Fallout 76 And The Rise of Survival Games

What should Bethesda learn from the growing and diverse range of sandbox survival playgrounds that precede its latest offering?

ONE OF THE THINGS WE LOVE ABOUT SURVIVAL GAMES IS THAT THEY TAP INTO THE CORE APPEAL OF PLAYING A VIDEOGAME IN THE FIRST PLACE; TESTING YOURSELF AGAINST THE SYSTEMS THAT A DEVELOPER HAS CREATED TO CHALLENGE YOU. Today that test is against thirst, hunger and fatigue, random encounters with enemy AI or the threat of other human opponents in a sparse open world setting, when previously the test would have been being able to leap from one block to another as fast as possible while avoiding a pursuing ghost. The value is ultimately the same even if the technology now is far more evolved and immersive in nature.

And so, in some respects, the rise of the survival game genre and its copious examples of the form in recent years should come as little surprise. It’s the very epitome of the stripped, back to basics approach to game design that so many feel an affinity with. And while Bethesda’s Fallout titles have tended to be much more involved and complex beasts, it also makes a lot of sense that this franchise would look to tap into that core appeal a little more and test itself in a new playground that can appeal to a different kind of gamer than its RPG fare has reached thus far.

For starters, Bethesda’s foray into the survival experience, Fallout 76, comes pre-packaged with one of the most important things a good survival requires; an interesting world. “I think an interesting universe is as important as a good gameplay loop,” 11 Bit Studios partnerships manager Pawel Miechowski tells us. “It makes things believable for the player even if we’re talking about fantasy worlds.” 11 Bit’s recent survival offering, Frostpunk, was a little different from most since it brought together elements of survival with city management. However, what it shares with the wider Fallout universe is a post-apocalyptic world setting that pushes humanity to the edge.