10 Features That Will Make Fallout 5 Awesome
Even with Fallout 4 still fresh in my mind, I can’t wait to jump into Bethesda’s next installment. What will Fallout 5 have in store for us? What new mechanics will it bring to the table? How will it improve from its predecessors?
The possibilities are near endless, limited only by the team's creativity and the game engine. But these 10 things are features all fans want to see in Fallout 5.
10. A Game-Changing Setting
Every Wasteland should be a special snowflake.
Fallout 5 should take place in a new area that switches up the atmosphere and story. Compare Fallout 3 to Fallout: New Vegas and you’ll see what I mean. Fallout 3’s Capital Wasteland was a barren world where finding anyone felt like nothing short of a miracle. Meanwhile, New Vegas was jam packed with colorful characters, factions, and seedy underground conspiracies.
The world of Fallout 5 needs a different feel than the Boston Commonwealth and its boogeyman Institute. New factions, different communities, an original story, and ruined landmarks from whatever awesome city Bethesda chooses. That’ll pull us right in for a new adventure!
9. Controllable Vehicles/Mounts
Honestly I would play the game if this was all it was.
In Fallout 4 we get to ride a vertibird and step into beefy power armor to tear our foes apart as we boost around with a jetpack. It’s a start. But Fallout 5 should take it to the next level.
Imagine being able to pilot a vertibird. Swoop over the battlefield, turret blazing, and drop off Brotherhood Knights into the fray. Or would you rather drive a patched jeep with a mounted gun down broken highways and up to raider camps?
Maybe you’re a fan of Westerns? (I know I am!) Don your duster, spin the barrel of your revolver, and mount your two-headed horse. Journey through the Wasteland aback your trusty steed, taking out those ruffians as they come along.
Is it an ambitious feature? Sure. Will it present Bethesda with challenges? Yeah, we’d abuse vehicle and mount bugs to hell and try to zoom past all the progression barriers.
But we still want to see it happen!
8. Amazing Next-Gen Graphics
"Meh. I've seen better."
Fallout 4 is beautiful. But once you compare it to other next-gen games, you begin to notice the frayed edges. The game doesn’t hold up visually to the gorgeous environments, characters, and monsters of, say, The Witcher 3.
Fallout 5 needs to change that.
Bethesda’s next game should keep up with the latest technology. We want to see a fully optimized game with horrifically detailed mutants and creatures, decimated brick that looks rough enough to touch, and beautifully lit environments with dying yellowed grass, withered tree branches, and monumental highways and landmarks. We want to actually be there.
There are other ways Fallout 5 can spice up its aesthetic. Dynamic weather, anyone? Imagine the city streets shiny and dark with thundering rainwater. Super mutants dripping with mud as they advance. Or the beauty of the pre-war world brought back just for a moment as the tortured landscape is covered by a soothing blanket of stark-white snow.
7. Smarter AI for Enemies and Companions
"Arf?"
So NPCs in Fallout 4 can be mind numbingly dumb. Let’s not beat around the bush here. Whether it’s running against walls and objects, charging headlong into traps, ducking in cover with their backs exposed to you, or complaining about rats when you stealth stab their buddy in the neck right beside them, their stupidity knows no bounds.
Fallout 5 would really benefit from some fine tuned scripting. Smarter enemy and companion AI would improve combat exponentially. Enemies will be more challenging as they adapt to your strategy and work to throw you off. Companions will respond in kind, meshing with your playstyle and executing specific orders.
Players will always choose the dominant strategy. If faced by a tougher opponent you can’t beat head on, you get creative. But you shouldn’t be able to easily outsmart powerful enemies. And by outsmart I mean planting a ridiculous pile of mines and waiting on the other side with a taunting grin splashed across your face. A battle-hardened synth courser—no, not even a drugged up raider would charge through that murder pile.
But they do. Bless their eager little hearts.
6. Co-Op Gameplay
Sometimes you just need a friend.
If Fallout was an MMO, it would be an entirely different game (a la The Elder Scrolls Online). It wouldn’t have that personal sandbox spirit we’re all drawn to. But two-person co-op opens up a whole new can of fun while keeping the original flavor intact.
Being able to jump into your buddy’s game or pulling a friend into yours would add countless layers to gameplay. Fighting together through the bulletsprays of a street brawl. Dropping in for support against a tough boss (enemies would probably level, though!) Sabotaging their world by setting fire to an innocent settlement of now-crispy friends. Getting shot in the back as punishment…
Saving the world or destroying it—it’s all the more fun when you’re side by side with a friend. Cooperative gameplay would make Fallout 5 even more amazing.
And hey, if you prefer playing lone wolf style, you can completely ignore the co-op feature. That's the beauty of choice.
