Fallout 76 makes some major changes in order to account for the shift to online multiplayer. For starters, the game will not feature NPCs (at least, not in the traditional sense), and all of the human characters players encounter will be player-controlled. That's not all that will feel different when players fire up the game in November, as the VATS targeting mechanic has been changed, too.

VATS, or the Vault-Tec Assisted Targeting System to give it its full title, is a gameplay mechanic that allows players to slow down time in order to target a specific area of an enemy's body. A successful shot (e.g a headshot) would present the attack in glorious slo-mo. Because Fallout 76 is online and therefore events must play out in the exact same time for all players, VATS in the new game completely scraps the slo-mo. Instead, when enemies are targeted with VATS, it will show players the odds of hitting that enemy and their body parts.

Players will also have the opportunity to improve the mechanic with Perk Cards, the card-based skill upgrade system. At a base level it will just fire at the middle of the target, but when leveled up, players will be able to target a specific body part or weak area. This is more similar to the VATS in the single-player Fallout titles, but it's important to note that a player's weapon won't automatically track the target. As such, it often makes the player character look like they're firing into the air, even if their shot actually lands.

Judging from the hands-on previews of the game and reactions to them from the wider community, the new VATS seems to be quite divisive. While some longstanding Fallout fans are glad that the mechanic survived the jump to the always-online setting, others are unhappy with its implementation. One of the biggest selling points of VATS was how it added a cinematic feel to kills, so it's understandable why some are sad to see that go.

Fallout 76's beta will take place soon, giving players outside the media a chance to play it for themselves and decide their own opinions on VATS. Of course, the developers may not have enough time to make significant tweaks to the system before launch. However, the plan for on-going post-launch support means that if people are especially upset with VATS, there may be room to make changes once the game has been released.

Fallout 76 is set to launch on November 14, 2018 for PC, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One.

Source: FudgeMuppet – YouTube