Fallout 76’s New UltraWide Support is Not Up to Snuff

Yesterday, Bethesda rolled out a new Fallout 76 patch with a number of improvements, including some much-requested features for those playing the multiplayer RPG on PC.

One of the additions is resolution support for Vault Dwellers using UltraWide monitors, and, unfortunately, some players are finding that its implementation leaves a lot to be desired.

Since the release of Fallout 76‘s new patch, players have taken to Reddit to discuss the newly added 21:9 resolution support. The general consensus from these conversations suggests that Bethesda’s “fix” for UltraWide monitors amounts to little more than an edit to the game’s .ini file.

With Fallout 4, another Bethesda title that did not support UltraWide monitors, players found that they could alter the .ini file to tweak in-game display settings, including field of view values and resolution.

While this made it possible to play at 21:9, the game’s UI did not scale accordingly, causing menus and text to appear stretched and enlarged.

This is exactly the effect players are seeing with the UltraWide support offered by the latest update, and, after a month of indications that this feature was in progress, some are wondering how Bethesda could have implemented something of such poor quality.

This frustration is being further exacerbated by an unofficial mod to Fallout 76, which provides what many consider a higher quality UltraWide experience. This mod was, of course, created without access to Fallout 76‘s source code, and it has been available since the game’s B.E.T.A.

Thus, it has taken Bethesda a month to release a 21:9 resolution experience that is less desirable than an unofficial mod.

While some players may be scratching their heads, trying to determine how that could happen, it is likely that the feature was simply never given any real priority within the company.

While this may seem like a minor issue, Bethesda’s every move is currently under heavy scrutiny following the myriad of controversies that have surrounded Fallout 76‘s release. If the company hopes to ever return to the status it held prior to the game’s troubled launch, this fact needs to be acknowledged and handled with care.

The ongoing conversation about the game’s UltraWide support can be found on Reddit.