Yesterday, many PC gamers hoping to get their first chance to play the Fallout 76 BETA found their hopes dashed by an unforeseen bug. The crippling problem caused the game’s launch client to freeze, before promptly deleting the entire game; leaving gamers no choice but to re-download everything. Following widespread calls from fans to do so, Bethesda has announced that they will be extending the BETA.
We’ll be extending the #Fallout76 B.E.T.A. for everyone on Thursday, November 1, 2pm to 11pm ET. Please take a look at our updated schedule for the next upcoming B.E.T.A. sessions.
Thanks for your patience. #ExtendtheBeta pic.twitter.com/d8djWti1dA
— Fallout (@Fallout) October 31, 2018
Bethesda Will Extend the Fallout 76 BETA
Although some PC gamers were able to play the BETA yesterday without encountering the bug, a very large number were not so lucky. The BETA files on PC are almost 60 GB in total; a download which could take hours even on a relatively fast internet connection. As a result, most of those who were hit by the bug were unable to play at all. Bethesda has yet to announce whether a fix has been found, but they have said that they are actively investigating. After the scale of the problem emerged, many fans on social media began calling for Bethesda to extend the Beta in order to make up for the time which was lost.
Now, Bethesda has announced that the BETA will be extended, in accordance with those wishes. Although the studio won’t be adding any extra days, the windows during which the BETA will be playable have been extended. The new schedule spans the sessions planned for the 1st, 3rd, and 4th of November. The BETA will now be playable from 2 PM ET to 11 PM ET on the 1st; the longest single session of the entire event. On the 3rd, it will be playable from 5 PM ET to 9 PM ET. Finally, on the 4th, it will be playable from 2 PM ET to 9 PM ET.
Hopefully, Bethesda succeeds in fixing the bug ASAP. In the meanwhile, those gamers who lost time should now be able to make it up on one of those three remaining days. It’s currently unknown whether Bethesda plans to run any more sessions after the 4th of November, but the decision not to announce new days when fans were calling for an extension suggest that they won’t be. Of course, fans shouldn’t be too concerned about a bit of lost time during the BETA; in two weeks’ time, they’ll be able to play the title as much as they want. This, after all, is the purpose of a BETA, to unearth major bugs and problems exactly like this.