It seems that Fallout 76 is not a classic Fallout, but rather jumps late on a trend: the survival RPG. What is Bethesda thinking? Perhaps the same as Funcom with Conan Exiles, believes our author Schuhmann.
Fallout 76 presents fans with a puzzle: US journalist Jason Schreier warned fans after the presentation of “Fallout 76”: Don’t expect a classic Fallout RPG. You will be disappointed. Fallout 76 is supposed to be a survival RPG, a game like Rust or DayZ, the journalist later explained, citing unnamed sources. Fans have since wondered: What is Bethesda thinking?
Bethesda is closed, but Funcom is open: We don’t know Bethesda’s plans, but we are familiar with the plans and ideas of the game company Funcom. They regularly present their ideas to investors – these presentations are public. And indeed: The answer to the question about the origin of Fallout 76 could provide the development history of Conan Exiles.
The Origin of Conan Exiles
Funcom’s crisis: The MMO specialist Funcom was in crisis for many years, reaching a low point in 2015:
- The old MMOs they had were no longer doing well (Age of Conan, Anarchy Online)
- The new projects were flops (LEGO) or at least not as successful as they needed to be to keep the boat afloat (The Secret World).
- Funcom was a specialist in a genre that investors no longer believed in (MMORPG),
- Moreover, they had the tax office on their back due to insider trading.
Funcom faced bankruptcy in 2015. But then they made a bold plan.
Funcom had two aces up its sleeve in 2015:
- They owned the license for “Conan the Barbarian” and had good contacts with the rights holders, dating back to the “Age of Conan” days.
- and Funcom had the technology and personnel to set up an open-world MMO.
But how could they use that to save the company? They developed an “open-world survival RPG,” which they seasoned with plenty of MMORPG elements and the Conan license to make it an enticing dish. They showed this to investors at the end of 2015.
Funcom’s plan: Funcom explained its plan to investors. There was a genre that was rapidly evolving but had not yet been dominated by any single game. While there were clear frontrunners in MMORPGs (WoW) or MOBAs (League of Legends), the field of open-world survival MMOs was still open. Games like ARK or Rust were floating around in the genre, but none were dominant. Funcom wanted to penetrate this with “Conan Exiles.” They saw great potential: After all, the genre was popular on Twitch and Steam, the catalysts of gaming at the time. Funcom had previously conducted a trial run with “streamers” to promote the smaller game “The Park.”
Conan Exiles saves Funcom: With this plan, Funcom convinced the investors, received a substantial financial boost in 2016 and hastily brought Conan Exiles into early access in 2017. The game earned a lot of money and saved Funcom. Although the hype quickly subsided, as Conan Exiles lacked polish and content in 2017, the team continued to work on the game, prepared a port for PS4 and Xbox One, and was able to celebrate successes again at release in 2018.
Bethesda might have been in the same situation three years ago
What is up with Fallout 76: From everything we know, “Fallout 76” could become a similar game to Conan Exiles – only that it came from a different direction. Fallout 76 is rumored to be a survival RPG with base building.
Allegedly started as Fallout 4 multiplayer. Fallout 76 is said to have started as a “multiplayer version” of Fallout 4, which for some reason did not work. Fallout 4 was released at the end of 2015. The development or separation of Fallout 76 must have occurred around the same time as the ideas surrounding Conan Exiles.
The situation of Bethesda:
- They already had the “foundations” for a game they now didn’t know what to do with
- and that was material from the Fallout license.
What to do with it now?
Here Bethesda must have reached the same point as Funcom: the “survival genre” as a delicious, wide-open field to which a strong license like “Fallout” fits wonderfully. So they decided on a spin-off from Fallout – for a survival game with RPG elements.
But no early access: However, it seems Bethesda has taken a different path than Funcom. Unlike Funcom, Bethesda was under no pressure, they didn’t need to earn quick money. Instead of going into early access early in 2017, they likely developed the game first to now release it in 2018. Thus, they missed the big hype wave around “survival games,” but now have the opportunity to hopefully release a polished game. Because to this day, the survival genre lacks a polished AAA title.
Currently just rumors: However, the information regarding Fallout 76 is based only on rumors. The presentation of the game will take place in a few days. But Funcom’s story about “Conan Exiles” might help us understand what Bethesda is thinking by bringing a “Fallout” that doesn’t sound like a Fallout at all. It will be interesting to see how precisely Fallout 76 will be tailored. Does it contain a strong story and campaign to satisfy fans of the franchise?
