5 Ways to Prepare for Fallout 76

Ways to Prepare for Fallout 76

Do Your Research & Make Sure It’s Right for You

Fallout 76 is a completely different experience to what fans have seen in the series before. Rather than being given a large post-apocalyptic wasteland to explore on their own, this time it’s inhabited by other players. You’ll all be embarking on the same quest to rebuild civilization in a dangerous wasteland filled with radiated creatures and materials to craft.

It’s certainly different and tends to lean into its building mechanics which are almost identical to those we saw in 2015’s Fallout 4. Plus, with this being Reclamation Day, civilization hasn’t been fully established. Human NPCs aren’t a thing here, or if they are, they’re just corpses ripe for looting. All fellow humans are other players, and you’ll either need to work alongside them to rebuild, trade, and see off the dangerous creatures of the wasteland.

Read up on our preview and the impressions of others who have spent some time exploring the wasteland in the beta (if you didn’t yourself). If you checked out the beta yourself, take some time to ensure you’re 100% happy with what you played. The beta was essentially the full game, so don’t go expecting any massive changes between now and launch.

Ways to Prepare for Fallout 76

Decide Which Edition You Want

If you’re still set on being part of Reclamation Day and rebuilding the West Virginia wasteland, then the next task that awaits you is figuring out which edition of Fallout 76 you want to pick up. The first is obviously the standard edition. It’s just a copy of the game, but at least you’ll be able to take part in the shared-world fun of Fallout 76.

Stepping up from that, you’ve got the Tricentennial Edition. It comes with a bunch of DLC goodies to give you a headstart and also show your Fallout fandom. You’ll get Tricentennial Power Armor customization parts, weapon customizations, a Vault Boy mascot head, a Patriotic Uncle Sam outfit, Vault Boy saluting emote, First-Class Tricentennial Workshop posters, and a Tricentennial Commemorative Photo Frame for all those neat photo mode shots you snap.

And then, if you’re a massive Fallout fan and can manage to find a retailer that still has them in stock, you can nab yourself the Power Armor edition. It comes with a full-scale T-51 Power Armor helmet, complete with voice modulator speaker, LED headlamp, and custom VATs sounds. It comes with a West Tek canvas carrying bag, glow-in-the-dark world terrain map, 24 collectible Fallout figurines, and the Tricentennial edition of the game.

The edition of Fallout 76 you pick up ultimately depends on how much you want to spend on the game. The Power Armor edition comes in at a hefty $200, the standard’s the usual $60, and the Tricentennial Edition comes in at $80.

If you’re on the fence, unless you’re a massive Fallout fan intent on getting yourself your own Power Armor helmet, we’d probably advise going for the standard edition. Ultimately, the contents of the Tricentennial Edition is all DLC for the game itself, so it only makes sense to pick it up if you know you’re going to enjoy exploring the wasteland for hours on end. At the end of the day, though, the decision is entirely yours.

Ways to Prepare for Fallout 76

Clear Some Hard Drive Space & Preload if Buying Digitally

Fallout 76, like most other open world games, has a pretty hefty install size. You’ll be looking at around 45 GB on all platforms for the game itself. As such, if you’re purchasing the game digitally, and don’t have the fastest internet speeds, you could be waiting quite a while before you can hop into the West Virginia wasteland.

As an added launch day headache, according to PSU, there’s a pretty huge 54.6 GB update players will need to install before they can even load up the game. That means you’re looking at about 97-100 GB total to download before you can begin playing the game if you’re downloading digitally.

If you’re picking up a physical copy, or if your internet speeds are just insanely fast, then it’s always best to just do some spring cleaning of your console’s hard drive before you preload or pick up the game. Any minutes you can save yourself now just means more time shooting Scorched in the face with a Pipe Pistol once the servers finally go live, and who doesn’t want that?

Ways to Prepare for Fallout 76

Arrange with Friends to Explore the Wasteland Together

Fallout 76 is going to be jarring for some fans of the series. Having other players running around your wasteland doesn’t feel quite right, especially in the initial high-traffic areas such as Vault 76 and the Overseer’s camp.

Once you’ve got the opening few quests out of the way, however, Fallout 76 does allow you to turn off PvP and venture off the beaten path on your own at your own leisure. From our 20 + hours playing Fallout 76 in the beta, though, it certainly pays to play with friends.

Free respawns on your teammates and safety in numbers are the two most obvious bonuses to playing with others, however, pouring perk points into your Charisma stat will certainly make playing with others more beneficial in the moment-to-moment gameplay. It might initially feel wrong having your friend sprint jumping away from a horde of Scorched or Ghouls in pursuit, but generally speaking, it pays to play with others.

Even if you don’t intend to play Fallout 76 with your friends at all times, it pays to experiment and give it a chance. You never know, you might even end up preferring to go through the crafting materials grind as a team, rather than riding solo. We certainly did.

Ways to Prepare for Fallout 76

Check Our Guides to Familiarize Yourself & Stock Up on Supplies

We spent a lot of time exploring the wasteland in the Fallout 76 beta. We encountered the Grafton monster, spent a ton of time checking out all the different Perk Cards, and Mutations, and figuring out the CAMP system.

Fallout 76 definitely still feels like Fallout at times, but a number of its new systems can be confusing or take a little while to get used to. Well, whether you’re looking for how to turn on Pacifist Mode so you can enjoy exploring Appalachia in peace, or need to know how to get Fusion Cores, we’ve got you covered in our comprehensive Fallout 76 guide wiki.

The more you’re clued up on what to expect in the West Virginia wasteland now, the less grueling the learning curve will be upon stepping out of Vault 76 for the first time. And, of course, if you’re looking for more tips or tricks to help you on your mission to rebuild civilization, let us know down in the wiki’s comments and we’ll do our best to get you an answer.

Finally, it wouldn’t be a big video game launch if we didn’t advise you to stock up on supplies. Your favorite chips, soda, cookies, and other snacks are always great for fuelling those late-night gaming sessions. Make a quick trip to the store so that when those hunger pangs do hit in the wasteland, you’re not left eating canned dog food like your character. Seriously, you don’t need to reach that point just yet.