Primm

First things first: any bosh you’ve heard about Vikki and Vance being copycats ain’t nothing but ill-tempered slander. Fact is, they begun their crime spree two days before Bonnie and Clyde robbed their first bank – so who was copying who?
Primm Slim

Depending on how you played Fallout New Vegas, you may have spent a great deal of time in Primm – beating Powder Gangers to death with their own tire irons, climbing the roller coaster, doing it with that random NCR dude (wait that was only me?) and other exciting exploits. And depending on your own wasteland itinerary, you may pass through Primm several times since it is right on I-15.

Primm is a tiny oasis of casinos and shops, the last large commercial area before heading into the Mojave Desert Preserve. A distinction to keep in mind is that the entire area in which the game takes place is considered the Mojave Desert, but there is also an official protected area called the Mojave National Preserve, which is south of Nevada State Route 164.

Locations

# 136 – Primm
# 196 – Vikki and Vance Casino
# 197 – Bison Steve Casino
# 198 – Mojave Express / Nash residence
# 398 – Deputy Beagle residence
# 399 – NCR tent
# 400 – Primm house
# 401 – Primm Sheriff’s office

Location Details

# 136 – Primm – The town of Primm will be on your left hand side if you are heading south on the I-15. You really can not miss it, as there are one billion signs for it and it is really the only commercial area between Jean and Mountain Pass.

SPEAKING OF SIGNS you will be overjoyed to see a few familiar sights – the state line welcome signs! In the game, they are located in Nipton in game. Look at how accurate they are! The state line runs at a diagonal, passing by both Primm and Nipton.

I was filled with such unbelievable joy at this sight! Definitely an honorable mention. I should also say that just based on the location of the towns, the state lines are also right outside of Nipton, correctly to the east in game as well (although the railroad tracks are to the west).

Addendum: As of January 2020, the Nevada state signs have changed both outside of Primm and Nipton. Boo.

# 196 – Vikki and Vance Casino – The first time I visited the casino, I was most interested in seeing the Vikki and Vance death car, which is at the Vikki and Vance Casino, or the real world Bonnie and Clyde death care at Whiskey Pete’s casino. When you first enter this casino, your senses will be ambushed with the smell of what could only be billions of previously-smoked cigarettes. But power through!

The casino is just as dimly lit as seen in game, the main floor peppered with flashing slot machines and zombified patrons. The death care is located in the back left corner of the casino. I am surprised they tucked the coolest part of this casino like an afterthought in the very back. Maybe they want to make sure you walk past all the slot machines first. Clever.

As an aside, I followed the Primm Valley Casino on Facebook and answered this Jeopardy question. Looks like I am the only one to answer correctly. Obviously these people didn’t listen to Primm Slim’s extensive exposition dump. Also the inscription makes me laugh every time ….. “and remembered to reload!”

# 197 – Bison Steve Hotel – Across the street in both worlds is the Bison Steve, or Buffalo Bill’s Resort and Casino in our world. It features the same smell as Whiskey Pete’s but has a buffalo shaped pool. It also has the pièce de résistance, the massive roller coaster coiling around and flanking the building on each side.

I found out the rollercoaster is called The Desperado. In the game it is called the El Diablo. In our world it had as price tag of $30 million dollars to build, and so far it made ZERO dollars from me because for unknown reasons, it has been closed each time I ask.

But then I thought, well, this makes the trip even more immersive, because the rollercoaster in game was blown up and not operational, too. Thankfully no one was trying to snipe me from it, though.

Also in hindsight, I remembered I do not like to ride roller coasters, but I would ride this one because it is special, I’d like to think.

If present in our world, a few locations would be found here, including # 398 – Deputy Beagle’s residence, # 399 – NCR tent, # 400 – Primm house, and # 401 – Primm sheriff’s office.

# 198 – Nash residence – There was not a post office here, or any private residences to the best of my knowledge. I drove around the perimeter of Primm a few times to make sure I was not missing anything. The outskirts just consist of the shipping and receiving areas of the casinos and mall as well as parking. Thankfully, I also did not find Daniel Wyand, fellow Courier who did not survive the same injuries I personally sustained.