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Fuck me, Fallout 76 is actually pretty good now

Judging Fallout 76 by it’s 1.0 release version in 2024 would be just as foolish as judging FF14, Cyberpunk 2077, and No Man’s Sky by their 1.0 versions.

I know a lot of people here still have that old school gamer mentality when it comes to ‘what we get at release is what we get forever’, but in modern times, things change.
Going by the comments on here it sounds as though most people don’t have their consoles connected to the internet to even get updates. Must go to the library to post on GAF or something
 
I'm going to be that guy......

It was always good, I was a day one player from launch until when the PS5 dropped (I didn't want to play a sub 30fps game anymore). When I say good I don't mean universally, you had a to find the fun and it appealled to a specific type of player but it was perfect for me at the time and I put in over 700 hours.
The PS5 version was updated to run at 60fps last year, in case you weren't aware.

But yeah I agree that the game was always good to certain types of Fallout players. For someone like me who likes to scour every inch of the map for lore and environmental storytelling, I've been having fun since day one despite the bugs and jank.
 
Say what you will about Xbox, but they support the hell out of their games. There is no excuse for launching a bad/incomplete/broken game. That should not be happening. When Sea of Thieves, Fallout 76, Grounded, and Halo infinite MP launched they were just plain unfinished and empty. Today, they are each dramatically better. If they launched in the state they are in today, they would have been massive successes from the jump. Instead they fell so hard at launch that gamers just moved right on to one of the millions of other great games out there. Today, most people look up these games' review scores and read the massive amount of articles from launch time and just NOPE right out the games. Those fans are missing out but Xbox has nobody to blame but themselves. Hopefully they learned their lesson but I feel like I know they won't lol.
 

gpn

Member
To echo @adamsapple is this a solo friendly game?

Yes, it's very solo-friendly. Servers are limited to 24 players, and the map is so big, most people just go about doing their own thing and it's very rare to run into anybody except at events. There are server events that pop-up from time to time that range from beginner-friendly to endgame, but they're purely optional to join, but they can be fun when everyone on the server shows up. There's also four-player teams you can join to get different perks while playing, but if you just want to go about your solo play, join a casual team for the bonus experience perk and nobody else expects you to go around with them or them with you. I've been playing since the beta and it's all basically been solo play.
 

MetalRain

Member
It's still always online GaaS game, player and NPCs wrap around the world when server disagrees on the location. Player camps disappear when players log out.
War never changes but Fallout 76 is totally devoid of permanence.
 
Going by the comments on here it sounds as though most people don’t have their consoles connected to the internet to even get updates. Must go to the library to post on GAF or something
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ArtHands

Thinks buying more servers can fix a bad patch
Game is on mostly positive reviews on Steam. Can’t say for console versions
 

Hemingwayoffbase

Gold Member
Is there a story now? Like with an actual ending? I know wastelanders added NPCs, but every shitty MMO has NPCs. That alone doesn’t make a game good.

Also, is it only good if you buy all the dlc? How much money do you have to sink into it before it becomes “actually good now?”
 

Zathalus

Member
I wouldn't say the game is a fantastic 9/10 type game but it has certainly improved since launch and be quite fun now.
 

TheSHEEEP

Gold Member
It is an alright grinding game now.
But suffers from the same big issue ESO does:

Inane level scaling making most character building purely cosmetical. With the exception of some absolute checks (such as lockpicking, hacking, carry weight), the game difficulty never really increases or lowers much.
You never really feel like you get stronger, because the "distance" to the things you are fighting remains pretty much the same throughout the leveling process.
You are not really fighting a lvl 30 enemy, because the same enemy will appear to your friend who just started as lvl 6. The enemies you fought coming out of the tutorial? Will suddenly be your level if you decide to go back.
It's all just smoke and mirrors. Player pampering. Sucks immersion right out of the game.
There are some exceptions like strongly levelled events on the map (eg. this specific event will be lvl 35 no matter what level you are) - in these instances, you can actually notice your level and if your build is good or not, but honestly the entire game should be like that.

I really enjoy the base building and crafting aspects of the game, though.
Just wish those were embedded in a game with less faked difficulty.
 
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You never really feel like you get stronger, because the "distance" to the things you are fighting remains pretty much the same throughout the leveling process.
You are not really fighting a lvl 30 enemy, because the same enemy will appear to your friend who just started as lvl 6.
It's all just smoke and mirrors. Sucks immersion right out of the game.
This has been a problem for many Bethesda games. I suspect it is even worse in FO76. I remember hating Oblivion's scaling when it came out. In Fallout New Vegas and 4 there is the survival mode, which adds some extra difficulty making the games much better.
 

TheSHEEEP

Gold Member
This has been a problem for many Bethesda games. I suspect it is even worse in FO76. I remember hating Oblivion's scaling when it came out. In Fallout New Vegas and 4 there is the survival mode, which adds some extra difficulty making the games much better.
I'd be fine if FO76 offered an optional mode without that player pampering crap.
Hell, I'd throw some more money at the game to unlock such a thing.
But I don't think that'll ever be implemented. Shame, really.

Skyrim did it much better. IIRC, the game scaled A) within area limits and B) once you visited a location, that location's level got locked for the rest of the game (unless some game event happens to reset it).
 

Soodanim

Member
If it's free on Prime I'll look into it, but my internet is prone to drop outs so I don't hold much hope for not being kicked out of the game, getting fed up, and doing something else.
 

