The team over at Bethesda recently held a developer play session for Fallout 76’s newest content patch, Update 66
Four developers hosted the session, including Creative Director Jon Rush, Production Director Bill LaCoste, Live Producer Keaton Bracy, and Senior Systems Designer Kevin Wienecke. Each of them went over some of the major changes to the gameplay loop, with the first being the addition of public events, meant for many people to come together and play. Previously, events were a catch-all for any major thing players could do, but Update 66 has changed that system so that events are meant for many players, whereas activities are triggered more often and are meant for smaller groups.
Of course, the main question in everyone’s mind is, will there be any new enemies for players to kill? The answer is yes, with the addition of the new cryptid, none other than Bigfoot. Coming in as a part of the backwoods update, Bigfoot will only be available after completing one of about 40 events, where he has a chance to show up as a surprise after completion of said event.
The developers designed it this way so that any new players can just run away if they see him, but if players manage to beat Bigfoot, then they will be rewarded with a guaranteed four-star weapon drop. Be careful, though, Bigfoot is on a five-minute timer that will compel him to storm off in a cloud of dust if he isn’t taken care of quickly.
Along with the major addition of Bigfoot, the developers also showcased how the uninvited guest system works. Essentially, after completing one of the around 40 events that have the trigger for a spawn, the player may be able to face a suped-up version of past challenges in the game. In the play session, they used a legendary storm goliath, which is the only time it has spawned outside of its Skyline Valley arena.
Update 66 also includes an overhaul of many systems in Fallout 76, such as the aforementioned change from activities to events. One of the most interesting changes is scaled XP gain, which is set to make it so that the higher the level you have, the more XP you get. The developers also discussed making the Pip-Boy faster and more intuitive to reduce the time spent scrolling between menus.
Along with the major content update, the developers also thanked the fans of the game for giving valuable feedback and being supportive of their ventures in making Fallout 76. Make sure to go check out the newest Update 66, when it officially launches on March 3rd
