Bethesda Announce VR Treatment For Fallout 4 & Doom

During their E3 conference yesterday, Bethesda revealed a slew of Fallout tidbits, such as the fact that mobile game Fallout Shelter is heading to PC in July and that a new Vault Tec expansion is on its way to Fallout 4 [official site]. The publisher also said that since showing Doom 3's BFG Edition on VR back at E3 2012, they've "quietly continued" their "pioneering work" with the medium and will add virtual reality support to Fallout 4 next year. They've also been fiddling with "virtual tour of hell" from the new Doom.

In a presentation delivered by Bethesda's Pete Hines, Doom's VR treatment sounds more experimental in nature in that it involves sending players to hell for a "totally unique look at the very latest in graphics". Attendees had the chance to test that out, though it's not clear if they'll release this publicly.

However, Fallout 4 VR sounds is a sure bit, and will head to the HTC Vive at some point in 2017. Here's what Hines said on stage:

"In addition [to Doom], we think the greatest promise of VR is its ability to immerse players completely in virtual worlds and the best games for that experience will be first-person open world RPGs. So we have Fallout 4 for you to play as well. Wander the wasteland, check out the iconic Red Rocket, try combat, I'm telling you - with a Pip Boy on your arm, a dog by your side, a gun in your hand, it's pretty incredible.

"Tonight we're pleased to announce that Fallout 4 will be released in 2017 on the HTC Vive platform. If you thought Survival Mode was an intense way to experience Fallout then you ain't seen nothing yet."

Hines then spoke of how Bethesda plan to "remain a leader" in the VR spectrum, which probably means more games getting similar support down the line. While my admittedly limited experience with VR so far has mostly led me to believe that virtual reality implementation works best when devs have it in mind from the outset - not as an after thought - exploring the Commonwealth Wasteland in VR does sound pretty cool. Although Bethesda haven't mentioned how/if the Vive's motion controllers will tie in, it'll be interesting to see how this one in particular turns out.

Read all our E3 2016 news.