Fallouthas evolved a lot from the days of the isometric original title to Bethesda’s newer trilogy ofFallouttitles. While many changes were made when Bethesda took over the IP, their titles did not get rid of the series' iconic Vault Boy mascot, and instead integrated him even further in the marketing, skills, and achievements of their titles. Not only does he appear in nearly all of the promotional material for the games, but he also is used in cute animations for skills, and can be found throughout the games in the form of Vault-Tec Bobbleheads.
Vault-Tec Bobbleheads have become an iconic part of the series in their own right, with fans fondly remembering hunting them down across post-apocalyptic wastelands or stumbling on them at the end of a long and arduous quest in a vault. Many players have to resort to followingguides to find all ofFallout’s bobbleheads, and there is no shame in that as they are incredibly difficult to locate across the sprawling open worlds the games offer players. This has become an expected part of theFalloutexperience, but there are some ways that the series could improve its Bobbleheads even further.
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The History of Bobbleheads in Fallout
Vault-Tec Bobbleheads first appeared inFallout 3as 20 unique collectibles that each raised one of the player’s S.P.E.C.I.A.L. stats by one point or one of their skills by 10 points. The bobbleheads are scattered acrossFallout 3’s many locationsin a range of different ways. After finding them, players are able to display them in their house on a special Bobblehead display case whether they have a house in Megaon or a Tenpenny Tower suite. However, the bobbleheads cannot raise those stats or skills if they are already at maximum level.
Fallout 4changed its approach to bobbleheads slightly by introducing bobblehead-unique perks like easier lockpicking, better healing, or higher critical damage with certain weapon types.Fallout 4also allowed bobbleheads to raise the player’s stats above level 10, but only if it was at 10 when the bobblehead was first found.Fallout: 76brought many more changes to bobbleheads by having them act as consumable items rather than collectibles. This saw the bobbleheads being used for temporary buffs to stats or skills rather than offering permanent increases or unique perks. These changes made the bobbleheads much less special in the game, which lead to manyFallout: 76players making the mistakeof not using them or their pretty powerful effects.
Bobbleheads Could Have More Effects in the Next Fallout
One great way to improve the bobbleheads in futureFallouttitles is to expand on what effects and impacts they can have on a playthrough.Fallout 4’s additions were more than welcome, but it would be even better if they had more drastic perks or upgrades associated with them that could really morph a player’s build. Having bobbleheads that allow players to do things like run faster, wield two melee weapons at once, or even passive effects like decreasing the player’s hunger and thirst in survival would be fantastic. To avoid the bobbleheads becoming too powerful a new system may have to be introduced that allows the player to only equip so many bobbleheads at a time, similar toFallout: 76’s Perk Cards, but it would be an interesting way to tie the player’s progression to thorough exploration.
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Another approach would be for Bethesda to replace the bobbleheads with parts of bobbleheads instead. Then, players could have a custom bobblehead that influences their character’s stats and skills that they construct with the pieces that they find scattered throughout the wasteland. This could give more personalization to the benefits that players receive from the bobbleheads while helping make sure that they don’t get too overpowered or unbalanced. This way players could make a bobblehead whose legs increase their stealth, body increases their small guns damage, and head that gives them night vision for a stealth build. This approach could also have the different parts themed aroundwhatever region the newFalloutgame is set into help its bobbleheads stand out even more and feel more ingrained with the setting.
Getting Bobbleheads Could Be a Bigger Deal in the Next Fallout
Some of the mostmemorable questlines and moments in theFalloutseriestake place entirely within one of its many underground bunkers that are known as vaults. Built to help people survive the apocalypse and use them as test subjects, every vault that players explore is very unique, with its own stories and themes for players to explore. These questlines are extremely memorable for how unique each quest is. A similar approach could be used in the nextFalloutto improve the experience of finding and earning its collectible bobbleheads.
This approach could be particularly successful as bobbleheads, unlike vaults, do not have tofit withinFallout’s established timelineor lore. This would allow the developers to design areas or quests to earn each bobblehead that can be extremely creative with each one being themed around what the bobblehead will do for the player. A bobblehead that lets the player steal health from enemies could be in a twisting cave of cannibals while one that increases the player’s explosives damage could see them having to navigate an obstacle course of tripwires and pressure plates. This approach could not only inspire some great content for the game but also would help make getting a bobblehead much more interesting than finding it on a random dresser in a half-destroyed house.
What changes Bethesda makes to Vault-Tec Bobbleheads in the nextFalloutgame will likely only be known once the game releases, which will likely be pretty far in the future. It would be interesting, however, to see if something similar makes an appearance in thestudio’s upcoming titlesStarfieldorThe Elder Scrolls 6. Either way, hopefully, the nextFalloutgame will return the bobbleheads to their status as iconic collectibles that are a must-see attraction for players rather than just consumables that players burn through.
