Fallout 4 meatball has died in the real world: this was River, the dog that won our hearts

The charismatic German Shepherd was one of the great exponents of the Bethesda sandbox.

Fans of the Fallout saga know well that the Wasteland hides all kinds of horrible creatures, but one that everyone loves and that never misses the date is Meatball : a faithful dog that acts as a companion during our adventures. Sadly, River , the female German Shepherd who “played” our canine comrade in Fallout 4 , has passed away.

This was communicated on Twitter by developer Joel Burgess, who is logically heartbroken by the news, but takes the opportunity to talk to fans about what the Fallout 4 Meatball really was like. According to his interesting thread, his main concern was that the dog ended up being a weapon or combative resource without more, which is why there was a lot of emphasis on working on his personality and his charms.

“At first, it was not obvious that River would be our model” explains the creative. “We started by studying professional dogs, the kind that appear in movies or train with the police.” However, as the dog attended “Meatball team” meetings – which as fun as it sounds, makes sense for a developmental setting – her co-workers ended up seeing her as a feasible character, ” a friend ” says .

That is why the three-dimensional model of the character, as well as their expressions, sounds and behavior patterns, are replicas of the real River. “He was an exceptionally kind and patient dog, ” adds Burgess. Distinctive traits such as their tendency to stray and then seek out their owner and return to him were replicated in the game as well. In fact, in combat, Meatball’s role ended up being to protect the player by immobilizing their opponents rather than just finishing them off.

Fallout 4 had mixed opinions from the press and fans at the time, but Meatball was always well received and won an award on The CW for the best dog in video games.

More on: Fallout 4 and Bethesda .