Skip to main content
GamesRadar+ GamesRadar+
US EditionUS CA EditionCanada UK EditionUK AU EditionAustralia
Sign in
  • View Profile
  • Sign out
  • Games
    • Game Insights
      • Games News
      • Games Features
      • Games Reviews
      • Games Guides
      • Big in 2026
      • The Big Preview
      • On The Radar
      • Indie Spotlight
      • Future Games Show
      • Golden Joystick Awards
    • Genres
      • Action Games
      • RPGs
      • Action RPGs
      • Adventure Games
      • Third Person Shooters
      • FPS Games
    • Platforms
      • PS5
      • Xbox Series X
      • PC
      • Nintendo Switch
      • Nintendo Switch 2
      • Tabletop Gaming
    • Franchises
      • Grand Theft Auto
      • Pokemon
      • Assassin's Creed
      • Monster Hunter
      • Fortnite
      • Cyberpunk
      • Red Dead
      • The Elder Scrolls
      • The Sims
  • Entertainment
    • TV Shows
      • TV News
      • TV Reviews
      • Anime Shows
      • Sci-Fi Shows
      • Superhero Shows
      • Animated Shows
      • Marvel TV Shows
      • Star Wars TV Shows
      • DC TV Shows
    • Movies
      • Movie News
      • Movie Reviews
      • Big Screen Spotlight
      • Superhero Movies
      • Action Movies
      • Anime Movies
      • Sci-Fi Movies
      • Horror Movies
      • Marvel Movies
      • DC Movies
    • Streaming
      • Apple TV Plus
      • Disney Plus
      • Netflix
      • HBO
      • Amazon Prime Video
      • Hulu
    • Comics
      • Marvel Comics
      • DC Comics
    • Toys & Collectibles
    • Lego
    • Dungeons and Dragons
    • Merch
  • Hardware
    • Insights
      • Hardware News
      • Hardware Reviews
      • Hardware Features
    • Computing
      • Desktop PCs
      • Laptops
      • Handhelds
    • Peripherals
      • Headsets & Headphones
      • TVs & Monitors
      • Gaming Mice
      • Gaming Keyboards
      • Gaming Chairs
      • Speakers & Audio
    • Accessories & Tech
      • Gaming Controllers
      • Tech
      • SSDs & Hard Drives
      • VR
      • Accessories
      • Retro
  • Deals
    • Game Deals
    • Tech Deals
    • TV Deals
    • Buying Guides
  • Video
  • Newsletters
    • Quizzes
    • About Us
    • How to pitch to us
    • How we score
    • Newsarama
    • Retro Gamer
    • Total Film
  • home
  • Games
    • View Games
      • Games News
      • Games Features
      • Games Reviews
      • Games Guides
      • Big in 2026
      • The Big Preview
      • On The Radar
      • Indie Spotlight
      • Future Games Show
      • Golden Joystick Awards
      • Action Games
      • RPGs
      • Action RPGs
      • Adventure Games
      • Third Person Shooters
      • FPS Games
    • Platforms
      • View Platforms
      • PS5
      • Xbox Series X
      • PC
      • Nintendo Switch
      • Nintendo Switch 2
      • Tabletop Gaming
      • Grand Theft Auto
      • Pokemon
      • Assassin's Creed
      • Monster Hunter
      • Fortnite
      • Cyberpunk
      • Red Dead
      • The Elder Scrolls
      • The Sims
  • Entertainment
    • View Entertainment
    • TV Shows
      • View TV Shows
      • TV News
      • TV Reviews
      • Anime Shows
      • Sci-Fi Shows
      • Superhero Shows
      • Animated Shows
      • Marvel TV Shows
      • Star Wars TV Shows
      • DC TV Shows
    • Movies
      • View Movies
      • Movie News
      • Movie Reviews
      • Big Screen Spotlight
      • Superhero Movies
      • Action Movies
      • Anime Movies
      • Sci-Fi Movies
      • Horror Movies
      • Marvel Movies
      • DC Movies
