Fallout 76: The BETA and misleading PR marketing issues

Bethesda/BethesdaGameStudios
Bethesda/BethesdaGameStudios

Fallout76's closed beta started just three days ago on 23rd October exclusively for Xbox one (PC & PS4 users get access on 30th October) but it has been riddled with controversies and bad PR marketing decisions since the day it was announced.

But people have been way too hard on Bethesda even when they have been trying their best to fix all the issues surrounding the game before it launches on all the three platforms later next month.

Let's dive into some of the misleading and confusing stuff surrounding the game which is not really big of a deal or is it?

#1 NOT EVERYONE GOT ACCESS TO THE BETA

Sure it hurts that one of the most anticipated multiplayer game of this year is not getting an open public beta which seems kind of surprising given the fact that its Bethesda's (BGS) first take on a multiplayer title.

But what's more disappointing is how it all has been handled. Even all the people who preordered the game didn't get access to the beta.

A lot of people have been complaining that they didn't receive the beta codes after preordering the game which Bethesda clarified later that random people will be selected for their BETA programme even when they have preordered the game.

This is completely shocking and misleading from Bethesda because as a consumer we never got that information in the first place.

All they said was this:

Bethesda/BethesdaGameStudios
Bethesda/BethesdaGameStudios

Pretty confusing right?


#2 BETA STRESS TEST

Bethesda/BethesdaGameStudios
Bethesda/BethesdaGameStudios

Bethesda announced later that Fallout76 BETA will only be available to play for selected fixed timeslots every day with the time period ranging from 2-8 hours.

This is actually a good decision from their behalf assuming the traffic will be insane at this time and the developers will get a pretty good idea whether their game works or breaks in such a condition.

Bethesda has also acknowledged the fact that indeed their game will contain a lot of game breaking bugs and the BETA is going on for that very thing as they are tirelessly working and trying to fix all the issues before the launch.

But as a consumer point of view, it's not a good thing.

Supposedly you live in the UK and the time slot for the day is according to the US then it might happen that you won't be free at that moment to play the game and since its available only for a limited amount of hours every day, it doesn't help either.

You Preordered the game, you luckily got access to the BETA but you still can't manage the time to play it.

Sounds terrible, doesn't it?


#3 NO PREORDER BONUSES

Bethesda/BethesdaGameStudios
Bethesda/BethesdaGameStudios

Since the preorder bonus trend has shockingly increased in the modern gaming industry (which is also not a bad thing) I was completely devasted to find absolutely no extra content offered on pre-ordering on the game.

Why would I pay early for a standard edition of the game when I could get the same after the launch or even for cheap with the same content?

Another bad marketing decision spotted.

Sure "The power Armor edition" is limited and will go out of stock very soon if you don't preorder but I'm talking about the mass audience here.


CONCLUSION

Bethesda/BethesdaGameStudios
Bethesda/BethesdaGameStudios

These little issues here and there seems disturbing and makes us not just doubt the game but the company itself, but just like me, many other die-hard Fallout fans will undoubtedly buy the game at launch.

But as a consumer, I'm very much confused and worried about what I'm getting into.

Preloading of BETA for PC & PS4 users are now available and the time slots have been revealed by Bethesda

Here's hoping it doesn't collide with your work time or your sleep time or both.