If you’re still digging into the vast world of Fallout 76, and you have a bit of change to spare, Bethesda has a new venture for you. Today, they announced a new Fallout 76 subscription service called Fallout 1st, which introduces a number of not-so-minor “quality of life” upgrades to the game.
At $12.99 a month, or $99.99 for a full year, it might be worth weighing out whether the game’s that important to you. Of course, the rest of the game will be free, but the rest of us just won’t have, you know, unlimited storage space.
While they upgrades aren’t essential, they’re pretty damn good to have if you can afford it. And that’s kind of ironic given Fallout was supposed to be a series damning capitalism in the wake of a nuclear apocalypse, which was probably caused by, you know, capitalism. However, now we have The Outer Worlds by basically the same original creators. So Bethesda can just do… whatever! Because capitalism.
Arguably, at the very least, one can justify the subscription with the private world feature — something that any multiplayer RPG fan would be asking for. Subscribers can invite up to seven others (for eight total) for a private instance, even if the others aren’t subscribers. If you argue about $13 a month or $100 a year as a “server cost,” Minecraft Realms style except more expensive, maybe it’s not a bad deal?
If you’re more of the vanilla type, you also get some serious upgrades. The main one is unlimited storage through the Scrapbox. It’s a pretty huge deal given everyone knows inventory space is key in the Fallout series. In Fallout 76, you can add mods and perks to upgrade this, and the Strength stat also lets you carry more by buffing your core and arms (obviously didn’t just make this up). But the Scrapbox essentially eliminates this need altogether. Other than just storing guns, it can be useful for players looking to construct massive projects.
You also pick up the Survival Tent, which is, first and foremost, a free Fast Travel point. Aside from that, you also get a Cooking Station, a Stash and a Sleeping Bag (please use it inside the tent to avoid disease). And I guess you get a little instrument as well so you can let everyone around you know you’re there.
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Players opting into the service wouldn’t be getting as much of a deal without a few Atoms to seal the deal. As a reminder, Atoms are the game’s primary in-game currency for basically everything. Players earn them through either quests and activities, or through microtransactions. Now, the subscription service will throw 1, 650 Atoms per month at its subscribers. Utilizing the most economic purchase methods possible, that’s about $15 USD of atoms you’re getting. It’s a pretty solid cut given the subscription’s asking price.
If you’re more of the cosmetics type, you also get a few of those. Namely, there’s the Ranger Armor outfit, which is essentially the Fallout: New Vegas protagonist’s outfit, mask and all. There are also in-game emotes as well as icons to use exclusive to subscribers.
How will these offers settle in with time for players? We have yet to see. The game already had some serious backlash, especially for botching some prior paid upgrades for physical products. When the game released, players didn’t get the canvas bag promised. Instead, Bethesda sent nylon sacks, which was not a welcome treat for those who paid for the $200. (Eventually the bags reached players.) Fallout 76 itself was buggy, and nearly unplayable to many, as Bethesda’s usual Fallout engine strained to survive in a multiplayer context. Plus, one of its collector helmets, sold separately, was recalled due to a high risk of mold.
Still, the subscription seems like a good upgrade for dedicated players, and it looks like there are more than plenty of them. After all, with many casual players scared off by the game’s initial state, 76 has likely settled down to prioritize hardcore hunters and roleplayers alike.
Again, the service is $12.99 per month, or $99.99 if you get the whole year in one go. A $30 savings isn’t too shabby. If you don’t have the base game, Fallout 76 itself is available on PC via the Epic Games Store, PS4 and Xbox One for $39.99, but it goes on sale pretty often. (Looks like at least one well-known possibly-collapsing game store has a sale, for instance. Not an affiliate thing, just trying to help.)
