Fallout 76: Wastelanders

“The Fallout 76 Wastelanders update might be the salvation of the game. The free expansion finally adds NPCs to the world and adds a lot of new content. Bethesda also improved the graphics, in particular the lighting system. It's still not technically perfect however and the new additions come with their own problems. Still, the Wastelanders update is a giant leap for Fallout 76.”

“Fallout 76: Wastelanders is that Fallout 76 should have been from the start. Bethesda has made Fallout 76 work as a single player game, with the return of NPCs, factions, a complete system of both reputation and dialogue with authentic playable repercussions, and a new story arc that completes the original story; and he has put together an ambitious multiplayer content plan based on seasons and Nuclear Winter, his own Battle Royal. Despite continuing to drag many base problems, now it is worth giving it a try.”

“A generous free update offering great new story quests, characters, dialogue choices, loot and activities worth returning for.”

“The biggest Bethesda expansion. Wastelanders doesn’t bring Fallout 76 new gameplay, but focuses on adding content that offers a good starting point to the players who want to play the game.”

“Fallout 76: Wastelanders is Fallout 76 but better, but better doesn't mean it's good.”

“Despite the addition of NPCs and a load of new content, Fallout 76: Wastelanders is still just a painfully average Fallout game. That's not to say that things aren't better for the update, because the game at least feels like it's moving in the right direction, but it's building on top of the still rickety foundations of the original release. Ironically, things might be simpler if they simply nuked the game and started again, but you've got to respect the hussle.”

“The positive strides that Wastelanders and its quests make are hindered by Fallout 76's numerous enduring issues.”

“Fallout 76 has improved with the introduction of Wastelanders. The region of West Virginia now feels more alive with an increased populace, deeper quests and a greater focus on your place in its living, breathing world. But many of its problems remain, and haven’t been improved with such a major expansion. Far few players occupy each session, making multiplayer feel like a lazy afterthought instead of something that defines the experience.”

“The Wastelanders update at least solidifies Fallout 76 as something that's worth recommending to series fans who are interested in multiplayer. The new storyline is great, but not as easy to play with friends as it should be.”

“Wastelanders gives to the longtime Fallout lovers an experience way more similar to the series they always knew. Unfortunately, the overall experience it still is plagued by bugs and Creation Engine looks and feels as outdated as ever.”

“On it's own Fallout 76: Wastelanders is an excellent expansion, but it doesn't completely amend the problems that plague Fallout 76, or subvert the controversy that surrounds it. What it does do is provide a path forward that may eventually lead to Fallout 76 becoming a genuinely good game.”

“Wastelanders improves Fallout 76 noticeably, but is still bogged down by major issues.”

“Wastelanders won't convince anyone who thought Fallout 76 was irredeemable to begin to believe otherwise, it's simply not enough of a marked improvement to wholesale change many people's minds. For those that left a sliver of a chance for redemption, however, it's one small, wobbly step in the right direction.”

“[Bethesda] hammered and hammered and hammered and finally forged Fallout 76 into not only a better game, but one that deserves a second chance—from me, from you, and from all the naysayers.”