After years of fan demand, the Fallout franchise will finally let the player-character turn into a ghoul, courtesy of an upcoming update to Fallout 76. This broadening of the horrific post-apocalyptic fantasy is something that players have hoped for for some time now, especially after entries like Fallout 3 have turned NPCs into ghouls following significant events like the Megaton bombing.
And these changes won't just be superficial, either: transforming into a ghoul in Fallout 76 will net players access to a wide array of new abilities and upgrade paths, making such a decision genuinely rewarding and deep. By the same token, certain progression paths and perks will be locked off from players who choose the ghoul route, so it won't be one that players tread carelessly. This interplay between reward and penalty could serve to make ghoul transformations a powerful role-playing and build-crafting tool, further expanding Fallout 76's horizons. If Bethesda wants to double down on these potential strengths, there might be a fairly obvious next step to take.
Fallout 76’s Gleaming Depths Raid Weapons Prove a Sad Truth About Unique Weapons
Fallout 76 has a wide variety of unique weapons for players to earn, although these weapons generally suffer from one big disadvantage.
After Ghouls, Fallout 76 Could Channel Cyberpunk 2077 With Playable Synths
Synths Would Be a Natural Progression from Fallout 76's Ghouls
The Fallout timeline places Fallout 76 a few years before The Institute's founding, meaning that synths don't technically exist yet. Thus, the following speculation is under the assumption that FO76 issues another time-skipping DLC or some other narrative justification for synth inclusion.
Synths have had an iron grip on the imaginations of Fallout fans since Fallout 4 expanded their lore, placing them near the center of the narrative. Their creation and subsequent subjugation by The Institute, the incredible leap from Generations 1 and 2 to 3, and the ostensible intelligence and depth of emotion of these techno-humans are all ripe for narrative exploration. This is exemplified by Nick Valentine, who is one of Fallout 4's most beloved characters, standing out, in part, because of his complex synth identity.
While they are obviously different from intelligent ghouls in a number of key ways, they also share a number of thematic similarities. For one thing, both synths and ghouls suffer extreme prejudice, with their unusual appearance often inspiring fear, disgust, disrespect, or some combination of the three. They are also firmly planted in the "new world" of the post-apocalypse, not having roots in pre-war society like standard humans. This makes them, in some ways, better suited to the irradiated nightmare that the world has become. If Fallout 76 is looking to further explore such concepts, then a playable synth would be a nice next step after ghouls.
What Playable Synths Could Look Like in Fallout 76
Certain details, like the basis for their introduction and whether a player could "transform" into one versus having to start a new campaign, could impact how synths are presented in Fallout 76. But regardless of these variables, there are a few promising ways that synths could build upon the game's gameplay and structural elements.
Like ghouls, synths could have access to a number of different perks, but there may be another avenue that would be more interesting to explore: mechanical components. Rather than a traditional gear system, perhaps synth characters could be improved or augmented by replacing their internal and external components, in a manner not unlike the cyberware system of Cyberpunk 2077.
This would make synths fundamentally different from human and ghoul characters, offering a unique slant on progression, resource management, and build-crafting, just like playable ghouls purport to do. These perks could then be balanced by various drawbacks, like an immunity to all food- and drug-related buffs, making for a refreshing, thematically relevant addition to the role-playing experience.
Fallout 76
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