Screenshots & trailers
What players say
Why the number is what it is: aspect mentions counted across 398 sampled Steam reviews (250 positive / 148 negative), recent and most-helpful. Plain keyword counting, fully reproducible; nothing here is written by a machine.
What positive reviews talk about
- Story & writing14% mention it
- Bugs & crashes8% mention it
- World & exploration5% mention it
- Visuals & art4% mention it
What negative reviews complain about
- Bugs & crashes27% mention it
- Story & writing14% mention it
Satisfaction by hours played
Same score, different games: see how sentiment holds up the longer people play.
Under 5h
52%
23 reviews
5-15h
67%
43 reviews
15-40h
73%
45 reviews
40-100h
69%
85 reviews
100h+
58%
202 reviews
Review sentiment over time
Weekly positive-review rate (green) and review volume (bars). Dashed lines mark significant patches; the amber line is the start of the current scoring window. Hover the dots to see what drove a dip or a jump.
How this score was computed
The VGC Score is a weighted blend on a press-comparable 0-100 quality scale. Steam approval rates are first calibrated (95% positive on Steam ≈ 89.5 quality, since Steam approval skews high). Press and tracked creator reviews each count ~2x a player review and share one cap against player evidence (creator buy/skip calls pool into an approval rate, calibrated like Steam approval); all-time sentiment is capped and halved (it's context, not verdict); reviews of the current build carry the most weight when a fresh patch anchors the window; and a 'typical game' prior keeps small samples from pegging the scale. Because press reviews and Metacritic user aggregates describe the launch build, their weight decays as the game ages (3-year half-life after a 1-year grace). That's how a game that launched rough can outgrow its old reception once updates win players over. Reviews under 2h playtime (the refund window), non-Steam activations, and free copies are downweighted.
| Component | Positive | Quality (0-100) | Weight (pseudo-reviews) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Press reviews (OpenCritic) | – | 87 | 30 |
| Creator reviews (4 tracked) | – | 90 | 1 |
| All-time Steam reviews | 81% | 75 | 1632 |
| Metacritic user ratings | – | 73 | 78 |
| Post-patch Steam reviews (trust-weighted) | 79% | 73 | 3000 |
| Calibration prior (typical game) | – | 72 | 50 |
Scoring window: since the last significant patch (May 27, 2026) · 300 reviews sampled · 5086 total reviews in window · weighted 196.4 up / 59.5 down · computed 1h ago · full methodology →
Press & Creators reviews (168)
Individual verdicts from outlets we track: scored reviews first, most trusted outlets first among them. The small badge is each outlet's trust score: how well its scoring history aligns with players.
- 95
“What I can say is that Fallout 4 is a wild ride that gets its hooks in you deep, with a number of welcome improvements and a settlement management system that could be its own entirely separate game. All that, and not a single microtransaction in sight, despite the game being easily structured for such a horrible business practice to slide right in. That is impressive.”
read full review ↗ - 100
“If traveling through Bethesda's version of Boston for 60 hours has taught me anything, it's that the little things are what matter.”
read full review ↗ - 80
“It’s not at all easy to evaluate Fallout 4, Anniversary Edition. On the one hand, we have the original, fantastic game, along with six DLCs of varying quality, which most veterans have likely owned for a long time. On the other hand, we have a massive package that will be appreciated more by players who haven’t tried Fallout 4 yet. Ultimately, however, Fallout 4: Anniversary Edition is a massive bundle of content that represents one of the most comprehensive versions of this post-apocalyptic RPG on PC. It offers hundreds of hours of gameplay, a strong atmosphere, and enormous variety in playstyle.”
read full review ↗ - 90
“With an immersive world, open-ended gameplay options, and so much to do, Fallout 4 is well worth the price of entry. It's like a fantastic book or a great TV show or for many, a replacement for the Internet's favourite video streaming site that's not Youtube, completely and utterly addictive. The difference being, how and when it ends is completely up to you. And the chances are, you'll be spending a lot of time in Boston. We know we have and will be in the months to come.”
read full review ↗ - 60
“The problem comes from the fact that this feels like more of the same, not a step forward. Fallout 4 doesn't break the same new ground Fallout 3 did with its jump to 3D, and its storytelling and intricacy of choice falls short of what New Vegas offered...Fallout 4 just feels safe, even when trying new things.”
read full review ↗ - 90
“Its individual moments might not always stand on their own, but it's amazing that something with Fallout 4's scope and magnitude remains as bewitching as this game does. Bethesda's formula is overly familiar by this point, but from a story perspective these games exploit the freedom afforded by the medium more than almost any other notable examples. Fallout 4 is built on mystery and discovery. We can charge through the main storyline as quickly as we'd like, but the true power of this game comes from exploring at our own pace, uncovering its secrets in no certain order and at no set time. Unlike a book or a movie, we can follow a specific subplot as far as we'd like before switching over to another one. We can jump between stories as we see fit, focusing on what interests us the most while ignoring whatever bores us. We can bend the story around our own preferences and desires, at least to a point. This world might be dead and emotionally sterile, and this apocalypse might be just like every other one we've ever seen, but its stories can still surprise, and that's something you can't say about most games.”
