Fallout 76has an interesting legacy. The game’s launch was not only met with largely negative responses that were compounded by numerous controversies surrounding the game’s release. In the years following its release,Fallout 76has repeatedly received updates and new pieces of content that have helped bring the game much closer to a state that fans hoped the game could be when it was announced. These updates have included adding NPCs, new factions appearing in Appalachia, and a countless number of quality-of-life improvements.
Despite its successes,Fallout 76has called into question what lasting impact it will have on theFalloutfranchise moving forward. Fans ofFallouthave concerns about whether or not future entries will return to a single-player formula, or if they will feature the moreclassic aspects ofFalloutat all. SinceFallout 76is also a live service title that promises new updates for the foreseeable future, players are also wondering when they can expect to see aFallout 5, especially with Bethesda currently working onStarfieldandThe Elder Scrolls 6. However,Fallout 76’s position in the industry could have a very big implication for the series that likely won’t be felt a while yet.
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How Bethesda Has Handled The Elder Scrolls
Fans of Bethesda’s other premiere RPG seriesThe Elder Scrollsare no stranger to waiting long periods for a new entry. The last mainline entry in the seriesSkyrimwas originally released almost a decade ago, and Bethesda just recently said thatThe Elder Scrolls 6is still in the design phase. In the interim between the two titles, Bethesda has opted to re-releaseSkyrimenough times that it has become a meme while the game is available on nearly every platform that players could ever want it on.
One curious aspect of the company’s handling of the series is that it has not chosen to re-release any previousElder Scrollstitles despitegames likeOblivionandMorrowindhaving large player bases in their own rights that would love a remaster or re-release. Bethesda has said that it will continue to re-releaseSkyrimas long as players continue to buy it, meaning that every re-release of the game must have performed rather well thus far. This has allowed the studio to take its time withThe Elder Scrolls 6, as fans of the series are seemingly satiated by replayingSkyrimwith the incremental improvements that each re-release introduces. With how long it could be untilFallout 5releases, it could be that Bethesda is hoping to do something similar with that series as well.
How Fallout 76 is Different From Skyrim
If Bethesda does aim to haveFallout 76fill a similar role asSkyrimfor its franchise, there are some big differences between the two titles that will likely make it much more difficult to do so. One large aspect of this is thatFallout 76is a live service titlethat players expect to be continuously updated and added to over time. Not only does this mean that the game can’t be re-released asSkyrimhas been, but it also means that the game could have a hard time attracting new players to its ecosystem. Every re-release ofSkyrimsees new players trying it for the first time, but that will likely be much harder forFallout 76to accomplish when new players will have to contend with other players having already played for dozens and dozens of hours.
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It is worth mentioning thatFallout 76will also have to overcome the stigma that is still attached to the title from its rough launch. Games likeNo Man’s Skyand evenFallout 76have improved themselves since their rough launch, but there are still many players that will never check them out because of the first impression that they made. This will also make it much harder forFallout 76to support the franchise on its own as there is a smaller pool of potential players that it can attract to its ongoing ecosystem. This is made all the worse by Bethesda’s apparent reluctance to remaster older entries in their series, no matter how much olderFallouttitles may be improved with one.
What This Could Mean for Fallout 5
It seems inevitable thatFallout 5will release eventually, butFallout 76’s likely long time in the spotlight could have a very big impact on it by the time it releases. SinceFallout 5will likely have to wait until afterStarfieldandThe Elder Scrolls 6, it could very well be that there will be adecade-long gap betweenFallout 4andFallout 5. This large gap could see many younger players associating the entireFalloutfranchise with onlyFallout 76, which could, in turn, lead to Bethesda incorporating many of its elements into the newest mainline entry.
This development would undoubtedly be very disappointing for manyFalloutfans who would prefer an experience more similar to that ofFallout 3orFallout New Vegasrather than the survival MMO. It also could mean thatFallout 5does not receive the same amount of hype and attention asThe Elder Scrolls 6.Skyrimwas a cultural touchstone that still has a tangible impact on the games industry to this day, butFallout 76’s stigma and lack of wider impact mean that it could lead toFallout 5’s announcement not receiving nearly as warm of a welcome. This could even lead to wider audiences ignoring theimprovementsFallout 5could makeover the franchise, which would be very unfortunate to see.
It will be very interesting to see what lasting impactFallout 76has on the franchise and Bethesda as a whole in the future. The immense success of theFalloutfranchise makes it seem almost guaranteed that aFallout 5will release eventually, especially now that Bethesda is a first-party studio for Xbox. Hopefully,The Elder Scrolls 6will make some improvementsthat fans love, and thatFallout 5will eventually follow suit. Until then,Falloutfans will just have to be patient.
Fallout 76is available now on PC, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One.
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