The introduction to Gamma World is rather particular for a game set in a post-apocalyptic future, especially if you consider the fiction of reference and the fact it was written during the Cold War years. Most movies and cartoons, in fact, refer either to world war, corporation madness or natural disaster to explain the reason why the world is plunged into chaos. When I first read through it, I was expecting to immediately think of Mad Max, or 1990: The Bronx Warriors, or some other early 80's b-movie; but the first one that spot into my mind was Twelve Monkeys. And that is strange, since the net always sold me on GW as easy-peasy gonzo stuff. To be honest, the first impression is that the authors were quite ingenue, and that the game is not about serious thoughts on imaginative fallout, but also that it leaves some rooms for some more adult rolegaming.
Long story short, the Gamma World universe is the result of a feud between several extremist groups, which turned into terroristic cells committed to destroy each others. So no big wars and no asteroids rain: the one thing that caused the apocalypse is the fact men were willing to oblige other men to follow their way. I find this surprisingly actual, especially after ten years of open war against terrorism.
Another interesting aspect is that the focus of the Introduction is not much on mutations, which are barely hinted, but way more on the actual situation of the world. Interestingly enough, the cryptic alliances are immediately introduced, making it clear that Gamma World is not only a game about exploring, killing and looting, but that it also leaves rooms for some politics and ideology contrasts. I will try to focus a bit more on the cryptic alliances concept, which I find quite original and attention worthing.