Paasei

Member
It never caught my interest because it’s online. If it launched without all the problems, I still wouldn’t have gotten it. I really don’t see the appeal of online games anymore, let alone online in a Fallout game. Bummer, the world looks fun to explore.
 
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TheSHEEEP

Gold Member
It caught my interest because it’s online. If it launched without all the problems, I still wouldn’t have gotten it. I really don’t see the appeal of online games anymore, let alone online in a Fallout game. Bummer, the world looks fun to explore.
To be fair, though, FO76 might be the "least online" online game I've played.
There is a private server mode where you can be all alone (if you subscribe, of course, but there's a free trial for that). Even if you don't subscribe, the maximum amount of players on a server is 24.
So you'll actually run into fairly few other players. I had 1-3 hour sessions without meeting a soul.

Of course, it still has the other GAAS stuff, so that alone will keep some away.
But the pure gameplay can be really very lonesome, which is refreshing for this kind of game.
 

SCB3

Member
Here’s a secret, it always had potential, the always online, bad bugs and poor launch issues is what cost it

The Wastelanders update saved Fallout 76, I actually enjoyed the empty world and piecing together the mystery of the overseer, but man adding the Wastelanders added so much, I did drop off just before the Brotherhood of Steel update and got into that a few months ago, it’s a great game to drop in and out of every so often
 

GymWolf

Member
I watched some footage and it looks like f4 with a more shitty vats system and even less of a plot tbh.

It's free on prime so maybe i'm gonna try it but i have no trust in it being actually good.
 
I'd be fine if FO76 offered an optional mode without that player pampering crap.
Hell, I'd throw some more money at the game to unlock such a thing.
But I don't think that'll ever be implemented. Shame, really.

Skyrim did it much better. IIRC, the game scaled A) within area limits and B) once you visited a location, that location's level got locked for the rest of the game (unless some game event happens to reset it).
It's been awhile since I played Skyrim. I remember that it had better scaling that Oblivion. However I think Morrowind is the best of the Elder Scroll games. I would like to get a proper remake of Morrowind with better graphics and some QoL improvements.

I think my main issue with Bethesda games has been the difficulty. The main story isn't usually captivating enough so without the gameplay challenge, I just don't have the will to finish the game. With this in mind, Fallout 76 isn't for me.
 

SHA

Member
I guess plan b have worked in Microsoft's and Bethesda's favor this time.
 
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Warablo

Member
Microsoft really needs someone to make another Fallout asap, Its too bad Bethesda has already committed to Elder Scrolls.
 

Werewolf Jones

Gold Member
Quest lines don't stop though on god. Started that Quest for the woman who owns the bar and you're CONSTANTLY fetch questing up and down. BUT I do actually sort of like the game. I haven't played FO4 and I don't like the crafting mechanics but at least there's still some RPG mechanics. I'm like level 10. When do things like Lockpick and Barter get points allocated to them... Or do they not?
 

Gojiira

Member
Lol what? No its boring, the worst sin a game can commit. Theres zero interesting quests, pathetic actual quest design, pointless expeditions, nah its just bad, like Fallout 4 a RPG without any discernible RPG….
 

Inviusx

Member
The PS5 version was updated to run at 60fps last year, in case you weren't aware.

But yeah I agree that the game was always good to certain types of Fallout players. For someone like me who likes to scour every inch of the map for lore and environmental storytelling, I've been having fun since day one despite the bugs and jank.
Yeah I heard about the 60fps cap increase but by then I was already 3 years removed from when I last played and with the amount of patches and updates in that time I felt like I would have been dropping into a world that had already past me by.
 

Mossybrew

Member
level scaling
The game was much better before level scaling, I never understood why they did this and I'm glad most of my playtime was before that update. Wandering into much higher level enemies made the world feel much more dangerous and interesting. Getting stronger to eventually overcome those enemies was very satisfying. Honestly I also didn't care a whole lot for the NPCs and quests they eventually added in, just more boring conversations with NPCs. I liked the dead world with only other players wandering around, just trekking and discovering shit and shooting weird monsters. Sure there was jank but that was almost part of the charm.
 
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KungFucius

King Snowflake
The game is way too grindy. It feels goodish for a little bit, but then you realize they are trying to make the thing addictive, not fun. Playing it early last year really made the grindy bullshit in Starfield stick out. Games shouldn't force you to grind when they already have enough content for 40+ hours.
 

Rivdoric

Neo Member
I still fail to understand the link between the OP asking to be fucked and Fallout 76.
Is this some kind of fetish ?
 

Fredrik

Member
I'm at the point now that any game I believed people on over the last 12 years when they really lost it and trashed it, I just assume its fine unless I try it myself. I dont believe people trashing or praising anything anymore unless I actually know them.
Yeah same here, I’ve enjoyed far too many games people has claimed were trash lately. Today I only trust myself and a select few friends with similar taste in games. Best is if there is a demo or Gamepass version so I can make up my own mind.
 

TVexperto

Member
If you want a game where their choices have an impact like the previous games then this is not for you. Plus it retconns a lot of the lore. The card system of perks is weird. Quests are boring and tedious. I played this for 100+ hrs and just gave up because it was going nowhere; no stakes, no storyline.
 

Spyxos

Member
Do you still have to buy a fridge with real money so that the food doesn't go bad fast? And what about this subscription that's on offer?
 
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