    • Streaming
      • View Streaming
      • Apple TV Plus
      • Disney Plus
      • Netflix
      • HBO
      • Amazon Prime Video
      • Hulu
    • Comics
      • View Comics
      • Marvel Comics
      • DC Comics
    • Toys & Collectibles
    • Lego
    • Dungeons and Dragons
    • Merch
  • Hardware
    • View Hardware
      • Hardware News
      • Hardware Reviews
      • Hardware Features
      • Desktop PCs
      • Laptops
      • Handhelds
    • Peripherals
      • View Peripherals
      • Headsets & Headphones
      • TVs & Monitors
      • Gaming Mice
      • Gaming Keyboards
      • Gaming Chairs
      • Speakers & Audio
      • Gaming Controllers
      • Tech
      • SSDs & Hard Drives
      • VR
      • Accessories
      • Retro
  • Deals
    • View Deals
    • Game Deals
    • Tech Deals
    • TV Deals
    • Buying Guides
  • Video
  • Newsletters
    • Quizzes
    • About Us
    • How to pitch to us
    • How we score
    • Newsarama
    • Retro Gamer
    • Total Film
Trending
  • Pokemon Winds and Waves
  • New Games for 2026
  • GamesRadar+ Replay
  • Mario Day deals
Don't miss these
Fallout New Vegas
Fallout No, a Fallout New Vegas remaster isn't coming from the Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 3 + 4 dev
Fallout 5: A picture of Vault Boy giving a thumbs up in front of a closed vault from the Fallout games.
Fallout Fallout 5: Everything we know so far, and what we hope to see
Fallout New Vegas screenshot showing a sniper looking over the wasteland from the jaws of a dinosaur statue
Fallout Fallout: New Vegas remaster rumors get fresh ammo as Fallout 76 support studio posts a familiar loading screen
Fallout 3 screenshot shows a male character walking alongside a dog.
Fallout As Fallout 3 and NV remake hopes persist, Todd Howard says he's "anti-remake" and prefers remasters like Oblivion's
Fallout 3
Fallout Fallout 3, 4, Skyrim, and Starfield lead says Deus Ex was a "huge influence" on him and his RPGs at Bethesda
Fallout 4
Fallout Fallout 4 was "missing something," but Todd Howard helped confirm "there should be this overriding sense of paranoia"
Posing with a rifle in the Fallout 76 Ghoul update
Fallout The Bethesda game Todd Howard is most proud of isn't Skyrim, it's Fallout 76, even though "it didn't launch great"
Elder Scrolls 6
The Elder Scrolls Todd Howard says Elder Scrolls 6 is a return to "classic" Bethesda style "that we've missed, that we know really well"
Starfield screenshot showing a distant man on an alien planet, standing between two massive obsidian-like walls with a ringed world visible in the distance
RPGs Starfield seamless space travel hopium is at a new high as Bethesda boss Todd Howard teases future updates
Todd Howard Starfield reveal
Fallout Todd Howard knows there's "anxiety" about Fallout 5, says "we do like to wait" but "we never stopped developing Fallout"
Fallout 3
Fallout Fallout 3 had "the opposite of feature creep" because Bethesda devs "were really smart about cutting things"
Fallout 3
Fallout Fallout 3 remaster is reportedly still happening as Bethesda aims for Oblivion Remastered-level polish
Skyrim
The Elder Scrolls As Todd Howard distances The Elder Scrolls 6 from Starfield and Fallout 76, it seems Bethesda has learned all the right lessons
Fallout 1 screenshots
Fallout These isometric screenshots of Fallout 4 make me wish Bethesda would return to the genre's roots
Starfield
RPGs "It is not Starfield 2.0": Todd Howard says the RPG's big update is for the people who already love it
  1. Games
  2. RPGs
  3. Fallout
  4. Fallout 76

