Fallout 76's Playable Ghouls Should Only Be the Beginning

24/06/2024

Fallout 76 will finally let players become ghouls in 2025. The game has been experiencing a sort of mini-renaissance after the debut of the Amazon show (which coincidentally features Walton Goggins as a fan favorite ghoul character), and this type of update is exactly what the title needs to keep this resurgence rolling. However, this new feature feels like it could only be the start of something big for the Fallout series.

Playable ghouls could just be the first step toward where the Fallout franchise should be headed. Bethesda’s wastelands are filled with so many different factions, creatures, and mutants that limiting players to just controlling normal, everyday humans can seem vanilla, especially when looking at the studio’s other major IP, The Elder Scrolls. While Fallout 76 is on the right path with its ghoul update, it should keep the ball rolling and fully embrace the Elder Scrolls' approach to playable races.

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Fallout 76 Should Bring in More Playable Races

Fallout 76, or maybe even Fallout 5, should embrace the idea of playable non-human races. There’s plenty of choices in the wasteland when it comes to Fallout's humanoid characters: ghouls, synths, cyborgs, and even first generation super mutants. Letting players decide for themselves which of these races they’d like to take control of would give more variety to available builds and gameplay styles, while also affecting and modifying the role-playing elements Fallout is perhaps most beloved for.

Possible Playable Races for Fallout 76 and Future Fallout Games

Ghouls
Super Mutants
Synths
Wendigos
Cyborgs

How Playable Races Could Expand Build Variety and Immersion

Fallout 76 is letting players choose to become a ghoul in the middle of a playthrough. In Fallout lore, a human can turn into a ghoul over time, meaning that players choosing to embrace their ghoul era is completely in sync with the canon of the game. The same is true of cyborgs, wendigos, and super mutants, but letting players start a save file as one of them from the jump could also be an option. Playable synths would be a little more restrictive, and would require a dedicated start of game character selection.

In The Elder Scrolls games, the playable races each come with their own pros, cons, and unique abilities. Nords, for example, are generally much better warriors at baseline and have more resistance to frost-based damage, owing to their homelands in the frigid tundras of Skyrim. Playable races in Fallout should function largely the same way; getting buffs and debuffs that make sense with the lore of the particular race.

Ghouls can be more resistant to radiation, but run the risk of becoming feral and suffer charisma penalties due to their appearances. Synths can have high baseline intelligence and strength, but suffer from low luck and NPC mistrust should their robotic nature be made public. Wendigos, though mostly found in Fallout 76’s Appalachia, could give the player massive boosts to strength, stamina, and agility, at the cost of crippling charisma debuffs as well as a constant addiction effect that can only be sated by cannibalism. The possibilities are endless and can add limitless replay value to see what kinds of builds work best with different races.

Playable Races Can Impact Future Fallout Narratives

Obviously, Bethesda would have to craft its narrative around the possibility of differing races. Fallout 4's Sole Survivor, for example, could not possibly be anything but a human right off the jump in a new save, as the wasteland mutations/technology didn’t exist Pre-War. The writers would have to get a little creative as to their presentation, as well as the flow of the narrative. If a player chooses to be a super mutant, they cannot be locked out of a pivotal story moment due to any theoretical intelligence/charisma debuffs. Clever storytelling or branching paths would be necessary to make sure players are not punished too harshly for choosing to live as one of the wasteland’s more radioactive denizens.

Fallout 76

Franchise FalloutPlatform(s) PS4, PC, Xbox OneReleased November 14, 2018Developer(s) BethesdaPublisher(s) BethesdaGenre(s) Action, RPGMultiplayer Online MultiplayerEngine CreationESRB M for Mature: Blood and Gore, Drug Reference, Intense Violence, Strong Language, Use of AlcoholHow Long To Beat 34 HoursX|S Enhanced NoFile Size Xbox Series 97 GB (May 2024)Metascore 53PS Plus Availability Extra & Premium See at Official SiteSee at SteamSee at Xbox Games StoreSee at AmazonSee at Playstation Store