Fallout 5 can take one of the series’ core features to a new level

Stand out has always included elements in its setting that complement the broader retro-futuristic style of the 1950s American style. From Mister Handy’s robotic household helpers to foods like Salisbury Steak and BlamCo Mac and Cheese, Stand outThe world-building has produced some of the most well-known fictional elements of its kind in all of gaming, and Bethesda Game Studio’s subsequent work on the IP has seen it continue this tradition by explaining more about the story and interesting details behind these and other inclusions.

Among the most notable of the above are the bottle caps, which Stand out’s in-game economy and barter systems. One activity that players typically engage in in each entry is collecting, looting, and otherwise obtaining a healthy supply of bottle caps in Stand out to support their character’s efforts and supplies. While the next title probably won’t emerge from the Vault for quite some time, Fallout5 could adopt the basic template previously used for bottle closures and introduce a more comprehensive and flexible system.

Related

Fallout 5 should continue to take a measured approach to one type of content

Fallout contains some aspects beyond its iconic post-apocalyptic aspect that the next title should continue to use, but in moderation.

Fallout 5 could significantly expand its iconic bottle cap-based economy

Bottle caps are a cornerstone of Fallout’s story and gameplay

The use of bottle caps as a means of payment in Stand out is simultaneously silly and serious, fitting with the often absurd practical aspects of its post-apocalyptic society. In the franchise lore, the Nuka-Cola Company was the most successful and well-known producer of popular soft drinks, overtaking and displacing its competition to become a household name and product before the bombs fell. By the time the games took place, they had become the standard for the Wasteland’s economic system due to the prevalence of bottle caps before the war, the general inability to accurately reproduce them in large quantities, and the support of the major trading powers.

How Fallout 5 could iterate bottle caps

Obsidian Entertainment Fallout: New Vegas have put a new twist on the existing framework by introducing faction-specific money in the banknotes issued by the New California Republic and the denarius and aureus coins of Caesar’s Legion. Counterfeit bottle caps have also been a problem, as the technology to produce the originals has largely been lost. Enterprising and intrepid wastelanders have attempted to salvage some surviving printing presses to produce more of them, which threatens to flood the market and diminish the value of the genuine bottle caps.

Since Nuka-Cola bottle caps form the core of the in-game economy, Fallout5 offers a number of opportunities to expand their use and reach. Previously, all bottle caps had the same value, regardless of the Nuka-Cola variety they came from. This made it relatively easy to keep track of them, and the system has worked perfectly so far. However, given the range of different Nuka-Cola varieties and their respective rarity levels, for example Nuka Quantum, a next step could be to assign them all a hierarchy of value, like real coins, depending on which bottle they are on, to incentivize searching for them and make them more tangibly valuable in the game.

Regardless of whether Fallout5Given the potential setting, it’s a safe bet that bottle caps will return as a primary source of income and trade. With over a dozen flavors and special versions of Nuka-Cola already in existence, giving each one its own value seems like a natural progression, and a way to spice up the way bottle caps currently work. Offering higher rewards for certain flavors would also help with further world-building, and could help ensure the next Stand out even more immersive in this respect.

Fallout4

Fallout 4 is an RPG from the Fallout series and the fourth major installment. This time, players find themselves in the Commonwealth, formerly Massachusetts, in the year 2287.

Approved

10 November 2015

ESRB

M FOR GIRLS: BLOOD AND GORE, INTENSE VIOLENCE, STRONG LANGUAGE, DRUG USE

How long does it take to hit?

27 hours

Metascore

87

Expand