miles of scorching sand in search of water and spending much of their free time either staring into space or stoned out of their minds on gas fumes. And none of them look like they have ever bathed. Their only real pastime is either watching or entering violent "death runs."
- In Gutgash's territory, there is a hidden cave that is filled with rotting, torn-up corpses piled up against the walls and hung from the ceiling. At the end is a torch-lit, blood-stained "throne" upon which sits an upright skeleton wearing a ram-horned helmet. All surrounded by shelves of skulls and lanterns. Just get the appropriately-placed Maggot Farm project part and nope it on out.Max: Who was this guy?
- One History Relic can be found in an old shipping container. As you approach, you will hear the disgusting sound of bones and flesh being chewed. Inside are Feral War Boys eating from a huge pile of rotting corpses like a pack of wolves. Worst of all, due to a glitch, you can still hear the noise even after killing them all! It gets better if you have the Playstation 4 version: you hear it through your controller's speakers!Max: Oh no.
- In the Dunes, a church lays buried beneath the sand with only its steeple exposed. Inside is a dark, deserted nave littered with bones, complete with catacombs that Max must venture into to secure a forgotten stash of canned food. It's absolutely dark, there are no enemies and even your flashlight fizzles out temporarily. As you make your way back up to the surface, you start hearing the baleful howling of Buzzards in the distance, ready for blood.
- Way, way out in the Dunes, there's a buried suburban house packed with sad and scary things. Including a dead Buzzard propped against the wall on a bed, refrigerator magnets spelling "I miss my friends," a skeleton in a bathtub, a banner reading "there is still time!" and a fireplace with a roaring fire. We doubt you'll want to stay there for long.
- Everything about Gastown, part of the wasteland's "power triangle" between the Citadel and the Bullet Farm. It's a settlement built in a functional oil refinery, surrounded by a moat of black sludge, visible for miles thanks to its blazing flames and pillars of smoke. Everything is stained with oil, grease and soot, its residents live and toil in filth and are threatened with beatings, murder and even rape if they fall out of line. So why do people insist on living in this hellhole? Because outside, there is only chaos.
- The Underdune is a major airport buried beneath the sands and used as the main hideout for the Buzzards. Rusted spikes, explosive traps, torches and the original building's architecture makes it look more like the inside of some huge, nightmarish beast. Worst of all, its inhabitants don't even bother to attack you at first. Instead, staring at you before running away as soon as you get within twenty feet of them. Then, as soon as you get the "lighties" (Christmas lights) for the Outcrier, the windows and doors around you slam shut and the Buzzards finally show up to fight en masse.
- The Big Nothing. Nothing but flat, lifeless sand that was once the Pacific Ocean where only death and violent sandstorms await you. At the very edge of the map, looking into the horizon, you can't help but wonder what lies beyond it.
- Ferals are mentally damaged War Boys who have been raised and treated like dogs, and seeing three of them coming at you at once is nothing short of horrifying.
- At the Storm Shelter camp, right before you enter one door you can hear a bunch of them screaming and snarling on the other side of the door to the next area you need to enter.
- Arguably even worse are their Buzzard and Roadkill equivalents, Ghosts and Feral Blasters respectively. Ghosts are described as "former Buzzards lost to the and rejected by their clan", who prowl around in dark environments for fresh victims to feast upon. Feral Blasters are documented as being "bred by Roadkills to essentially become human bombs", wearing armour that is completely festooned with explosive soda cans, which are then ignited via firecracker before the Blaster throws themselves at the enemy in a suicidal rush.
History Relics
- History Relics are collectible signs and photographs of life before and during the collapse of civilization, almost always with writing on the back for context. They are a disturbing, sobering reminder of how much was lost in the Fall and a warning of what our real-life future may hold if we do not take care of our planet. Complete with riots, anarchy, famine, plague, mass extinction and even the world's shrinking oceans leaving its dead sea life to rot in the sun. Max's commentary on these photographs drive home just how lost he truly is.
- A photo of Max's (alleged) wife and daughter, wishing him to come home soon.
"Will I... Will I ever come back?"- A photo of a little boy on a big wheel, the caption lamenting that he grew up to be one of the first to go feral during the fall of civilization.
"I guess he must have made it, then."- A photo of a home that later had a plane crash into it.
"Soon they all came down. One by one."- A photo of two toilet bowls next to each other.
"There was a time we polluted even clean water."- A photo of a little girl and her pet dog, the caption saying he was so cute they could just eat him up.
"They didn't eat dogs back then."- A photo of a snowman with the caption warning of people planting explosives in them as traps.
"I can't remember the innocence of snow. Or men. - The Fall was plagued (no pun intended) with numerous diseases, with children having to go to school completely bald to prevent the spread of lice. Even herds of livestock were hosts to deadly pathogens.
- One Relic describes a man who roots through mass graves and uses human teeth to make dentures. Eugh.
- One photo shows a picture of some delicious looking barbecue. The person writing on the back states it's delicious, and that he can't believe his friend found meat of this quality given the growing scarcity. They then go on to mention their friend seemed to be in good spirits after their wife Angie left them. Put two and two together."People ate their fill and then threw out the rest."
- Several entries describe the famines that ensued, with people going so far as to kill horses, pigeons, cats and dogs for meat - which Max refers to as luxuries. One Relic shows a fruit stand kept by someone as a reminder of when fresh food was plentiful."NO BUTTER! NO POTATOES! NO MEAT!"
