So NMA had an hand in its development, but then criticized it at release?
Yes, because they don't like their own shit. This isn't some unknown thing. It's been known for years.
Listen, you've been here since 2017 so let me clue you in a few things. Fallout was a dead franchise in 2004. It had been dead for 6 years. Nobody gave a shit about it. Around the early 2000s, gaming hit the mainstream in far greater capacities than it had ever done before.
In 2008, Bethesda released Fallout 3. Many of the people who bought Fallout 3 were TES fans and the game was designed a lot like Oblivion, hence why some on here called it "Oblivion with Guns". This also gave rise to a new generation of Fallout fans who brought Fallout into the mainstream.
Take a look at old YouTube comments from 2008/2009/2010 of "Fallout 1/2 gameplay". You will find that many of the most liked, commented on and top comments were "Wtf is this?", "this was Fallout?", "I didn't even know there was a Fallout 1 or 2". Fallout 3 was that popular, that majority of it's fanbase didn't even know of the first two games. They were ancient history by then.
The Vault Boy thumbs up icon is a cultural icon now. I always see it in PowerPoint presentations and some people who don't even play Fallout know of the Vault Boy's existence.
So Fallout 3 single-handedly, without a doubt, caused Fallout to be pushed into mainstream pop culture. Celebrities talked about it, the New Vegas party was hosted on Kim Kardashian's birthday, Matthew Perry was very vocal about his adoration for the game.
NMA hated this. They hated it so much they purposely spread misinformation about the game and threatened the lives of Bethesda employees.
Look at Fallout 3 and New Vegas now. People still talk about these games. They're still relevant within gaming culture today. They're both a decade old. In 2008, Fallout 1/2 were also a decade old. But they were about as relevant as pocket watches are to the contemporary fashion scene.