14 DAY TRIAL // The developers at Bethesda have finally launched a testing version of the Survival Mode that was long ago promised for Fallout 4 fans who are looking to test their skills against a harsher set of rules, with a beta currently offered via Steam to all those who are interested.
The studio is also offering a small patch alongside the new content drop, with a full list of changes available for all those who click on the button at the end of this article, with the focus on stability and performance improvements.
The official site offers a pretty clear breakdown of the changes that gamers will have to deal with when they select the Survival Mode for Fallout 4, with the company listing four new pillars that will determine a player’s approach for each situation.
Strategy becomes more important because each combat situation comes with a list of rewards and possible dangers and there are plenty of moments when the best choice is to move away or sneak around.
The battles themselves are faster and more brutal because enemies do more damage and can also be taken down more quickly via good use of weapons and skills combined with the new adrenaline concept.
Survival Mode for Fallout 4 also asks players to see more of the world, including plenty of abandoned places, to make sure that they have the resources they need to survive, which now include food and water.
Resting is also more important and gamers will have to make tough decisions about what to carry with them and what to leave behind.
Fallout 4 is also preparing for more DLC
In the Survival Mode, manual and quick saves are eliminated and the autosaves are restricted to major plot moments, which makes beds more important because a gamer will have to spend one hour in one to make sure that his character’s progress is safe.
Walking is now also the only way to move across the wasteland, a process complicated by fatigue that needs to be eliminated, and the map will be less useful when it comes to detecting threats and places of interest.
In April, Fallout 4 will deliver its second piece of downloadable content, called Wasteland Workshop, which adds more ways to tweak settlements as well as a way to capture creatures and then create pits for them to fight in.
Far Harbor is the story-focused DLC, designed to open up a new island for exploration, with a range of new quests and more factions for gamers to interact with as they explore a mystery.