Summary
While not a lot is known about what is coming toFallout 76in 2025, Bethesda does have one major surprise in store. After players have been asking for it for years,Fallout 76will finally be letting them create their very own Ghoul. The prospect alone sounds very exciting, but it is made even better by the fact that the Ghoul will be far more than a simple cosmetic option. If it ends up being successful,Fallout 5really needs to consider taking it for a spin.
SinceFallout’s inception, players have really only gotten toplay as a Vault Dweller. Almost every game has opened up with something happening in the vault, and it always becomes the player’s job to go out and fix it. Outside ofNew VegasandFallout 2, this has been the series' template, butFallout 76now aims to change that forever. And hopefully, it does not end up being the exclusive home for this long-requested feature.
Fallout 76 Should Not Be the Exclusive Home for Playable Ghouls
Fallout 76 is Finally Moving Past the Vault Dweller
Since the franchise began, it has been forcing players out of vaults for various reasons.Falloutforces them out of Vault 13 to fix a Water Chip,Fallout 3sees them leave Vault 101to track down their father,Fallout 4follows them as they leave Vault 111 to save their son, andFallout76 follows players as they exit Vault 76 to reclaim the world. The only RPGs that did not follow a Vault Dweller wereFallout 2andFallout: New Vegas,but Bethesda has yet to revisit those concepts.
For years, players have been clamoring for something else. While the Vault Dweller concept is interesting, there are so many other stories waiting to be told. Perhaps the most requested one has been playable ghouls, which have only gotten more popular sincetheFalloutTV show. So, it seems like Bethesda is finally granting that wish withFallout 76, and the prospect sounds incredibly intriguing.
These Ghouls will be far more than simply cosmetic options, as they will actually impact the entire gameplay experience. For starters, since they are already bundles of radiation, radiation will not harm them and instead may be beneficial. Additionally, the world will react differently to them, andplaying as a Ghoulwill also open a lot of opportunities. While Bethesda has yet to share any more concrete details, players are already extremely excited to get their hands on it.
Fallout 5 Needs to Go All In on the Ghoul Concept
Now thatFallout 76is giving players Ghouls,Fallout 5needs to follow in those footsteps. The multiplayer game should not be the exclusive home for this type of player character. Doing so would do a disservice to the franchise as people have been asking for this experience for what seems like forever. Instead, it needs to actually be a core part ofFallout 5, and maybe even be the primary focus of the story.
It feels like the perfect time forFalloutto branch out from the vaults once more in favor of a new type of story. And one of the best types of stories it could tell would bea Ghoul-focusedFalloutgame. Let players experience the Wasteland the way a Ghoul would. From the stories being told, the actions they can take, and the way that NPCs interact with them. TheFalloutTV show has shown just how interesting of a story that could be, so now it needs to become a reality.
Even if Bethesda wants to keep the focus on Vault Dwellers, it should at least consider adding Ghouls as either a cosmetic option or as a part of the DLC. If that does not work, then it could actually make becoming a Ghoul a plot point of the main story, just like how Thaddeus seemingly did in theFalloutshow. Whatever way it is implemented, as long as it does the concept justice, players will likely love it. So, hopefully, Bethesda delivers.
Fallout 76
WHERE TO PLAY
Bethesda Game Studios, the award-winning creators of Skyrim and Fallout 4, welcome you to Fallout 76. Twenty-five years after the bombs fell, you and your fellow Vault Dwellers—chosen from the nation’s best and brightest – emerge into post-nuclear America on Reclamation Day, 2102. Play solo or join together as you explore, quest, build, and triumph against the wasteland’s greatest threats. Explore a vast wasteland, devastated by nuclear war, in this open-world multiplayer addition to the Fallout story. Experience the largest, most dynamic world ever created in the legendary Fallout universe. Expand southward to Skyline Valley – a brand-new region of Appalachia. Investigate the cause of the electric storm circling overhead and unveil the mystery around Vault 63 and its dwellers, including a shocking new Ghoul type – The Lost.
