Fallout: New Vegas modders recreate lost ‘Van Buren’ Pip-Boy design

In a nod to Fallout lore and the unofficial “Fallout Day” on October 23rd, the team behind the ambitious project Fallout: The New West has released a fresh take on the franchise’s iconic hardware. As reported by Rock Paper Shotgun, the modders have introduced a playable version of the “Lil Pip 3000,” a device pulled directly from the design documents of Van Buren, the cancelled third Fallout game originally developed by Black Isle Studios.

A new look for your wrist

The Lil Pip 3000 distinguishes itself from the bulky, established Pip-Boys found in other games with a more rounded, toy-like aesthetic. Most notably, the mod features custom animations that allow the lid to flip up when the player accesses the interface. According to the developers, the item is lore-connected to the Tibbets Prison location—an area the team has already built for their Van Buren project demo—and can be found in the Mojave Wasteland near Nipton on an unnamed ranger.

Beyond the wrist-mounted device, the team also dropped a Wattz Weapon Pack featuring five energy-based firearms, including a burst pistol featured in Van Buren. These weapons are designed to integrate seamlessly into the base game, with added support for the “Tale of Two Wastelands” mod, which allows the weapons to appear throughout both the Mojave and Capital Wasteland environments.

Technical requirements for installation

Players looking to add these items to their game will need to manage a significant list of dependencies. Both mods require the New Vegas Script Extender (NVSE), JIP LN NVSE Plugin, JohnnyGuitar NVSE, and the kNVSE Animation Plugin. The weapon pack adds further requirements, including the Gun Runners’ Arsenal DLC, ShowOff xNVSE Plugin, ISControl Enabler, and Sound Extender.

Why it matters

For Fallout: New Vegas players, these releases provide a rare opportunity to experience assets that were previously relegated to the cutting room floor of series history. The Lil Pip 3000 acts as a bridge between the classic, “what could have been” era of Van Buren and the modern New Vegas experience, giving long-time fans a fresh way to customize their character’s look.

Because these mods are standalone releases from an ongoing total conversion project, they offer a way to inject new content into your current playthrough without waiting for the full mod release. Players should ensure their mod load order is stable before installing, as the heavy reliance on script extenders and animation plugins makes these additions quite technically demanding.