Slap on a Pip-boy and Fast Travel to the H-E-B Center: New Fallout Theme Takes over Saturday Night

(Credit: Texas Stars)

Theme nights like Star Wars night give minor league sports a fun and laid back charm. For the Stars, it means more than just throwing something together: a unique warm up jersey to raffle off or a simple player intro.

“It has to have enough elements to it, whether that's outside before the game, on the concourse, during the intermission, during the game,” Texas Stars Chief Operating Officer Michael Delay said. “Enough stuff that if you walk in after missing warm ups and the intro, you still know it's a theme night.”

In partnership with Bethesda Game Studios, the Stars will debut a new theme night based on the studio’s popular post-apocalyptic role playing game, Fallout. The video game series, which spans four iterations since 1997 and numerous spinoffs as well, was recently adapted into a hit show on Amazon Prime, adding to the popularity of the franchise. 

The series is known for its wacky scenes and scenarios, such as finding communities built from the ruins of Fenway Park or an old aircraft carrier, all the way to fanatical pre-war military robots defending the U.S.S. Constitution. The series has a plethora of original material for a memorable theme night. 

“If you put all this together, it's just a statement to the brand IP and brand strength at this point,” said Bethesda Brand Director Matt Clinkscales of the night. “We're just happy that there's a fandom enough, and we can celebrate with the fans.”

An admitted fan of the series, Delay heard about the Fallout Experience popup at SXSW earlier this year. Unable to attend the popup in person due to the Stars playing the San Jose Barracuda that weekend, Delay watched the highlight videos and saw a familiar face in the background: former Stars marketing manager Matt Clinkscales. 

The popup’s success sparked the idea for a theme night, so Delay reached out to Clinkscales to find out about approvals. Unbeknownst to him, Clinkscales was the exact individual who approves brand activations at Bethesda. 

After a conversation with Bethesda Executive Producer and Game Director Todd Howard and General Manager Jeff Moskowitz, the Stars were greenlit for the project. 

(Credit: Andy Nietupski/Texas Stars)

As if local connections could not get any tighter, Austin-based BattleCry studios, now Bethesda Game Studios Austin, is responsible for the development and current upkeep of Fallout’s only active game, Fallout 76. 

“It's awesome because in Austin, where the studio is, they're gonna do a Fallout night for the Stars, which is just super cool,” Clinkscales said. 

Looking from a pure numbers standpoint, unique and innovative theme nights have been very beneficial for the Stars, getting fans into seats and giving people their first hockey experience. 

“We did Jurassic Night last year, and the people who bought individual tickets through Ticketmaster, of the email addresses for accounts, about 40% of them were new to our database,” Delay said. 

The H-E-B Center will have a certain Fallout charm around the arena with themed concessions, advertising posters and Vault doors marking the section numbers in the stadium, setting the series' recognizable grungy aesthetic. 

For the night’s giveaway, fans can expect to receive a Stars Bottlecap pin, the currency used in the game, and themed fan video board engagement opportunities. The players will feature an Vault-Tec jumpsuit inspired warm up jersey, which will be raffled off for fans to bid on. 

“I hope this turns into the next long-term running promotion. And wouldn't it be fun if we were the first ones to do it?” said Delay. “We're going to have fun doing it, and I hope the fans like it.”

The Stars are set to don their jumpsuit-inspired jerseys for their second home series of the season when they face the Iowa Wild Saturday at 7 PM at the H-E-B Center at Cedar Park.