Sci-Fi Countdown
Treating fictional timelines as if they were real future history.
Choose a story and event from the dropdown boxes to see a live countdown.
Explore live countdowns to major in-universe events from beloved science-fiction stories including Star Trek, Alien, Dune, Fallout, The Matrix, Blade Runner, and Terminator. Switch stories, pick events, and watch the timer tick towards (or away from) history.
Sci-Fi Timelines
Blog Entry 001
When I first started Sci-Fi Countdown, it was just a small project for fun—a way to bring together some of my favorite fictional timelines and imagine them as if they were real historical events. But once I began laying out the dates and watching the countdowns tick, I realized there’s actually a lot of scope to build on the idea. What began as a fan’s experiment has grown into something that can expand and evolve alongside the universes it celebrates.
One thing that really struck me while building the site is how many ‘future’ events from science fiction have already passed. Dates that once seemed impossibly far away are now in our rearview mirror. Comparing where those stories thought we’d be—flying cars, deep space travel, sentient machines—with where we actually are today says a lot about how we view progress as a civilization. Sometimes we’ve surpassed the old predictions, other times we’re still catching up, and often the fears or hopes of the past echo in surprising ways.
This site isn’t meant to be taken too seriously. It’s about fun, curiosity, and exploring science fiction through the lens of history. There will no doubt be errors along the way, and I’ll do my best to correct them as the project develops. Think of it as a living archive rather than a final word.
Looking ahead, I’m planning to add more titles and universes to the countdowns, as well as some extra sections that lean into the playful side of the concept. Science fiction has always thrived on expansion, and I want this site to reflect that spirit. Thanks for joining me at the start—there’s plenty more to come.