Fallout 3's iconic VATS system almost didn't make it into the RPG in time, and Bethesda was worried no one would even want to use it: "Is this even fun?"

Fallout 3 screenshot of someone in power armor standing in front of a rundown version of the Washington Monument.

After Morrowind and Oblivion, the difficulties Bethesda had in pivoting to sci-fi for Fallout 3 are well-documented. But one major thorn in the studio's side proved to be one of the apocalyptic RPG's most iconic features.

Speaking to Edge magazine, lead artist Istvan Pely says that the move from the fantasy of Oblivion to the science fiction of Fallout 3 "was a big pivot." The studio "had to prove that we could pull off a totally different genre, the opposite of fantasy." Fallout 3 remained "very much an RPG," but that could make for an unenviable situation for the player.