Fallout has evolved in a variety of ways. From the franchise’s first games featuring a trimetric perspective to switching to third-person in Fallout 3, the evolution of Fallout has continued to shape the series into fascinating new forms. With Fallout 4, Bethesda introduced settlement building, and while this addition can be fun for a lot of players, its follow-up may want to scrap the mechanic entirely.
Fallout 4 isn’t the only Bethesda game to implement settlement building. Fallout 76 has a take on the feature with its camp system, and Starfield‘s improvement on the concept can bring some impressive builds to life. However, whenever the next Fallout arrives, a return to basics may be the best route forward for the franchise.
Related
Fallout Fans Divided Over Rumored Season 2 Casting
Fans of the Fallout TV show on Amazon Prime Video are pretty divided over a major Season 2 casting.
Minimizing the Scope of Fallout 5 Could Actually Deliver a Stronger Game
Bigger Doesn’t Always Mean Better, Even for Bethesda Games
Accommodating a feature as large as settlement building can eat away at a lot of development energy that may be better used elsewhere. As Bethesda’s most recent release, Starfield has failed to meet the expectations of some gamers. From critiques that Bethesda’s use of the Creation Engine 2 makes the game feel outdated to claims of the game’s world feeling empty, Starfield has proven to be divisive. There’s no way to know for sure, but Starfield may have had the chance to feel more alive and immersive if the settlement system was set aside in favor of developing world-building features instead.
Fallout 4 mostly avoided the criticisms that Starfield has faced, but the attention settlement building requires is undeniable. Fallout 5 is likely a long way away at this point, but reeling in some of Bethesda’s more cumbersome concepts could help ensure that the characters and lore encountered in the next chapter are more compelling than Starfield.
Starfield released its first DLC, Shattered Space, back in October 2024.
Staying Focused on Fallout’s Adventurous Side
Every Fallout story is different in its own unique way, but the one connecting factor is the journey of the Lone Survivor. Whether it be a Vault Dweller or New Vegas‘ Courier, each mainline entry is centered on a single character tasked with exploring the harsh wastelands that lie outside the Vaults. Instead of focusing on Fallout 5‘s settlement mechanics, pivoting this energy and attention to adventure-based elements may be what’s necessary to make the next mainline game as successful as possible.
Starfield may have had the chance to feel more alive and immersive if the settlement system was set aside in favor of developing world-building features instead.
After Starfield, Bethesda Has Two Massive Projects Waiting in the Wings
Starfield still has more DLC on the horizon, but following the developer’s space adventure, Bethesda has The Elder Scrolls 6 and Fallout 5 on the docket. Expectations surrounding these two games are high, and these heights may be difficult to reach. It’s even possible that The Elder Scrolls 6 may feature its own settlement system. Settlement building has become a loved feature by many Fallout and Starfield fans. However, the unfortunate reality is that keeping the feature may also continue the issues seen in the latter. Of course, if Bethesda changes its strategy and embraces Unreal Engine 5, this may fix such an issue, but it feels unlikely that the developer will abandon Creation Engine 2.
The Elder Scrolls 6 was officially announced in 2018. Fallout 5 has yet to receive an official announcement, but Todd Howard has confirmed that it’s expected after TES6.
Only time will tell how Bethesda chooses to evolve Fallout further. There are bound to be new features included in the next mainline chapter, but also, sometimes taking a step back can be more useful than growing larger. As the wait for Fallout 5 continues, more questions and speculations are inevitable, but it will be exciting when the game’s first reveal finally sees the light of day.
- Released
-
November 10, 2015
- ESRB
-
M FOR MATURE: BLOOD AND GORE, INTENSE VIOLENCE, STRONG LANGUAGE, USE OF DRUGS