Fallout 76 Repair Kits raise new "pay-to-win" concerns

Since Fallout 76The release of the game last November, "Atomic Shop" of the game, allowed players to use the game currency and / or real money only for cosmetic items such as skins, costumes and emotes. "It offers nothing with a competitive advantage, and more, it aims to bring joy not only to you, but to other people around you," says the Bethesda website.

This seems to be changing at least a bit with tomorrow's "Patch 8" update, which will introduce a new Utility Repair Kit item into the shop. Although "enhanced" repair kits can only be found in the game, the "basic" repair kits will be on sale in the Atomic Shop, offering an instant restore of any of the objects in the game. your inventory to ensure sustainability.

Bethesda broke the promise to keep the so-called "pay-to-win" out of the premium game. As Pete Hines of Bethesda told Gamespot last October [emphasis added]:

If you do not want to spend money in the Atomic Shop for cosmetic things, this is not an obligation. We give you a good amount of atoms just to play the game. People who want to spend money for anything because they do not have enough d & # 39; atoms can do it but it's not: "I'm playing better now against other players because I've spent money." This is not paying to win. And they are not crates of loot.

With regard to "paying to win" items, the repair kits are not designed for, for example, an ultra-powerful weapon that can only be purchased with real money. Essentially, the kits simply offer a shortcut for the same type of repairs that players can already perform with sponge crafting equipment. Nevertheless, players willing to pay for repair kits might have a much easier time keeping their arsenals against other players who were just looking for their own gear.

Although the new articles are not yet launched, Fallout 76 Players have already gathered on Reddit and other forums to express their concern about what the items will do for the game. "This is my # 1 speech on GTA V online, and I would really hate to see Fallout 76 fall in the same direction, "wrote a user of Resetera. How long does it take before the weapons break easily before arriving at the next repair center … or finding the equipment becomes much more difficult? "

"We were told that the atomic shop would be cosmetic, and honestly, I do not think their sale is a big problem," added a Reddit player. "But I do not want these in the Atomic Shop because I see it as a slippery slope, where Bethesda said," Well, they did not care about repair kits, why not sell weapon upgrades? "

Representatives of Bethesda have yet to respond to a request for comments from Ars Technica. However, the company wrote in its announcement message that "we plan to make adjustments based on your feedback, so we hope you will share your impressions with us when they come online later this month. ".