Fallout 76 was officially released on November 14, but has already faced criticism since its announcement. Many reviews are overwhelmingly negative. Our author Benedict absolutely cannot understand that.
Where does the hate come from? Bethesda announced Fallout 76 as the first multiplayer Fallout game. Fallout 76 is about the survivors from Vault 76, and all human characters are controlled by players.
Many critiques have already bothered the community before release:
- Fallout 76 has open and constant PvP – can that work well?
- A story without human NPCs bothers single-player fans.
- Does a multiplayer destroy the immersion of a “real Fallout” that Fallout 76 wants to be?
The bad mood escalated by the release, culminating recently in catastrophic ratings on Metacritic and other platforms. According to the players, expectations were raised that Fallout 76 would be a great experience for single-player fans.
However, I see it differently and am excited about Fallout 76. Unfortunately, I constantly have to hear how stupid I am for thinking this.
A game I finally want to play again
Since the first day of the Beta for PC, I have been playing Fallout 76. I had to spend hours in the settings and saw some bugs; however, I do not regret playing.
It may be an unpopular opinion, but I like Fallout 76.
I have also enjoyed Fallout before. Dystopian settings are always cool, and Fallout implements them as well as hardly any other game series. That I would be dealing with Fallout 76 was already clear to me when it was announced at E3.
Shortly before the servers were shut down for the first time after the beta, I found that I wanted to keep playing. Fallout 76 captured me quite quickly.
What makes Fallout so fun to play?
After character creation, the game begins in Vault 76 with an introduction on how Fallout actually works. There is the first basic equipment and witty comments from Mr. Handies that still hover around the vault.
The first quest also comes quite early. The overseer’s recordings urge players to follow her path and find out what happened to her. The entire story has persisted through my over 20 hours of gameplay and continues to branch out.
I can hardly get to the main story
Whenever I am on my way to the next checkpoint, I find an interesting location that I want to explore first and where there is more to do.
I had the same “problem” in every previous Fallout as well. I can’t manage to do what I set out to do. But that’s not a bad thing; after all, I want to explore the world and play the game, not just follow a single story.
The world is fantastic
Fallout 76 offers many places where you can easily get lost. Many may complain about the graphics, but I find the level of detail hidden in the world magnificent.
It starts with many of the enemies being “classic Fallout enemies” like Super Mutants and Deathclaws. However, there are also monsters that have been directly transferred from the legends and myths of West Virginia into the game.
Some of these legendary monsters even have legends in the game that I have partly discovered and partly still need to find. There is a whole museum dedicated to the Mothman, with which players have already taken selfies.
Additionally, the spirit of exploration is rewarded. I have already found several locations that are not just “on the way.” One rewarded me with a wonderfully beautiful view over West Virginia. Another shows the space exploration attempts of two plush bears with a stuffed monkey.
Crafting is fun
More than in any other Fallout before, Fallout 76 has a building and crafting system that is very relevant to the game. Each player can build and even easily move their own camp almost anywhere.
Camps can simply be objects placed in the wilderness or a small house that players can plan and build. There are workshops for groups that can be captured and expanded, providing more resources, including hard-to-find, rare materials.
At several crafting stations, all sorts of items can be crafted with the materials collected. There are stations for:
- Weapons
- Armor
- Chems
- Ammunition and explosives
- Power Armor
- Food
Equipping armor and modifying weapons to fit my playstyle takes a large part of my playtime. I enjoy tinkering and trying to outfit my weapons to be ideal for me.
Group and solo – both are not a problem
I mostly play Fallout 76 alone. This way, I can take the time to explore everything I find. I listen to holotapes or read terminals for more story.
I still have some friends who play less and whom I can help. If they have problems, I check in and help with quests or provide them with my old Power Armors, which are upgrades for them.
But group play is also interesting. In groups, you gain more experience and it is logically easier to tackle tougher enemies than alone. However, I wouldn’t say it comes down to “group or solo.” Fallout 76 simply offers content for both.
Is there also something negative?
Despite all the praise, Fallout 76 is not “the best game ever.” Even in beta, there were numerous bugs, some of which caused serious issues. Technical problems like impossible uninstallation do not make it any better. Especially annoying are features that do not seem fully thought out.
PvP is “just there”: Many players initially had “fear” of PvP. They feared that griefers would ruin their fun. However, Bethesda introduced special mechanics to prevent griefing in Fallout 76. The entire PvP is generally not a cause for panic, as it simply has little impact.
I have had two experiences with PvP so far:
- The first time, I hunted a player with a bounty who had apparently annoyed many players. However, too many players argued over his bounty, and he was taken down by several players shortly after.
- The second encounter was alone with a high-level wanted person. I wanted to collect his bounty. However, since we were both well-equipped, after about 400 shots of ammunition and 10 Stimpaks on both sides, we nodded friendly to each other and went our separate ways. Killing was simply not possible.
This kind of PvP is not a real part of the world. It happens too rarely and has no real justification for existence. It could have been kept out or solved differently.
Too few options: Missing settings in the game are particularly annoying. On PC, important graphics options like field of view, depth, or an option for ultrawide monitors are missing.
PC gamers suffer significant losses in gameplay quality and sometimes even suffer from nausea and motion sickness. Settings can only be adjusted by changing the .ini files, which could potentially lead to penalties from Bethesda.
All this is unfortunate, but it could still be improved after criticism in the future. After all, Fallout 76 is supposed to be worked on for a while. These are also more like “cosmetic flaws.”
I don’t understand the negative voices
As someone who has already invested some hours into the game, I cannot understand where the hate comes from. Fallout 76 is solid, fun, and captivates me like no game in a while.
Justified criticism vs. baseless hate: I understand critics who say that the negative aspects annoy them and that they want to wait until they are fixed. After all, Fallout 76 is a full-price game, and one can certainly set higher standards.
What I completely disagree with are statements about the lack of endgame content, long-term motivation, and the absence of NPCs. Especially the point about NPCs seems like a pretext for unfounded hatred.
I asked several fans who made this argument if they could name NPCs from the predecessors. Very few answers came. The story in the previous parts is also largely conveyed through holotapes and terminals.
Furthermore, only strictly human NPCs are missing in Fallout 76. Robots are still around and distribute quests. And when thinking of Allistair Tenpenny from Fallout 3, one of the few people remembered, many robots are more human than some humans…
The endgame is great: I find it hard to understand that people already feared before the game’s release that they would have nothing to do at the end. The first hardcore players have already launched the first atomic bomb. However, this only provided a glimpse into what can come.
Those who actually reach the “endgame” of Fallout 76 can utilize atom bombs to increase difficulty. Insanely tough bosses that require lengthy battles provide ever better loot.
While this sounds like grind, in order to get there, a large part of the story must be played first. And just the side content of Fallout 76 already adds up to 150 hours of gameplay. I don’t know who that can say is “not enough endgame”.
I like Fallout 76 and that will remain so
Many players have valid criticism of Fallout 76. I also find small bugs or annoying errors like crashes that make me grind my teeth here and there. But I live with these little evils.
I enjoy playing Fallout 76 in between for small events. When I have time, I engage in quests to explore more of the world. Aside from minor control issues, there’s nothing that bothers me more often. On the contrary, I enjoy finding places where I can truly enjoy the game, take in the surroundings, or test new weapons.
If that all isn’t enough, then feel free to spit at me for my opinion. Because that’s the feeling I have right now whenever I express that I like Fallout 76.
What do you think? Are you with me or do you not like Fallout 76? Write a comment or discuss in our Fallout group. On Facebook you can find more great specials and hot news about Fallout 76.