Fallout 76 will get "thicker" this year, teases lead, who says Bethesda isn't just making the RPG's map bigger anymore: "I really want our gaze to shift from the outskirts to inwards"

News
By Anthony McGlynn published 2 February 2026

Think deeper, not wider

When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission. Here’s how it works.

Walton Goggins as The Ghoul in Fallout 76's Burning Springs expansion
(Image credit: Bethesda Game Softworks)
  • Facebook
  • X
  • Pinterest
  • Flipboard
  • Email
Share this article
0
Join the conversation
Follow us
Add us as a preferred source on Google
Get the GamesRadar+ Newsletter

Weekly digests, tales from the communities you love, and more


By submitting your information you agree to the Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy and are aged 16 or over.

You are now subscribed

Your newsletter sign-up was successful


Want to add more newsletters?

GamesRadar+

Every Friday

GamesRadar+

Your weekly update on everything you could ever want to know about the games you already love, games we know you're going to love in the near future, and tales from the communities that surround them.

GTA 6 O'clock

Every Thursday

GTA 6 O'clock

Our special GTA 6 newsletter, with breaking news, insider info, and rumor analysis from the award-winning GTA 6 O'clock experts.

Knowledge

Every Friday

Knowledge

From the creators of Edge: A weekly videogame industry newsletter with analysis from expert writers, guidance from professionals, and insight into what's on the horizon.

The Setup

Every Thursday

The Setup

Hardware nerds unite, sign up to our free tech newsletter for a weekly digest of the hottest new tech, the latest gadgets on the test bench, and much more.

Switch 2 Spotlight

Every Wednesday

Switch 2 Spotlight

Sign up to our new Switch 2 newsletter, where we bring you the latest talking points on Nintendo's new console each week, bring you up to date on the news, and recommend what games to play.

The Watchlist

Every Saturday

The Watchlist

Subscribe for a weekly digest of the movie and TV news that matters, direct to your inbox. From first-look trailers, interviews, reviews and explainers, we've got you covered.

SFX

Once a month

SFX

Get sneak previews, exclusive competitions and details of special events each month!


An account already exists for this email address, please log in.
Subscribe to our newsletter

As we wait for potential news on remasters of Fallout 3, 4 or New Vegas, Fallout 76 is absorbing some fanfare on the back of Amazon's Fallout TV show. It's a good thing Bethesda's put a lot of energy into improving the RPG over the years – and according to the lead devs, more depth is on the way.

"We have had a couple of successful literal expansions of the map, you know, making the play space bigger," Jon Rush, creative director on Fallout 76, told PCGamesN. "For this next year, I really want our gaze to shift from the outskirts to inwards - make the game thicker."

The last couple of expansions, Skyline Valley and Burning Springs, have focused on introducing more landmass to explore. The former gave players the eponymous region in Virginia, in a southerly direction of the map, whereas the latter took us on a trip to Ohio. I can think of no finer parts of the wasteland for a road trip.

You may like
  • Fallout 76 screenshot with a GamesRadar On the Radar overlay Fallout 76 has become a living world that connects every point in the series – within reason
  • Fallout 3 Making Fallout, Bethesda Game Studios realized "being realistic sometimes isn't fun" in games, dev says
  • Bethesda Todd Howard wants fans of the Fallout TV show to try Fallout 76: "It's the game we're still going the most work in
Fallout 76: Burning Springs Trailer - YouTube Fallout 76: Burning Springs Trailer - YouTube
Watch On

Now the devs want to deepen what you can actually find in any of the areas you decide to hang out in. "New systems or new ways to engage with existing content, those are all very much on the menu for this year," Rush adds.

There's a melding of creative desires and technical needs here, as the sci-fi RPG can't support constant growth without the occasional reprieve.

"There are technical considerations that have to be taken into account there, so we can't just continue making the map bigger and bigger," Rush explains. "There is a lot of space left on the existing map in the game that is unused, that maybe down the road we could open up if it supports the stories that we want to tell."

Todd Howard's been saying it's the Fallout game he wants people to try if the Amazon show has them curious, and it seems like this'll be a good year to get stuck in. If nothing else, you can wander some irradiated farmland in the midwest, and what could be better than that?

Sign up to the GamesRadar+ Newsletter

Weekly digests, tales from the communities you love, and more

By submitting your information you agree to the Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy and are aged 16 or over.

Ex-Bethesda lead reveals handwritten origins of Fallout's strange text and iconic "F*** You": "I was honestly expecting them to tell me to delete it"

TOPICS
Bethesda Game Studios
CATEGORIES
PC Gaming PS4 Xbox One PS5 Xbox Series X Platforms PlayStation Xbox
Anthony McGlynn
Anthony McGlynn
Social Links Navigation
Contributing Writer

Anthony is an Irish entertainment and games journalist, now based in Glasgow. He previously served as Senior Anime Writer at Dexerto and News Editor at The Digital Fix, on top of providing work for Variety, IGN, Den of Geek, PC Gamer, and many more. Besides Studio Ghibli, horror movies, and The Muppets, he enjoys action-RPGs, heavy metal, and pro-wrestling. He interviewed Animal once, not that he won’t stop going on about it or anything.

