In an interview, Bethesda’s Todd Howard was asked what he thinks about the currently popular battle royale trend for Fallout 76. He dismisses the trend. Our author Andreas agrees. That is good.
Fallout 76 does not follow trends
Will Fallout 76 also receive a battle royale mode? As an online game that also allows PvP in the open world, a battle royale mode would actually seem to fit Fallout 76 perfectly.
However, Todd Howard explained in an interview with Gamestar that Bethesda does not want to chase such trends. This probably means that there will be no battle royale mode in Fallout 76.
Survival is also not trend-based. Howard further explains that they want to create something original with Fallout 76. Even though the online game, for example, has survival elements, these were not incorporated just because the genre is currently popular. The ideas for how the multiplayer of Fallout 76 plays were already developed before survival became such a big theme.
He also means that the trend of survival games does not only mean good things for Bethesda’s upcoming online game. Many players have very specific ideas about how survival should look. Players are influenced by titles like Rust or Conan Exiles.
When Fallout 76 is released and implements survival in a different way, it could lead to disappointments. That’s why it is so important for Todd Howard that Bethesda always “adjusts” player expectations.
No Battle Royale in Fallout 76 – A good decision?
Andreas thinks: If Fallout 76 received a battle royale mode, the game might reach a wider player base. But would it still be Fallout? The series has its own identity. You try to survive in a post-apocalyptic world, coping with harsh circumstances like mutants and radioactivity, and getting to know this world and its history. For many fans of the series, it is already a kind of sacrilege that there is multiplayer at all and that NPCs do not assign quests.
Further changing Fallout and turning it into a battle royale shooter could alienate the fans who want to give the title a chance despite the online and survival aspects. Moreover, Bethesda can hardly compete with PUBG and Fortnite, as those games are very strong. Trying to keep up at all costs could backfire. Therefore, the decision to not include a battle royale mode in Fallout 76 but instead try to create something new and original is understandable.
How well that works will be revealed on November 14, when the online game is released for PC, PS4, and Xbox One – or already during the beta, which starts in October for pre-orders.
