Fallout 76 has emerged from its planned maintenance, and that means the free Wastelanders update is now live. The update acts as a major expansion and adds one of the most requested features since the game launched in 2018.

One of the major criticisms of Fallout 76 at launch, including in GameSpot's review, was that the world felt too sparse. Part of that was because the major story quest was primarily delivered via audio diaries, since Bethesda had determined that the only human characters would be other players. Wastelanders changes that, introducing NPCs and instanced quests that make the world a little more alive. You can check out the full patch notes for all the additions and bug fixes.

In addition to NPC quest-givers, Wastelanders introduces a new story quest, companions, and a reputation system. You can build your rep with various factions in the world, opening new avenues. It also adds two new events, Riding Shotgun and Radiation Rumble, and some bug fixes.