You must confirm your public display name before commenting

Please logout and then login again, you will then be prompted to enter your display name.

Read more
Fallout 76 screenshot with a GamesRadar On the Radar overlay
Fallout 76 has become a living world that connects every point in the series – within reason
 
 
Fallout 3
Making Fallout, Bethesda Game Studios realized "being realistic sometimes isn't fun" in games, dev says
 
 
Bethesda
Todd Howard wants fans of the Fallout TV show to try Fallout 76: "It's the game we're still going the most work in
 
 
A suit of power armor in Fallout season 2
Todd Howard says Bethesda is already considering "what elements can we bring into our games" from Fallout season 3
 
 
Fallout 3
If a Fallout 3 remaster is happening, I'm hoping it fixes the RPG's biggest level design issue
 
 
Fallout 4
Bethesda design director wants a Fallout 5 you could play for 600 hours because "that's the kind of games we make"
 
 
Latest in Fallout
Fallout 4
Fallout 4 was "missing something," but Todd Howard helped confirm "there should be this overriding sense of paranoia"
 
 
Fallout New Vegas
No, a Fallout New Vegas remaster isn't coming from the Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 3 + 4 dev
 
 
Fallout 3
Fallout 3, 4, Skyrim, and Starfield lead says Deus Ex was a "huge influence" on him and his RPGs at Bethesda
 
 
Fallout New Vegas screenshot showing a sniper looking over the wasteland from the jaws of a dinosaur statue
Fallout: New Vegas remaster rumors get fresh ammo as Fallout 76 support studio posts a familiar loading screen
 
 
A character in power armor talks to Dogmeat in Fallout 4
Fallout 4 is now on Switch 2, and first impressions say it's way better than the disastrous Skyrim port last year
 
 
Posing with a rifle in the Fallout 76 Ghoul update
The Bethesda game Todd Howard is most proud of isn't Skyrim, it's Fallout 76, even though "it didn't launch great"
 
 
Latest in News
Battlefield 6
Battlefield 6 designers say developers have a "responsibility" to make games intuitive
 
 
Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 Gustave winces
"The first track spoils the whole game": Clair Obscur Expedition 33 dev confirms it was filling your ears with spoilers
 
 
Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 lead Gustave faces a gommage
Clair Obscur Expedition 33 took inspiration from a surprising anime - Soul Eater creator's Fire Force
 
 
A close-up of Grace talking with someone through glass in Resident Evil Requiem
Resident Evil Requiem leads let actors re-do "technically" perfect scenes if it made them happy, says Grace actor
 
 
Kratos approaches Aphrodite's bedchamber in God of War 3
"The God of War sex mini-games were designed by women," which is why Aphrodite's bed looks "like a labia"
 
 
Alan Ritchson in Reacher season 3
Reacher star Alan Ritchson says season 4 is coming this year: "It's by far the best season we've had yet"
 
 
LATEST ARTICLES
  1. Battlefield 6
    1
    Battlefield 6 designers say developers have a "responsibility" to make games intuitive
  2. 2
    "The first track spoils the whole game": Clair Obscur Expedition 33 dev confirms it was filling your ears with spoilers
  3. 3
    Super Mario Galaxy Movie reveals Donald Glover as the voice of Yoshi and more new casting in a star-spanning trailer
  4. 4
    Reacher star Alan Ritchson says season 4 is coming this year: "It's by far the best season we've had yet"
  5. 5
    Clair Obscur Expedition 33 took inspiration from a surprising anime - Soul Eater creator's Fire Force

GamesRadar+ is part of Future US Inc, an international media group and leading digital publisher. Visit our corporate site.

Add as a preferred source on Google Add as a preferred source on Google
  • Terms and conditions
  • Contact Future's experts
  • Privacy policy
  • Cookies policy
  • Accessibility statement
  • Careers
  • About us
  • Advertise with us
  • Review guidelines
  • Write for us
  • Accessibility Statement

© Future US, Inc. Full 7th Floor, 130 West 42nd Street, New York, NY 10036.

Please login or signup to comment

Please wait...