Fallout 76 Skyline Valley Hands-On Preview

Fallout 76 is a title that has seen some incredible additions and content updates since its release in 2018. A game rich in lore and RPG goodness, Fallout 76 has become the multiplayer Fallout fans have waited for many years. In its current state, new and returning players will be welcomed to a rich, open-world experience that begs to be explored.

Recently I had the opportunity to head to Bethesda’s London Office to spend some time with the developers and explore the latest content drop, The Skyline Valley . Joined by John Rush (Creative Director for Fallout 76 ), we were presented with an overview of all that Skyline Valley has to offer new and returning players. A first of its kind for Fallout 76 , Skyline Valley will offer a whole new zone for players to explore.

During our playthrough, we were allowed to dip our toes in this new zone. Set south of the mountain range at the bottom of the current map, Skyline Valley is located in the rolling hills of the Shenandoah Valley. It is a place immersed in an unexplained storm event that wreaks havoc on the area and its people. Shrouded in storm clouds, the valley is a desolate hellscape seeping with dread. At the center of it all is a mysterious mansion just waiting to be explored. It’s a unique setting in the Fallout 76 map and offers a great change of pace for long-time fans of the title.

When asked about the inspiration that drove the design for Skyline Valley , John mentioned that they have wanted to explore Vault 63 for quite some time and that the idea of expanding the map has been in their sight since launch. Creating the setting and backdrop for the story was of paramount importance. They wanted to create a sense of dread and mystery. They bounced around a lot of explanations for why this zone would be in the state it is when we explore it and when the storm concept was brought up it just made sense.

“When asked about the inspiration that drove the design for Skyline Valley , John mentioned that they have wanted to explore Vault 63 for quite some time and that the idea of expanding the map has been in their sight since launch.”

So, with the combination of wanting a new region, wanting players to explore a mysterious new zone and vault and now a mysterious electrical storm to work with, the team fleshed everything out from there. As someone who has now spent a couple of hours combing over as much of the zone as possible, I can confidently say they nailed all of their goals with the Skyline Valley update.

Along with an intriguing new map to discover, Skyline Valley also offers a new story for players to complete. Divided into 12 quests (the equivalent of the Fall 2020 Steel Dawn and Summer 2021 Steel Reign content combined) that should total somewhere between 15-20 hours, this new story will take vault dwellers into the mysterious depths of Vault 63. Centring around the Overseer of Vault 63, Hugo Stoltz, players will be tasked with unravelling the mysteries of the vault while questioning the motivations and allegiance of its Overseer. Along the way, players will encounter new creatures to kill, factions to build a reputation with and rewards to collect.

While our time with the new map and story was limited, I did have time to dig into the first couple of story beats of the first quest offered by Hugo. While the build we played wasn’t the final release version, the narrative and its delivery were up to par with what we have come to expect from Fallout 76 . The voice work was excellent and carried with it the same dark humour the franchise is known for. Even while exploring Vault 63, many of its occupants dropped hints about what has unfolded since the vault closed its gate so many years ago.

Along with the main story, there will be several side quests to complete and a new public event called Dangerous Pastimes. We had the opportunity to run the event during our test, and it was a chaotic, hilariously fun experience. Essentially players are tasked with powering up a massive lightning rod in the hopes of creating an electrical light shield. This becomes increasingly difficult as more and more of the enemies attempt to swarm the lightning rod while players defend. Add in lightning strikes that can and will randomly strike and kill players, and the chaotic meter gets dialled up to eleven. The result is a challenging but rewarding new public event for players to indulge in.

Skyline Valley also promises a new season with fresh rewards and unlocks to obtain. With a summer camp theme and a new host for the season in the form of Marshall Malow, the new season promises to be a lot of fun for players. While we didn’t get to spend any time with the new seasonal rewards, the theme and setting will fit right at home with the aforementioned humour that Fallout is famous for.

During the press briefing, John also spoke about an impressive new piece of content coming with the fall update titled Mile Post Zero . A major part of the update comes in the form of a new supply-run gameplay loop. Here players will be tasked with assisting the Company by protecting a caravan (more specifically a Brahmin) as it moves along the outer edges of the Skyline Valley map. The gameplay video presented a hectic, challenging escort mission for players to party up and complete.

“Along with an intriguing new map to discover, Skyline Valley also offers a new story for players to complete.”

These supply-run missions come with their own set of rewards, with the biggest being the unlock of your very own caravan outpost. This new instanced area will function as a home away from home, allowing players to upgrade, decorate and even create space to invite specialty vendors to set up shop. John compared it to houses in Skyrim , giving players to create that perfect space to continue their adventures.

Another note on the Caravan is that due to how the map and caravans are structured, it will be possible to have up to four separate caravan runs happening simultaneously. This will allow more players to experience this new content without feeling overrun and too busy. Like all public events, when a Caravan is started players will be notified on their map and able to fast-travel to the starting location of the Caravan they choose to be a part of.

Fallout 76 has, since its release, pushed hard to continue to develop and create new content for players to explore. The Skyline Valley content drop represents the 52nd update since its November 2018 release. In that time we have seen the world of Appalachia transform from a vast, relatively empty space to an impressively rich and rewarding world for players to explore. Skyline Valley is the next step in the Fallout 76 journey and it’s one I highly recommend checking out .