For some reason 4 is cripplingly addictive for me every time I pick it up but I can’t get into any of the others

New Vegas and 2 are the obvious choices, but I’m going to go out on a limb and say that 76 is third. Speaking as someone who didn’t enjoy 3 and 4, 76 fixes a lot of my gripes with those two games while simultaneously having some of the most creative world building in the series. The game taking place shortly after the bombs dropped makes Bethesda’s heavy focus on pre war America fit a lot nicer than everyone constantly talking about a war that happened 2 centuries ago in 3 and 4. The various factions, from the Responders to Foundation to the Cult of the Mothman, are creative and have a lot more depth than any faction or settlement in 3 or 4, and feel a lot more interconnected in the world. Appalachia is also just really awesome to explore

I really like the first game. Talking the master out of their plan is incredible and the game world is so interesting to discover. I learned a lot of new English words from it, and because the characters talk with slow text on the screen it is easy to follow compared with speech.

honestly probably fo4, though its a close match with fo3

the gameplay improvements and loop just entertains me for significantly longer, despite fallout 3 having better atmosphere, and fallout 4 having a lot of issues in practically every part of its design

at least besides far harbor, my beautiful baby boy