Fallout Games See A Massive Player Boost After Show’s Release
Amazon Prime Video’s Fallout TV show has re-ignited fans’ interest in the series, with player-numbers for Fallout 4, Fallout 76, and even Fallout: New Vegas showing a massive increase since the series premiered on April 10.
Industry analyst Mat Piscatella shared the game stats on Twitter, showing how multiple Fallout games had shot up in Steam’s daily active user rankings between April 7 and April 14–before and after the show aired. Fallout 4 moved up from 63rd to fourth, Fallout 76 moved from 54th to seventh, and even Fallout: New Vegas was up there, from 83rd to 10th place.
US DAU Ranks for Fallout games on Steam – Apr 14th compared to Apr 7th:
Apr 14th rank – Title (Apr 7th rank)
5 – Fallout 4 (63rd)
7 – Fallout 76 (54th)
10 – Fallout: New Vegas (83rd)
Source: Circana Player Engagement Tracker— Mat Piscatella (@MatPiscatella) April 15, 2024
The raw numbers on Steam Charts show Fallout 4 peaked around 83,000 concurrent players over the weekend, where previous monthly peaks would only be around 25,000 players. Fallout 76 peaked around 39,500 players, more than double its average monthly peak, and even 2010’s Fallout: New Vegas saw 20,000 players online at once over the weekend.
The numbers seem to be following a similar trend on consoles, with True Achievements’ weekly Xbox games chart showing Fallout 4 at 17th place, after dropping out of the tracked top 40 altogether, while Fallout 76 moved up to 19th place from 40th.
Bethesda’s Fallout series has been relatively quiet since Fallout 76 released in 2018, though Fallout 4, the last mainline entry in the series, has seen enduring popularity with fans. Fallout 4’s major next-gen update, which was delayed from 2022, is finally coming out across PC and consoles on April 25, which will likely see another boost in popularity for the nine-year-old game.
Bethesda is planning to make Fallout 5, though Bethesda hasn’t revealed many details about the upcoming game yet. Todd Howard did reveal recently that he vetoed some plot elements from the TV show, because they were too close to what Bethesda is working on with Fallout 5. Despite the long break since the series’ last major release, Fallout 5 isn’t expected to release any time soon, as it will follow The Elder Scrolls VI.
Bandai Namco Revives Popular Tamagotchi Connection Virtual Pets For 20th Anniversary
Though Bandai Namco releases new Tamagotchi devices fairly regularly these days, its next major release is a blast from the past. To celebrate the 20th anniversary of Tamagotchi Connection, a refreshed set of the multiplayer-focused virtual pets is set to release on July 9. Not only will you be able to raise you pixelated pet, but they will be able venture out into the world to mingle with other little aliens who also happen to be trapped inside keychain devices. Four different color variants are available to preorder now for $30 each. Alternatively, you can preorder a two-pack for $58 to ensure your little guy makes friends and maybe even finds love. Just please don’t forget to feed your digital pet this time.
Tamagotchi Connection – $30 each
While you might be familiar with the original Tamagotchi released in 1997 in the US, the Tamagotchi Connection was a serious upgrade in comparison to when they debuted in 2004. Along with brand-new designs for the digital critters, the big draw here was the infrared “connection” that could be used to link up with friends. Once a connection was established, you could play games, exchange gifts, and even breed your Tamagotchi after they became married to each other. What a wild time, the early 2000s were.
All of those original features have been retained for this new line of Tamagotchi Connection toys, and these eggs also allow you to meet more than 50 characters, play more games, and earn Gotchi Points to spend on food and other items, as part of the new extras being introduced here. You can even find passwords to unlock special items.
If that’s not enough Tamagotchi for you, then check out this new line of Hello Kitty Tamagotchis.
Available for $20 on July 9 in red and blue shell designs, these cute accessories come with a clasping carrying chain and batteries.
There are plenty of other themed Tamagotchis you can buy, and many of them are discounted at Amazon.
More Tamagotchi
Assassin’s Creed Shadows Is Ditching An Iconic Franchise Feature
In Assassin’s Creed Shadows, one of the franchise’s most iconic features–synchronization points–will work a little differently than before.
Following a cinematic reveal trailer, Ubisoft has revealed all kinds of details about the latest entry in the long-running series to IGN. The game will put players into the shoes of both a shinobi and a samurai in feudal Japan. While much of Assassin’s Creed Shadows will sound familiar to fans–parkour, a large open world to explore, stealth assassinations, melee combat–there are some notable changes, particularly when it comes to filling out the game’s map.
In the past, these have been done via synchronization points. These points are usually atop tall buildings or towers. Traditionally, synchronizing sees the camera slowly rotate in a panoramic view of the surrounding area, before marking all nearby points of interest on the in-game map.
That won’t be the case in Assassin’s Creed Shadows. There will be no spinning panoramic views in the upcoming title when synchronizing, nor will synchronizing automatically reveal nearby points of interest. Instead, players will need to survey the area and manually highlight areas of potential interest before investigating them further once back on the ground. Synchronization points will, however, still allow for players to fast travel between them.
It’s a small, but significant change, as synchronization points, including their stylish, slow camera pan of the surrounding area, have largely worked the same for much of the franchise’s long history. Other changes in Assassin’s Creed Shadows include the lack of a bird that can be used to mark enemies, though players will still have access to Eagle Vision to track nearby foes. Light sources, shadows, and the weather will also play an important role in gameplay. For the first time in the franchise’s history, Assassin’s Creed Shadows will star a real historical figure as one of its dual protagonists: the African samurai, Yasuke.
Assassin’s Creed Shadows will be similar in size to 2017’s Assassin’s Creed Origins, Ubisoft has said, which means there should be plenty of Japan to explore. It will feature a non-linear campaign story revolving around tracking down and eliminating specific targets, according to Ubisoft, and it’s one that will also see players building out a spy network to gather intel on targets in a system that sounds similar to one seen in Assassin’s Creed Brotherhood.
Assassin’s Creed Shadows will release on PC, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series X|S on November 15. A collector’s edition exclusive to GameStop is available for preorder now.