Announced at Bethesda's E3 2019 showcase, Fallout 76 will be obtaining its huge Wastelanders update early next year, which will add a main campaign storyline and NPCs to the game. Fans appear to have obtained an early taste of what is to come, as Bethesda's Fallout website has teased a few of its NPC characters that are coming with the release of the Wastelanders update. Big changes are on the horizon, and it is perhaps exactly what Fallout 76 needs to revitalize itself and move out of the turbulence which has plagued its first year on the market.
At Fallout 76's Vault 76, where the game begins and where players can return to anytime, NPCs named Lacey and Isela will be found here, once the Wastelanders update is released. They will be waiting for players to take up their requests in obtaining information and answers. What they are after is not yet clear, but they will direct players to The Wayward in hopes of obtaining further information.
The Wayward, one of many new encampments coming soon, will be a a "fledgling watering hole" near the Overseer's C.A.M.P. in the Forest, where players will meet NPC characters in Fallout 76 called Duchess and Mort. Duchess will be the hard working owner of The Wayward, selling various drinks to adventurers in Appalachia, and requesting help from players over concerns of aggressive visitors stopping by lately.
Mort is described as being a Ghoul and a loyal customer, regularly spending lots of time in The Wayward, drinking plenty, and helping out the Duchess in any way he can, perhaps to lower his bar tab. Being well versed in the surrounding areas, Mort will seemingly help players figure out how to manage, operate, and setup C.A.M.P.s.
In addition to NPCs that will inhabit many current locations, Bethesda confirms that many locations will also be "built up" as the populace grows in the Wasteland and people move in, in the storyline, as the times will clearly be changing. Bethesda describes the Wasteland as feeling much more lively, with NPCs going "about their daily lives."
Certainly, NPCs and a main campaign are perhaps the most welcome addition to Fallout 76 yet, given it was one of the main complaints many players had when Fallout 76 first released. Fallout 76 is often described as a light online-survival game, and in many cases it is a niche genre of games that typically do not have NPCs.
Fallout 76 was unfamiliar gaming territory for many fans, who partly desired a game that would revolve around gameplay elements that exist on more familiar grounds for Fallout, including a main campaign storyline, and NPCs to talk to. This is especially true for players who prefer a more solo experience.
Whether NPCs and a main storyline can breath new life into Fallout 76 remains to be seen, and it depends on a number of key factors. First, it depends how much depth the NPC and quest system will have. To date, Bethesda has only confirmed a main campaign, but side-quests remain more ambiguous right now. Even better, if Bethesda can keep content fresh with new quests and a more dynamic world that changes regularly, then there is potential for excitement among Fallout fans who may not quite be ready to give the game a second chance. However, given the negative stigma of Fallout 76's initial launch, it still has an uphill battle to win back hearts and minds, as well as new ones.
At the same time, fans are likely willing to make compromises as well, if Bethesda can deliver strongly with Wastelanders. Also, first impressions and delivery matters, so the way in which the Wastelanders is marketed will also be crucial in establishing a hopeful second chance for Fallout 76. To date, Bethesda has also delayed its launch on Steam until it can launch closer to the release date of Wastelanders.
This could be a smart move in order to simultaneously present Fallout 76 as both a new game on Steam under a new package called Wastelanders. This will give a subtle impression that it is a reboot of the game, rather than just an old game ported to Steam. Perhaps Bethesda should even present the Wastelanders as more of a free expansion, rather than a mere update, or even present it as something akin to a Fallout 76 2.0.
Fallout 76 certainly had its problems at launch, and is still plagued with plenty more. It was also a classic case of a beloved franchise that stepped too far out of its familiar territory, which is always a controversial and risky business move. With too strong of a change, there is always turbulence and some levels of resistance to the change, which can create negative buzz as a consequence. However, Fallout 76 can learn a lot by looking at other online games that had turbulent launches, of which fans warmed up to over the years.
Elder Scrolls Online, also a Bethesda game, is perhaps the most relevant example of a game with a bumpy launch initially, but has aged very well and become a major success. When Elder Scrolls Online first launched, it drew lots of criticism and mixed opinions among gamers, and perhaps those most critical were the most loyal to Elder Scrolls' main single player games. These loyalists felt the Online iteration deviated from many of Elder Scrolls' traditional hallmarks and staples, such as the detail of which one could interact with the environment, which is a difficult standard to live up to in an online MMORPG from a development standpoint.
The criticism was a mix of legitimate complaints and impossible expectations for an online game to meet. Over time, the fanbase came to more realistic expectations, while Elder Scrolls Online's developers listened to its community, and wasted no time over the next few years to make necessary fixes and adjustments to appease players. Adding plenty of new content in addition to that was also key, but that alone will not save a game. Today, Elder Scrolls Online is considered a major success, with one of the strongest online communities among MMORPGs to date, with estimates counting over 13 million players and over 2 million players joining the game community in the last year alone.
Destiny is another example of a game with a rocky start. Perhaps Destiny was a game that gave a stellar first impression, but turned out to be something different. Many fans believed Destiny was going to be the online First-Person-Shooter and Sci-Fi answer to Skyrim and MMORPGs in general. Many expected huge open worlds of expansive proportions, and when the game's core system turned out to be something more contained in scope, it did not sit well with many fans.
But over time, fans warmed up to Destiny, as plenty more content was added and expectations for what the game would be more closely synchronized with what it actually was trying to be in reality, which resulted in a more content player base. Again, Destiny is a huge success today, and its sequel, Destiny 2, delivered on a lot of key ingredients which were lacking in the first game, especially in delivering stronger storytelling.
In looking at the examples of Destiny and Elder Scrolls Online, both of which made successful comebacks, fans should have some measure of relief that there is room to hold out for hope in Fallout 76 being redeemed and saved. The Wastelanders update could be the second chance Fallout 76 needs, but it may be its last chance too. Therefore, Bethesda should take all the time it needs to deliver something that will surely be a game changer.
Fallout 76 is out now for PC, PS4, and Xbox One, with its Wastelanders update set to release in early 2020.