Fallout 76’s Wastelanders arrives April 7 as free update

The free update will introduce NPCs, new enemies, locations, among other things.

Earlier in February, Bethesda released some details on what to expect from the free Wastelanders update coming to Fallout 76 on April 7, 2020. Other than the new main questline, players can expect to meet new enemies, explore new locations and find new weapons. The first trailer, which you can watch above, also hints at “something in the mountains” and I’m guessing that this will be explored further in the new main questline.

The game will also be coming to Steam so you could pick it up there or through the Bethesda.net Launcher. If you already own the game, I would recommend that you stick to your chosen platform as Atoms and Fallout 1st memberships are not transferable between the two platforms.

In a recap published by Bethesda about the live video that they showed at Bethesda Game Days, they highlighted a few things such as a new intro, the dialogue system, instances, factions and allies.

You can view the video in its entirety here:

Alternatively, if you just want to see the gameplay without any developer commentary, you can watch this video instead:

For starters, Wastelanders advances the timeline forward to 2103, a year after the opening of Vault 76. This will be reflected in your PipBoy and the new intro that players will experience when leaving the vault for the first time. The update’s content builds upon the base game’s content so players do not have to worry about losing access to what is already in the base game.

Players will also be greeted by two NPCs, Lacey and Isela, when leaving Vault 76. Having NPCs who players can meet as they leave Vault 76 would greatly help in easing new players into the game. By interacting with them, they can find out more about the world. Moreover, there will be other NPCs that can be found across Appalachia as well.

We got a look at the instance system which are solo and team-only interiors unique to the player’s character where they can make choices that will have consequences for their story down the line.

I am happy about this system as it would allow players and their teams to experience content in an area that isn’t going to be affected by other players. As mentioned in the recap and preview, it can prevent scenarios where there isn’t anything for a team to do due to others having already cleared out the place.

For story missions, players would then only have to worry about their teammates possibly messing up the story for them. And for a game like this, I would highly recommend playing with a group of friends. Bonus points if they are into roleplaying as well.

Post-Wastelanders, players can expect a rework of the levelling system with enemies being scaled to their level and that of their friends’ instead of the current system where the world is divided into high-level and low-level zones. The developers have referred to this as “One Wasteland” and it is going to be similar to Elder Scrolls Online’s “One Tamriel”. In my opinion, this is a good move as it would ensure a more consistent experience for players where enemies are neither too high or low level.

Let’s take a closer look at some of the things that will be coming in Wastelanders, shall we?

NPCs and Conversations

At a glance, the dialogue system seems to be closer to Fallout 3’s or New Vegas’s rather than Fallout 4’s. Additionally, your S.P.E.C.I.A.L stats will affect the choices that you have during conversations. Personally, I prefer this approach as I am able to see exactly what my character is going to say compared to Fallout 4’s four directional dialogue system.

Bethesda has gone back and applied this system retroactively to existing NPCs in the game such as Rose, the raider Miss Nanny at the Top of the World. It should be fun going back to these NPCs to see what they have to say.

NPC Allies

Players will also be able to meet human NPCs in the form of Allies and even recruit some of them to join their C.A.M.P. There will be five Allies in total, two major and three “light” ones. For those looking for romance in the wasteland, it is possible to pursue such a relationship with these Allies too.

Recruited Allies can be spawned in your C.A.M.P by setting up an object that is specific to said Ally. Players will be able to interact and accept daily quests from them. However, only one of these objects can be active at any time, so if players want to interact with a different Ally, they would have to swap it out.

Unlike companions in Fallout 4, they will not be able to travel the wasteland with you but it is kind of nice having friendly NPCs in your own C.A.M.P, especially if you are playing alone as your C.A.M.P can get rather quiet and lonely.

The Two Factions

In Wastelanders, players will be able to align themselves with two different factions: The Settlers or The Raiders.

The Settlers

Comprised of members from a Construction Workers Union based in Washington, D.C., the Settlers have come to Appalachia to establish a safe place that can provide refuge from the dangers of the wasteland. Players can find them in their city of Foundation, located in Spruce Knob.

The Raiders

The Raiders claim Appalachia as part their territory, having lived there previously. They have returned to deal with anyone that would challenge their claim to the place, setting up shop at a crashed space station that they call Crater.

A reputation system is also being implemented where depending on their reputation with either faction, players will gain access to items from faction vendors and even schematics for faction-themed items if they’re well-liked enough.

Both factions will have their own story and questline with the developers stating that it is possible to experience both sides. If players want to get a feel for the factions first, they can progress through the faction questlines up to a certain point before having to make a decision on which one they want to go with. Even after picking a faction, it does not necessarily prevent you from becoming friends with the other.

Between the two factions, I’d most likely be leaning more towards the Settlers. Despite the names for these two factions, the differences between them are not that black and white where the Settlers are the good guys and the Raiders are the bad guys.

As highlighted in the preview, if we are talking about who has more right to lay claim to the land, the Raiders have a stronger claim as they used to live there compared to the Settlers, who are outsiders.

Having the opportunity to interact with the two factions without having to write off either of them would allow players to make a more informed decision in terms of their faction choice. From a roleplaying perspective, having things not being so clear cut can open up discussions among players about the factions, and even the rationale behind their faction choice. I may be more aligned towards the Settlers, but after hearing what the Raiders have to say, my perspective on the situation might change.

Final Thoughts

I will be honest, Fallout 76 definitely has its fair share of issues but I did enjoy playing it. If I had to sum it up, it’s basically “Fallout 4 with co-op”. After all, I do have a heavily modded Fallout 4 installed on my computer, but it is still a single player game in the end.

Being able to explore the wasteland together with friends was something that I could not resist. I have taken so many photos with the in-game Photo Mode feature that captured our shenanigans in post-apocalyptic Appalachia.

Overall, I am fairly optimistic about Wastelanders and will be returning to Appalachia to check it out when the the update drops.

If you are still unsure about the game, I’d suggest that you wait for the Wastelanders update to drop first and checking out reviews and gameplay footage before jumping into it.

Post published: 7 March 2020
Last updated: 13 March 2020
Update: Edited the Title and content for clarity. Added a Heading for the Settlers that was missing.