With its third episode, “The Profligate”, Fallout season 2 continues the show’s trend of incorporating key characters, locations, and story elements from the video game franchise. “The Profligate” began broaching major New Vegas factions in earnest as the Ghoul reached out to the New California Republic for help rescuing Lucy from Caesar’s Legion.
Yet when the Ghoul visited the NCR’s Camp Golf, it was empty, as if its soldiers simply abandoned it. Instead of troops, the Ghoul came face to face with another, more mysterious character who will be familiar to New Vegas players: the cowboy Securitron, Victor.
Victor’s Role In Fallout: New Vegas
Victor in Fallout: New Vegas
The story of Fallout: New Vegas begins with the player character, a Courier, being dug up after a botched assassination and nursed back to health in the tiny desert town of Goodsprings. When the Courier is well enough to explore, they quickly encounter Victor rolling around Goodsprings, who will happily explain that he just happened to stumble upon the Courier and save their life.
As the Courier explores the Mojave, they will continue to run into Victor — it happens often enough that the Courier can be prompted to ask if Victor is following them. He comes across as friendly and harmless, but his demeanor and presence are just off-putting enough that, throughout most of the gameplay, he is one of New Vegas’ bigger mysteries.
The game’s final quests, where the Courier enters Mr. House’s Lucky 38 casino, confirm that Victor is one of House’s creations, programmed to patrol the Mojave and oversee the return of the all-important Platinum Chip.
Why Was Victor At An NCR Camp In Fallout Season 2?
Victor in Fallout Season 2
The Ghoul’s exploration of Camp Golf in “The Profligate” raises both questions and answers. In terms of the NCR, it confirms what much of season 1 alluded to: the New California Republic has been struggling in the years following the events of New Vegas. Yet what exactly happened remains unclear; Fallout season 2 has shown that the NCR has many enemies.
Both Caesar’s Legion and the Brotherhood of Steel are at odds with the NCR, but the TV series has suggested that Vault-Tec and Mr. House — who seem to be working together — may be the faction’s biggest threat. The NCR’s former capital, Shady Sands, was nuked by Vault Tec’s Hank, who used Robert House’s mind control technology to smuggle the bomb inside the town.
The presence of Victor, another one of House’s creations, in what was formerly a major NCR outpost, contributes to the idea that Vault-Tec and RobCo have played a big role in the NCR’s significantly weakened state. However, what exactly Victor was doing there and how it led to the abandonment of Camp Golf remains a mystery.
The scene raised an even bigger ongoing question for the series as the Ghoul and Victor were clearly familiar — and uneasy — with each other. The Ghoul went on to demonstrate a relationship with what little is left of the NCR, though what the Ghoul, the NCR, and Victor have all done in the years leading up to the events of the series has yet to be unspooled.
Is Victor A Good Guy?
The Ghoul looking at Mr House in Fallout season 2
Ultimately, Victor can only do what he’s programmed to do. But given that he’s programmed by the cold and murderous Robert House, it’s pretty safe to assume that there’s more to the story whenever he’s around. In New Vegas, it was far from a coincidence that Victor was nearby when the Courier was attacked, and the same goes for every run-in after.
Yet Victor doesn’t reveal his true intentions to the Courier or the townsfolk of Goodspings, positing himself as a harmless guy just rolling around, happy to help. And while he claims to be “helpful”, he doesn’t help defend Goodsprings when needed, and the townsfolk report that while they’ve seen him around often, he hasn’t made a positive contribution to the town.
The secrets that lie beneath his out-of-place demeanor, and the fact that he only engages with the world when it benefits his larger goal, make him an ominous figure who eventually proves to be something akin to a henchman of the villainous House, who created Victor to essentially function as a Wasteland spy. His charming persona is indeed meant to be deceptive.
Whatever House has had Victor doing in the 15 years since New Vegas, it most likely isn’t for the greater good of the Wasteland. And despite his gruff exterior, Fallout season 2 has demonstrated that the Ghoul has a strong, albeit practical, moral center. If the Ghoul is wary of Victor, we should be too.
Release Date
April 10, 2024
Showrunner
Lisa Joy, Jonathan Nolan
Writers
Lisa Joy, Jonathan Nolan
