Sunset Sarsaparilla

In the post-apocalyptic American wasteland of 2280, the options for quenching one’s thirst are essentially limited to three beverages: purified water, radioactive water, and Nuka-cola (also radioactive).

In certain regions of the southwest, however, the bleak and brutal existence of wastelanders is marginally brightened by an alternative soda called Sunset Sarsaparilla.   Although known to cause kidney damage,  digital numbness, anxiety, loss of visual acuity, occasional nosebleeds, organ rupture, and halitosis, the healing properties of the Xander root component serve to keep this drink a regional favorite – especially in the New Vegas area.

Since the release of Fallout: New Vegas last month, I’ve been watching for a real-life bottle of Sunset Sarsaparilla to pop up on the grid. Either my Google search agent has a fatal flaw in its Boolean logic, or no other geeks have yet been able to pry themselves from the game for long enough to design the IRL labels for this digital consumable.  Do I have to do everything myself?

By the way, you see how I made them look dirty?  That’s because of the apocalypse.

The back story of this imaginary brand plays a major role in the gameplay and story arc of Fallout: New Vegas – substantially more so than the Fallout franchise’s other branded power-ups. The spooky history of Sunset Sarsaparilla is told in-game by Festus, the brand’s animatronic spokesbot. See the video below to get the whole scoop.

Thanks to YouTube user McLNarf for the video upload.

Tagged as: beverages, video, VIDEO GAMES