read full review ↗ - 40
“Fallout 4 remains Bethesda's weakest offering to date. A game filled with bugs nearly 15 years old, it rarely feels like more than a chore to play.”
read full review ↗ - 80
- 92
“Just like meeting an old friend. Like coming home after a long time away. That is Fallout 4. The best of the franchise comes back, as good as always, but with many interactive options. If you're looking for a game with the potential of lasting several hundred hours of pure amusement, Fallout 4 is your game. ”
read full review ↗ - 30
“As always, the audience that will get the most enjoyment out of Fallout 4: Anniversary Edition is the one that hasn’t yet experienced the greatness of the original. Even then, though, this edition doesn’t offer enough new material to justify its increased price tag from the already-definitive GOTY edition. This frustrating pattern of near pointless re-releases from Bethesda is getting tiresome, and regrettably souring the aftertaste of an otherwise very good video game.”
read full review ↗ - 89
“While still perhaps not the most ideal platform to enjoy this Bethesda classic on, the Switch 2 performs admirably and there’s no denying this is an epic world to play in”
read full review ↗ - 90
“Fallout 4 isn't perfect by any means, but the sheer scope of the game as a whole and the incredibly well-structured world means that should you dare to take the plunge, you'll be swimming around in these waters for dozens, if not hundreds of hours. The bugs may threaten to spoil the show, but every time one rears its head and makes you want to stop playing, you'll feel the pangs within the hour to go back and give things another go. Many people will fail to see everything that the wastelands have to offer, but that absolutely shouldn't stop you from trying to take it all in. Just as in life, your journey won't be the same as anybody else's.”
read full review ↗
The Jimquisition
Slant Magazine
Gaming Professors
Gadgets 360
RPGamer
Paste Magazine
The Angry Joe Show
Cubed3
Nindie Spotlight
Pure Xbox…and 156 more tracked reviews.
Patch history
- Fallout 4 Update - August 18thAug 18, 2026
- Fallout 4 Update - May 27thMay 27, 2026significant · resets scoring window
- Fallout 4 December Patch - now availableDec 16, 2025significant · resets scoring window
- Fallout 4 - November Patch Now AvailableNov 21, 2025significant · resets scoring window
- Fallout 4 - November 17th HotfixNov 17, 2025
- Fallout 4 - Creations Menu Update - November 10thNov 4, 2025significant · resets scoring window
- Fallout 4 – Next Gen Update 2 NotesMay 13, 2024significant · resets scoring window
- Fallout 4 Next Gen – Update NotesApr 25, 2024significant · resets scoring window
- Fallout 4 is Getting Free UpdatesApr 11, 2024
- Fallout 4: 1.10.40 UpdateNov 7, 2017
- Fallout 4: 1.10.40 UpdateNov 7, 2017
- High Resolution Texture Pack UpdateMar 14, 2017
- High Resolution Texture Pack UpdateMar 14, 2017
- Fallout 4 1.9 Update LiveJan 31, 2017
- Fallout 4 1.9 Update LiveJan 31, 2017significant · resets scoring window
- New Fallout 4 Update (v 1.8) on SteamNov 7, 2016
- New Fallout 4 Update (v 1.8) on SteamNov 7, 2016
- Fallout 4 1.7.19 and Nuka-World UpdateSep 29, 2016
- Fallout 4 1.7.19 and Nuka-World UpdateSep 29, 2016
- Fallout 4's 1.7 Update is LIVE!Aug 2, 2016
- Fallout 4's 1.7 Update is LIVE!Aug 2, 2016
- Vault-Tec Workshop UpdateAug 2, 2016
- Vault-Tec Workshop UpdateAug 2, 2016
- Fallout 4 1.6 Update Live on PCJul 5, 2016significant · resets scoring window
- Fallout 4 1.6 Update Live on PCJul 5, 2016significant · resets scoring window
- Fallout 4 1.6 Update released to Steam BetaJun 30, 2016significant · resets scoring window
- Fallout 4 1.6 Update released to Steam BetaJun 30, 2016significant · resets scoring window
- Fallout 4 1.5.4 Update Live on PCJun 22, 2016
- Fallout 4 1.5.4 Update Live on PCJun 22, 2016significant · resets scoring window
- Fallout 4 1.5.4 Steam Beta UpdateJun 21, 2016
- Fallout 4 1.5.4 Steam Beta UpdateJun 21, 2016significant · resets scoring window
- Fallout 4 Update 1.5.211 (Steam Beta Update)Jun 1, 2016
- Fallout 4 Update 1.5.211 (Steam Beta Update)Jun 1, 2016significant · resets scoring window
…and 24 earlier patch announcements.