It may still be a few months before the Fallout 76 World Pets update officially goes live, but I’m already eager to see exactly how these teased companion tweaks affect the overall experience. Fallout 76 has been seeing big improvements for nearly eight years now, and World Pets could prove to be a game-changer not just for pets, but also for other companion types, too. Bethesda’s multiplayer spin-off has been carrying the game side of the Fallout franchise for a long time now, and as the length between mainline entries continues to grow larger, Fallout 76 is quickly turning into a blueprint for what to expect from Fallout 5.
I have to avoid getting too far ahead of myself, though. Bethesda confirming Fallout 5 is in the works is really the only thing anyone knows about the game. The wasteland setting and story are still huge mysteries, so it’s possible that Fallout 5 feels incredibly different from Fallout 76. However, Fallout 76 is also the perfect testing ground for Bethesda. World Pets may simply be another way to breathe more life into Fallout 76‘s online world, but I’m curious to see if this update turns out to be a small appetizer for Fallout 5‘s companions.
Fallout 76’s World Pets Update Changes How Companions Work, and Fallout 5 Should Follow Suit
Since the upcoming Fallout 76 update is called World Pets, these upgrades clearly only apply to animal companions. If Bethesda had ambitions of doing a larger companion shake-up down the road, though, starting with pets would make the most sense. Fallout 76‘s The Slasher update is underway with horror-tinged quests ahead of Halloween, which is usually the kind of annual content that I look forward to the most each year, since I’m a sucker for some spooky vibes. However, winter’s World Pets update is what has the majority of my attention when it comes to planned Fallout 76 content.
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How Fallout 76’s World Pets Update Upgrades Animal Companions
- Pets can be leveled up independently.
- Pets will also be able to give players unique passive buffs.
For the most part, leveling up Fallout companions has involved these kinds of NPCs automatically scaling alongside players. However, Fallout 76 is adding an extra layer to the system by allowing players to upgrade their pets independently. It sounds like a small change at first, but it’s a simple tweak that potentially adds a lot of extra depth to progression. Deciding on the best Fallout companions can be tricky, but allowing for independent leveling can make each one far more customizable.
Fallout 76’s World Pets Leveling and Passive Buffs Need to Carry Over to Fallout 5
Companion buffs are nothing new to Fallout, but I would love to see the franchise’s future take Fallout 76‘s World Pets into account. Fallout companion perks usually involve players raising affinity with these NPCs, which in turn gives special abilities like damage resistance or increased accuracy. World Pets takes a similar approach, but the perks are passive environmental buffs instead of skill-based upgrades.
World Pets Companions and Their Special Loot Perks
- Dogs: These companions have the ability to find Stimpaks and Legendary items during bounty hunts.
- Cats: The ideal companion for fishing lovers. Cats can find Fish Bits and Improved Bait.
- Radhogs: Good choice for exploring radiation-heavy areas, since they can sniff out Toxic Goo and High-Radiation Fluids.
- Deathclaws: This companion type finds Legendary items and Black Titanium during events like Infestations.
Since Fallout already has the skill perks covered when it comes to companions, throwing World Pets’ environmental buffs into the mix with Fallout 5‘s companion options sounds like the most sensible step forward for how the series handles allied NPCs. This approach to Fallout 76‘s pets makes animal companions just as helpful as they are fun to have around, and whatever Fallout 5‘s game design ends up being needs to have a solid balance of traditional Fallout while expanding upon the new tweaks that the spin-off has introduced.
Pets can be leveled up to 200 and have options to Stay, Follow, Protect, and Kill.
Fallout 5 Can’t Stick to the Same Old Formula
The hard truth is that expectations for Fallout 5 are now bigger than ever. It’s been nearly 11 years since Fallout 4 came out, and in that time, some of the best open-world RPGs of the past decade have significantly raised the bar. Whether it’s gameplay, story, or companions, players expect much more. Bethesda can’t simply bank on its usual formula repurposed in a new iteration of the Creation Engine. Fallout 5 can keep the core systems that have helped build the franchise’s identity, of course, but they need to evolve into more dynamic systems.
Now that both Bethesda and Obsidian are working on separate Fallout games, it’s going to be fascinating to see which elements from Fallout 76 follow the franchise into the future. There are bound to be certain features that stay confined to Fallout 76, but when it comes to companions, I’m crossing my fingers that new Fallout games use World Pets as a guide to expand existing companion mechanics.
- Released
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November 14, 2018
- ESRB
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M for Mature: Blood and Gore, Drug Reference, Intense Violence, Strong Language, Use of Alcohol
