I'm wondering why things in the Fallout Universe are so complicated. Nuka-Cola Quantum was an engineered soda, enhanced with radioactive isotopes to make it glow.

Why couldn't the developers of Nuka-Cola just use food coloring to make their soda blue, then spend (MUCH LESS) money (than enhancing their soda) to make the containers have tiny white lights on the bottom to illuminate the blue soda to give it a glowing effect? Seems a lot easier than giving people glowing pee and stuff.

What are some other overly complicated things you've noticed in Fallout?

because then it wouldn't be very SCIENCE! then now would it?

That's logical and true, but... on the other hand, why not? Considering the pre-War "optimistic" and fancy policy... Besides, the nuclear power hysteria might have created a trend to buy anything that was enhanced with atomic power. So, glowing pee was fashionable Who knows?
Actually, when I take a look at the ingredient list of most of the soft drinks available, I start to think that even radioactive strontium wouldn't surprise me one day...

Was it not explained in the game? If not I wouldn't be supprised, very little was. They wanted Nuka-Cola Quantum to glow blue in the dark. Food colouring would not do that. It was also under engineered backs it was killing people.

Tiny lights sounds a wee bit more complicated than dumping nuclear waste product in your soda.