This week Bethesda announced the impending arrival of Fallout 4 update 1.9, a free upgrade that will add support for PlayStation Pro 4. With it comes better graphics, lighting effects and visual features, including native 1440p resolution, enhanced draw distance for trees, grass, objects and NPCs, and better Godray effects.
PC users can also get in on the fun with a high resolution texture pack, the exact release date of which has not been revealed. The update is expected on both platforms next week, and until then, we’re already thinking about which locations, people, and items we can’t wait to see. Whether you’re PC or PlayStation 4 Pro, here are ten things that will look even better after next week’s Fallout 4 update.
Holly Green is a reporter, editor, and semiprofessional photographer living in Seattle, WA. She is also the author of Fry Scores: An Unofficial Guide To Video Game Grub. You can find her work at Gamasutra, Polygon, Unwinnable, and other videogame news publications.
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10. The Glowing Sea: as one of the more inaccessible areas of Fallout 4, the Glowing Sea is a delicious mix of Pandora's Box and abject, soul-sucking hellhole. Between bright puddles of contaminated water, uneven crags, and the constant dim from radiation storms, it's not what you'd call inviting. And yet, it still inspires exploration. A place like this only benefits from anything that makes the devastated landscape easier to see, and whatever reinforces its rusted exterior.
Glowing Sea
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The Crater, with its acrid pools, rough crags and radioactive mist is probably the most interesting part of the Glowing Sea.
The Crater
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9. The Institute: with its sterile, smooth walls you could argue that The Institute doesn't offer much in the way of atmospheric character in the first place. But I'm still interested to see what improved textures might offer to the environment (especially the atrium's soothing pockets of grass and plants) anyway.
The Institute
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8. Far Harbor: there's a lot of character in the weathered shacks and trees that dot the landscape of Far Harbor. As a result its forests feel like scraps of dried out driftwood protruding from the beach and sea.
Far Harbor
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The foliage in particular would benefit the most from a texture upgrade, and the improved draw distance will only enhance the bleak white gloom of its ocean mists.
Far Harbor
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The area's many radioactive bogs will also look better with an added layer of grit.
Far Harbor
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7. Nuka World: this area is something of a palette refresher after spending dozens of hours in the Commonwealth, with different weather patterns and more vibrant sunsets, not to mention tons of cheesy old amusement park buildings and ruined equipment to explore. Some of its most interesting features, like the fake mountain, the Ferris wheel, and other neighboring parts of the park, are best viewed from far away, making this another location where the PlayStation 4 Pro's improved draw distance can be enjoyed.
Nuka World
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The outskirts of Nuka World's extended environment, where you'll find decreipt old shacks and abandoned farmhouses, are ideal for watching the horizon at dusk.
Nuka World
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The daytime, as if to reflect the park's absurdity, reaches almost surreal levels of contrast between the land and sky.
Nuka World
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6. Magnolia: when it comes to Magnolia at The Third Rail in Goodneighbor, the case can be made that improved textures tell a better story. Her red dress is an important part the sultry, dangerous vibe of her bright little corner of the bar, and a more clearly defined set of sequins would add a lot to the garment's seductive appeal.
Magnolia, The Third Rail