Bethesda has issued a clarification amid confusion surrounding the much-anticipated free next-gen update for Fallout 4, confirming who does and who does not qualify for the upgrade.
Following last week’s launch of the update, PlayStation 5 owners were left confused over which subscription version of the game would qualify as getting the native next-gen patch for free when it, at least initially, wasn’t available for anyone. It turns out the free update is only for subscribers who have the game via the PlayStation Plus Extra catalog. That means everyone else has to pay for Fallout 4’s native PS5 version, if they didn't already own the game outright, including those who own Fallout 4 via the now defunct PS Plus Collection. Meanwhile, all Xbox Game Pass subscribers get Fallout 4 and the next-gen update for free.
PS Plus Collection was a promotion that gifted PS5 owners who subscribed to PS Plus a number of PS4 games to play on their new console, including Bloodborne, Persona 5, and the aforementioned Fallout 4. It was removed from PS Plus in May last year.
“We've seen some confusion regarding the free Fallout 4 next-gen update for PlayStation Plus Extra members,” Bethesda said in a statement. “The Fallout 4 next-gen update will be available to PlayStation Plus Extra members through the PlayStation Game Catalog. Your patience is appreciated while the teams work on this.”
As you’d expect, people who do own Fallout 4 via PS Plus Collection and had expected to get the next-gen update for free have expressed their disappointment, and pointed out Bethesda had said the next-gen update would be free for all owners of Fallout 4.
Bethesda has also faced tough questions around refunds for Fallout 4 after some who owned the game via PlayStation Plus Extra but bought the PS5 version during the period when a bug made the free next-gen update unavailable. IGN has asked Bethesda for comment.
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The Fallout 4 next-gen update has suffered a troubled launch, and the update that launched alongside it for the PC version of the game has had technical problems of its own. Xbox players found their version lacked the promised Quality Mode. Bethesda tweeted to say the next-gen update on Xbox Series X targets 4k and 60 frames per second in all modes, with Performance Mode “more aggressive in lowering settings to maintain this target.”
The Fallout 4 next-gen update launched amid the breakout success of Prime Video’s Fallout TV show, but its release date scuppered the Fallout London mod, which relies upon third-party mods now broken following the PC patch.
Wesley is the UK News Editor for IGN. Find him on Twitter at @wyp100. You can reach Wesley at wesley_yinpoole@ign.com or confidentially at wyp100@proton.me.
