Fallout 76 will come to Steam on April 7, alongside human NPC-focused 'Wastelanders' expansion

Something to look forward to: Fallout 76 was a controversial game on launch, and it still is to a degree. However, much of the heat from players and the media has died down due to the plethora of bug fixes and content updates it has received over the past year or so. Indeed, the game is set to receive one of its most significant free expansions yet in a couple of months.

Called "Wastelanders," the update will bring human NPCs to the world of Fallout 76 for the first time ever. So far, players have had to make do with user-to-user and user-to-creature interactions, which made the world feel a bit lifeless and stale. Theoretically, Wastelanders will fix that problem, while also adding in a new faction quest, companions, wild new monster types, and a revamped main storyline.

For players who have stuck with 76 from the start, Wastelanders promises to be a significant breath of fresh air. Always-online games such as this live and die on the quality and quantity of their updates. Developers may not have to deliver a stable or even worthwhile product on launch (much to the chagrin of many), but as long as their games get better over time, they will likely amass a decent following.

Of course, opening up your game to a broader audience helps with its potential success, too. Alongside the Wastelanders update's April 7 launch, Fallout 76's Bethesda.net PC exclusivity will come to an end. On that day, the game will arrive on Steam, one of the largest PC-focused digital distribution platforms out there.

Fallout 76's Steam version will come with the usual perks you've come to expect from other games on the platform: the Steam overlay, friends list integration, discussions, user reviews, refunds, achievements, and possibly even Workshop mod support down the line.

If you've held off on buying Fallout 76 up to this point due to poor reviews or its exclusivity, April 7 may be a great time to give it a shot. You can't pre-order the game on Steam yet, but we assume you'll be able to soon. As long as its pricing doesn't change much in the next two months, it should run you about $40.