Bethesda's highly anticipated next gen update for Fallout 4 is riddled with issues across PlayStation, Xbox, and PC.
The next gen version was finally released on April 25, 2024 (around 18 months after it was announced) but the several gigabyte update hasn't been met with much fanfare.
The Steam version of Fallout 4 appears most wrought with technical issues, though PlayStation 5 players have struggled to obtain the update at all due to an availability error and confusing messaging from Bethesda. Xbox players, on the other hand, don't have access to the game's Quality Mode, meaning they can't experience one of the main appeals of the next gen update: 4K resolution on ultra settings.
This specific issue was confirmed on X/Twitter by tech expert Digital Foundry's Thomas Morgan. "I can confirm that only the 60 frames per second Performance Mode works right now. The update has a bug."
PC players, meanwhile, have taken to Steam to flag myriad issues with the update. "Many of the bugs that existed and were promised to be fixed are actually still in the game after the patch," said Piglet in one review. "Finally updated the game and didn't fix a single issue," wrote birthdayjesus. "But now the mods I used to fix it don't work."
The initial reaction to the patch notes wasn't positive either. "Damn, the bugfix list is short," wrote DreamweaverWR on Reddit, a comment which has 921 upvotes. "I had very low expectations but this is much less than I expected. They didn't fix almost any of the bugs that annoyed me the most (VATS crash and perception bug in Survival, for example)."
FluffyBunBunKittens chimed in too. "It is kind of amazing," they said. "Now I'm just waiting with interest what new bugs we get with this update."
One of these new bugs seemingly makes the game unplayable for some on Steam Deck. A Reddit post from prunebackwards said Fallout 4 can no longer be launched on the handheld PC, a sentiment corroborated by many in the comments and elsewhere. Some players who can launch the game are finding myriad issues upon doing so too, like having no graphics settings, no launcher, defaulting to low settings, having a poor frame rate, and more.
Fallout 4's Next-Gen Update will be available for PS+ Extra members. We do not have any information regarding PS5 Catalogue or PS+ Essentials.
— Bethesda Support (@BethesdaSupport) April 25, 2024
PlayStation users haven't been free from the issues either, though perhaps the biggest came in even trying to access the game. Fallout 4 was available for free through PlayStation Plus to all PS5 owners from November 2020 to May 2023, but this version of the game, nor the PlayStation Plus Essentials Catalogue version, wouldn't allow players to upgrade to the next gen update for free.
A full $19.99 purchase was required instead, though Bethesda soon confirmed this was an unintentional bug. "We've seen some confusion regarding the free Fallout 4 next gen update for PlayStation Plus Extra members," wrote a Bethesda community manager on the company's official Discord, who clarified it should be free as expected.
Bethesda wasn't able to offer any clarification regarding the free PS5 version nor the PS Plus Essentials version, however, saying on X/Twitter that "we do not have any information" regarding either. PS5 users were naturally left frustrated with the initial bug and unclear communication.
Those who have been able to get into the game haven't had the best experience either, and have taken to social media to share their impressions. "The Fallout 4 PS5 upgrade looks amazing," wrote CSSJAZZ on Reddit, sarcastically, as they posted the comment alongside a video of one area with missing textures.
Reddit user pasta_classic posted an image of the character creator screen, where the default man was missing a face completely. "Loving the update," wrote SnoopyTheDog_, who posted a video of their character locked in place while being killed by roaches.
"Gotta love that Bethesda polish," said UnwillingArsonist, whose post showed that makeshift weapons in the update are also missing textures, appearing as floating red exclamation marks in the world.
The issues come as somewhat of a sour note in what's otherwise been a Fallout resurgence, spurred on by the critically acclaimed Amazon TV series. A huge upswing in the popularity of Fallout 4, multiplayer entry Fallout 76, and other games in the franchise even caused popular modding website NexusMods to struggle, and Fallout 76, once universally panned, saw one million players log in a single day following the show's release.
Ryan Dinsdale is an IGN freelance reporter. He'll talk about The Witcher all day.
