What we know so far:
- Map is 4x larger than Fallout 4's Commonwealth
- 76 is a prequel to all of the other Fallout games
- Timeline sets it roughly 20 years after the bombs fell, not 200+ like other titles
- Multiplayer/co-op is rumored by not confirmed
- Set in the West Virginia area
Game looks beautiful in the trailer. Very colorful. Hope they can execute this well.
My two cents...
Game definitely does not look like anything DayZ/Rust like we were being led to believe -- perhaps the trailer just doesn't give that away.
We can see seasons play out with foliage changing colors, growing and withering etc... So that's new. But my guess is that this is the culmination of Fallout 4's departure from Fallout 1-3 with respect to customization, crafting, and settlements. Bethesda seemed to want to incorporate as much of that as possible into Fallout 4, and this looks like the next logical step -- effectively allowing players to craft even more.
I'd also venture to guess the game defaults to Hardcore/Survival Mode; which is where this idea of "Rust/DayZ" comes from. You probably need to figure out how to survive early on, and the Survival Perk and things associated it with it, like cooking, foraging, farming, and hunting are going to be more important -- just a guess, but I think that's where the "Survival" aspect is coming into this.
Speculatively, I'd imagine Fallout 76 will use the Fallout 4 engine with a newer graphics pipeline. This likely means the game will look, feel and play like an upgraded and modified Fallout 4.
And that's why I think this is really going to be Fallout 4, with enhanced graphics, a shit-ton of mods like Frost, seasons, the equivalent of Nevada Skies etc, and
massively enhanced crafting with a strong reliance on survival. I would think the game will likely
enforce Hardcore mode and we'll likely see ammo have increased weights alongside lower carry capacities.
...
Off the bat though, I would've preferred a different location to West Virginia for this game. I say that for a few reasons:
1)
We've basically been here already. Fallout 3 takes place in the Capital Wasteland, and Point Lookout takes place in Maryland's swamplands. West Virginia is quite mountainous, but the weather and climate is exceptionally similar.
2) Operation Anchorage had us fight in Alaska and we know the Fallout 3 engine (and Fallout 4's for that matter) can handle snow fairly well.
Why not put us somewhere that has the full effect of four seasons in survival mode? I say that because West Virginia does not realistically get cold enough for someone decently equipped to die from exposure.
3) West Virginia is an absolutely beautiful place -- easily Top 5 in the states IMHO; but
I highly doubt Fallout 4's engine will be able to render and reproduce rural West Virginia's hills, mountains, swamps and forests remotely well enough to justify using this environment.
So with that said, I think there were better options like the woods of the Pacific Northwest or the Great Lakes / Midwestern States.
In the Midwest, Survival could take on a whole new meaning in winter with temperatures going well below zero making travelling well clothed or perhaps in power armor more of a necessity. Similar to Frost's use of radiation to require gas masks, 76 could have used the elements to restrict clothing. You'd have the lakes available for DLC, and the potential to trek into Canada.
West Virginia, given the constraints, history of the franchise, etc, just seems like a bad choice for a new game. Would be better served as a DLC location, IMHO.
