Update: Fallout 76 may be an online game, not a traditional single-player one…
Bethesda has announced a new entry into a beloved franchise with Fallout 76. The developer began teasing the potential of a new Fallout title yesterday with brief social media posts instructing fans of the game to stand by, and made good on the hype they generated with a trailer delivered today.
The Fallout series universally surrounds post-apocalyptic anxieties and survival, usually following one protagonist as they navigate their way through a world that has become much stranger through radiation. The last installment of the franchise, Fallout 4, was a critical and commercial smash hit, generating positive reviews and a ton of income for Bethesda on the way to being one of the most talked about games of 2015.
Related: Marvel Teasing Possible Fallout Crossover Event
Fallout 76 looks to be following in the same footsteps as Fallout 4, although the trailer [above] did little to reveal what the game will be about. The aesthetics are mostly the same, with the iconic Vault-Tec mascot Vault Boy plastered everywhere in the room the trailer examines. A voice states ominously that “when the fighting has stopped, and the fallout has settled” the future of mankind begins in Vault 76, before closing on the back of a familiar light blue jumpsuit with the number 76 emblazoned in gold.
Fallout 76‘s official teaser trailer also indicates that it won’t be long before we know more about the next instalment in the franchise. Bethesda’s E3 Showcase is scheduled for Sunday, June 10th at 6:30pm PT and will be streamed live on Twitch and other hosts. Fallout 76 is set for a starring role at the showcase, as indicated by the trailer, so fans can expect more info soon.
As for what Fallout 76 actually is, there’s a multitude of possibilities. Although the title seems to rule out the remaster of Fallout 3 or sequel to Fallout: New Vegas that many were expecting, it could be a sequel to another previous installment since it has eschewed the mainline series’ numbering, which would be “5.” The game seems as though it will be set in West Virginia, as indicated by the use of John Denver’s “Take Me Home, Country Roads” in the trailer. In Fallout lore, West Virginia becomes “disestablished” in 2077 – a number that surely isn’t just a coincidence.
Whatever the nature of the game, it’s only a few weeks until fans of the series are aware of where Fallout is heading next, and Bethesda has made their E3 Showcase a must-watch event on the back of a single minute and 30-second trailer.
Update: New Vegas devs share disappointment that new game isn’t New Vegas 2, hopeful for future.
