So this is basically just a deathmatch game now right? I mean, whats an rpg without NPCs, towns, etc.
Whats the point?
Just run around with other people and grind?
Yeah, Skill Up guy pretty much confirmed my fears when I finally got more details on the game from Todd Howard.
Fear #1- I love modern Fallout games, even FO4, despite its lack of role playing/lackluster main story. I liked some of the main story though, especially learning about the institute. There were some great side quests too, and I always love the juicy lore bits. Bethesda Game Studios has near perfected their addictive gaming loop of exploration, looting, combat and crafting, with story/quests giving those elements purpose and life.
Without NPC quest givers breathing life into them, I can't imagine this not feeling like a dead world.
Fear #2 for me was performance. BGS's creation engine is notoriously sluggish, regardless of system specs. Mods could always be counted on to fix performance issues, and improve fidelity, but BGS is on their own now.
I never minded their buggy/sluggish engine, because there was always a way to overcome issues. Vats helped with spotty gunplay, and you could always use the console/mods to force an ending to quests that we were bugged out.
I think Fallout 76 is going to bomb (relatively speaking) and really hurt the franchise and BGS's reputation. They would have been better off creating a single player story while having this quasi MP/Coop element as extra/optional feature once you reached a certain level.
Let's face it, BGS success has been built on a house of cards. You can't continually remove core features that gave you your initial audience, while delivering dated mechanics for your new customers and expect the upswing to continue. I don't see how anything in Fallout 76 is good enough to make removing story/NPC's worth it.