Fallout 76 recently released its new roadmap. As part of this, Bethesda exclusively invited MeinMMO to a “round table” with Design Director Mark Tucker. We were able to ask the head some questions about the upcoming updates.
What’s coming in Fallout 76 in 2022? On February 21, Fallout 76 published a roadmap for 2022. According to it, 4 major updates are scheduled to be released throughout the year:
- Invaders from Beyond will arrive in spring with a new seasonal event centered around aliens
- Test of Strength in summer with new public events
- Expeditions: The Pitt in autumn, a new version of the Fallout 3 DLC
- Nuka-World on Tour in winter with a new boss in Appalachia
The Pitt is expected to be particularly exciting. Fans have been asking for a map expansion almost since the release of Fallout 76. In our conversation, Mark Tucker answered several questions about the upcoming updates and especially about The Pitt.
Who is speaking? Mark Tucker (featured image) has been a professional game designer since 2001 and has been the Design Director for Fallout 76 since 2018. Previously, he worked in various studios on games like DOOM (2016) and Crimson Alliance.
He has also gained experience at the well-known studio NCSoft (Aion, Blade & Soul), particularly with the free-to-play MMORPG Dungeon Runners.
The Pitt – DLC from Fallout 3 comes to Fallout 76
What is The Pitt? In Expeditions: The Pitt, the update for Fallout 76, you can explore the ruins of Pittsburgh. For the first time, it takes you outside of Appalachia into a new region. You will travel there to complete missions and explore.
The Pitt is intended to be a noticeably different place, completely unlike what you know from Appalachia. Tucker explains:
The goal is to truly feel like you’re outside of Appalachia. The Pitt is a very hostile place in terms of atmosphere and with its unique, deadly creatures. You will see things like that there. […] The first time you are there, you will feel like “you’re not in Kansas anymore,” to use the metaphor from The Wizard of Oz.
According to Tucker, you will also encounter new enemies like Trogs and NPCs with their own factions. The people there will have their own accent, and even a hydrant designed exclusively for Pittsburgh has been created.
What does this have to do with Fallout 3? The Pitt was originally a DLC for Fallout 3. There, the ruins of Pittsburgh were occupied by raiders. Almost everything is destroyed or burning; the city resembles a grim apocalypse more than something livable.
Exciting for fans of Fallout 3 is that Fallout 76 takes place chronologically before the events of Fallout 3. This means you can explore a version of The Pitt that is younger and potentially not as destroyed.
The Trogs, exclusive to The Pitt and possibly mutated humans from a plague, appear here for the first time. You will discover how the survivors deal with this new threat and how Pittsburgh became the place you know from Fallout 3.
Tucker was unable to reveal specific details about the NPCs and missions, but there will be old and new factions, with a similar story arc to the Brotherhood of Steel in 2021. Here, Fallout 76 already provided the opportunity to explore the origins of the legendary faction:
“The Pitt is a stepping stone for the coming years”
When asked which content for 2022 would have the greatest impact on the game, Tucker clearly stated: The Pitt. And not just for this year, but for many years to come:
I hope that the expedition to The Pitt will have a large impact on Fallout 76. We are looking forward to it and will try new things. Returning there will hopefully be a great experience for people who already know the Fallout 3 DLC. But it’s also a new feature on which we want to build to explore other interesting areas of the Fallout universe. Some of these you have never seen before.
I hope that The Pitt will already have a significant impact this year, but the feature is really more of a stepping stone for the coming years – both for our game and Fallout as a whole.
The history of Fallout offers many possible locations to explore that are still open. Although Tucker promises new areas, there are still no details about them.
However, Tucker made it clear that The Pitt is not an expansion of the map, as one might have expected. They had to consider the multiplayer aspect, which is why the Fallout 3 DLC couldn’t simply be brought back again. He says specifically:
Don’t expect it to be a new map with its own card. You will complete quests there, which we call “missions”, and these mission areas are really very large. But there will be very specific tasks that you can help people with, both in Appalachia and in The Pitt. You can complete the missions over and over, but there are various ones with a lot of variation.
Nevertheless, The Pitt is supposed to be “a real Fallout experience.” You can explore large areas, find terminals and notes, or interact with NPCs who all have their own stories.
However, Appalachia is supposed to remain the “main map”, which will continue to be developed. There are already many plans for it, some of which are already live.
Aliens in March, more events throughout the year
Invaders From Beyond launched on March 1, 2022. The update brings a new seasonal event where aliens attack all of Appalachia. Unlike popular events like Fasnacht, you will find random encounters everywhere.
Tucker explained in the interview that the aliens are far from friendly. So don’t expect an interesting companion. However, there will be rewards such as a new weapon with crazy effects and decorations for your C.A.M.P. Some designs you may already know, while others are completely new.
The whole year will be marked by events. In summer, a wave of new public events is expected – quests that anyone in the area can join. This has been a major wish of the community, Tucker explains.
After The Pitt, a completely new boss will come into play, about which we do not yet have details. All of this is supposed to work both solo and in groups.
All in all, it looks like 2022 will be an exciting year for Fallout 76 – especially since it prepares for the upcoming years. Fans of the survival genre can look forward to a steady flow of new content and even a bunch of new games to accompany them:
