The 20th season of Fallout 76, titled Glow of the Ghoul, is now on the horizon, finally bringing playable Ghouls to the Fallout franchise. Fallout 76 has been teasing playable Ghouls for a while now, and with the launch being only a few days away, many players have the perfect reason to jump back into Fallout's online counterpart.
There are plenty of reasons to get back into Fallout 76 in 2025, but the arrival of playable Ghouls is definitely one of the biggest. Since the game first launched back in 2018, it has gone through a series of strong updates that have heavily improved the experience. That would be reason enough to give the game a try, but for long-time players, now might be the best time to start from scratch with a brand-new character.
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Why Fallout 76's Glow of the Ghoul Season is the Perfect Time to Create a New Character
Fully Unleashing the Ghoul Within
- Glow of the Ghoul and Ghoul Within are set to launch on March 18.
The overall season is called Glow of the Ghoul, while the update that brings playable Ghouls to life has been named Ghoul Within. Of course, players could use their current character to start working toward becoming a Ghoul, but the biggest benefit of doing so with a fresh character is that it could make the immersion deeper. Playable Ghouls are bound to be a huge game-changer for players, and getting to experience this transformation with a blank slate might make the reward of becoming a Ghoul far more rewarding.
The Glow of the Ghoul season will end in June.
Becoming a Ghoul in Fallout 76 Takes Some Effort
- Players will have to reach Level 50 before they are able to transform into Ghouls.
Leveling up in Fallout 76 can be a grind, but it also helps build up the anticipation of finally getting the chance to become a Ghoul. If a player is already at Level 50 or higher, jumping straight into the process of becoming a Ghoul may not have the same satisfaction as working hard for it. Of course, the preference of every player is different, but for those who enjoy grinding toward a goal, creating a new character may be the best way to experience the update.
Since Fallout 76 is pretty open-ended with its story, players are able to really make characters their own, and building one with the sole purpose of making them into a Ghoul presents a lot of role-playing possibilities that could make the experience that much more fun. It's possible that playable Ghouls could just be the beginning of Bethesda opening the doors to more character options, but only time will tell.
Becoming a Ghoul will give players a variety of special perks that human characters are unable to get.
Fallout 76 Fans Have the TV Show to Thank
- Walton Goggins as The Ghoul in Amazon Prime's live-action adaptation was a huge hit with viewers.
The Ghoul paved the way for playable Ghouls to be possible, thanks to the popularity of the character. As one of the show's main characters, The Ghoul showcased that Fallout has been missing out on some great role-playing opportunities by not allowing characters to become Ghouls. Now that they're finally on the way, it will be fascinating to see how this informs the next Fallout game.
Fallout 5 is still a long time away, but there is a lot of potential for Fallout 76's experimentation to continue over into the next mainline game. Practically nothing has been confirmed about Fallout 5 yet, but if playable Ghouls prove to be a hit with the game's players, they are bound to become a bigger part of the franchise.
Fallout 76
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OpenCritic Reviews
- Top Critic Avg: 54 /100 Critics Rec: 9%
WHERE TO PLAY
Bethesda Game Studios, the award-winning creators of Skyrim and Fallout 4, welcome you to Fallout 76. Twenty-five years after the bombs fell, you and your fellow Vault Dwellers—chosen from the nation’s best and brightest – emerge into post-nuclear America on Reclamation Day, 2102. Play solo or join together as you explore, quest, build, and triumph against the wasteland’s greatest threats. Explore a vast wasteland, devastated by nuclear war, in this open-world multiplayer addition to the Fallout story. Experience the largest, most dynamic world ever created in the legendary Fallout universe. Expand southward to Skyline Valley – a brand-new region of Appalachia. Investigate the cause of the electric storm circling overhead and unveil the mystery around Vault 63 and its dwellers, including a shocking new Ghoul type – The Lost.
