Fallout 76, which is due out tomorrow but appears to have launched a day early on PC, will be the first core Fallout title to feature micro-transactions. Bethesda has repeatedly assured fans that these will be cosmetic only, and won’t allow players to get any sort of tangible in-game advantage. As of today, the Atomic Shop, the game’s micro-transaction store, has fresh stock and players are now able to purchase “Atoms” with real money. During the BETA, the shop was open, but only Atoms earned in-game could be spent. So, how expensive are Atoms if you want to buy them yourself?
The Real-World Cost of Fallout 76 Atoms
Atoms are the in-game micro-transaction currency of Fallout 76, separate from Caps. They can be earned during gameplay through a variety of ways; most commonly as rewards for completing events or challenges, and sometimes as quest rewards. As a result, you can buy items from the Atomic Shop without ever investing any real-world money. However, if you feel so inclined, how much will Atoms cost? Now that the ability to buy amounts of Atoms is available, we finally have the answer:
- 500 Atoms: $4.99/£3.99
- 1000 Atoms (+100 Atoms Bonus): $9.99/£7.99
- 2000 Atoms (+400 Atoms Bonus): $19.99/£15.99
- 4000 Atoms (+1000 Atoms Bonus): $40.00/£31.99
Overall, there are four packs of Atoms available in the Atomic Shop; 500, 1000, 2000, and 4000. However, the latter three all come with an amount of bonus Atoms included as well, bringing the actual totals to 500, 1100, 2400, and 5000. Thus far, only “cosmetic” items have appeared in the Atomic Shop, including clothing items, emotes, alternate item skins, and so on. It certainly seems as though Bethesda is staying true to their word.
It’s also worth noting that, while this is the first time micro-transactions have been a part of a core Fallout title, they are part of a larger business model. Rather than offer a Season Pass, Bethesda will be funding the development of Fallout 76 DLC with the sale of micro-transactions. As a result, all of the Fallout 76 DLC will be free for all players. It remains to be seen what the DLC will be, but Bethesda did recently tease the addition of “faction-based PvP.”