5. Improved Character Animation
Bethesda has managed to improve their animation with every new release. Yet somehow, it still sucks. Poor lip syncing, stumbling NPCs and half turns, awkward and janky run cycles.
Fallout 4’s animation is leaps and bounds better than Fallout 3’s. And you have characters like Dogmeat, modeled after a real German Shepard, that look amazing. Like there really is a bouncy fluffball of friendship and pants ripping bounding ahead of you as you journey.
But I think I speak for all of us when I say Fallout 5 needs to finally hit that animation milestone. Where most if not all of the puppet-like run cycles are gone, replaced by smooth, seamless movements. Both in friendly NPCs and horrific monsters as they stomp over to bash your head in.
So no more skipping super mutants as they twirl like green ballerinas trying to pathfind their way to your sniping position.
We need to be scared, Bethesda. In stitches from war wounds—not laughter.
4. Even More Character Customization
Not even once.
I love character creation. When The Elder Scrolls V: Oblivion came out, I (my wee little 6th grade self) created far more characters than I played. Indeed, building your character and perfecting their appearance is a huge part of what makes RPGs so great.
Fallout 4’s character creation is a vast improvement from the limitations of earlier games. You can pick presets and types and tweak fine details. New selections allow you to add a few scars and blemishes—or riddle your character in gross red marks and bruises.
Fallout 5 can take character creation and customization even further.
Face sculpting is a nice addition, but it can be uncooperative. Smoothing the tweaking process will let us really go wild with our creations. And a color wheel would let us perfect our character’s skin, hair, and eyes. If we want to make a lavender man with lime green eyes and flame-red hair, we should be able to dammit!
Trying to add a bit more class to the wastes. Also death explosions.
Once you’ve completed your beautiful character, wouldn’t it be nice to have a wider variety of outfits to choose from? I usually end up just equipping the best pieces. But style shouldn't come at the cost of your stats. You should have the option to make your appearance purely cosmetic.
Even with armor modifications, outfitting your person is pretty basic. Fallout 5 should add more clothes, armor, and accessories to pimp your character. No, not like that. Get your mind out of the gutter.
3. A Refined Inventory System
A step in the right direction.
Once you hit level 15 or so, your inventory becomes a cluttered mess. Sure you can dump everything back at home, but one expedition later and you’re right back to being ear-deep in gear and junk. It’s most noticeable when you’re trying to find specific things.
Where’s that note you just picked up? Lost forever in your trans-dimensional pockets. What about that weapon that’s good against insects? Time to dig through all your pistols, hats, and armor pieces!
If all your items went by specific categories, such as weapon, armor, key, note, you wouldn’t feel dizzy every time you brought up your Pip-Boy. There are mods that streamline the menu, but it would be great to see an excellent inventory system in the vanilla game. Hopefully Fallout 5’s menu will make spring cleaning a little easier!
2. Better Combat Mechanics
"Boom! Headshot!"
Fallout 4 is fun. There’s no doubt about that. And while one of the game’s main draws is its FPS combat, even that has its flaws.
Combat can feel clunky. Enemies are bogged down by spotty AI and pathfinding. Aiming your gun is sometimes unpredictable and lining up a headshot when your target’s jittering around in confusion is nothing short of frustrating. Just stand still, dammit!
When it works, combat is freaking fantastic. But Fallout 5 can make it even better by smoothing out the bumps and adding new mechanics to spice things up. I’m talking new weapons, traps, explosives, and features like environment interaction. Lean from around cover, throw things, hop over furniture and debris—little touches like that energize firefights!
Enemy behavior should keep you on your toes. How cool would it be if enemies used teamwork to take you down? For example, a hidden sniper doesn’t reveal himself until his bat-wielding friend has charged you. Then he takes aim while you’re busy not getting your head smashed in.
1. Extended Choices and Dialogue Options
Press X to Shaun.
My biggest disappointment with Fallout 4 was the crippled dialogue system. Fallout 3 and New Vegas boasted a staggering amount of choices and responses. But in Fallout 4 you're limited to a few vague statements and questions. It doesn't feel like I'm roleplaying my creation, but rather helping an established character fulfill their goal.
And that'd be fine if this wasn't a Fallout game.
I want my snarky responses. My confused statements of idiocy, violence, and barbarism. My shockingly helpful heroic sentiments in a world rife with murder and chaos. I want to feel like I'm shaping my character's personality and making meaningful choices.
Fallout 5 needs to take a step back to the RPG roots we love. It should give us a huge variety of choices and personalized dialogue. Even if that comes at the cost of a voiced protagonist.
I don't know about you, but I can't wait for Fallout 5. The game won't be coming out for a long, long time. But we can talk about it as we squirm in anticipation! What sort of new features and improvements do you want to see? Discuss in the comments below.
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