Fallout 4 1.3 Update Brings HBAO+ Support, Weapons Debris Effects And Numerous Gameplay Fixes
If you spot a developer for Bethesda Game Studios in a bar, buy the guy or gal a beer (or Nuka Cola Quantum), it's well earned. How so? The latest update for Fallout 4 introduces a laundry list of fixes, both for general gameplay and for specific quests, plus adds a handful of new features to boot. This is anything but a generic update.
The patch is available as an automatic download for PC players on Steam and will be available to Xbox One and PlayStation 4 later this week. Among its highlights, the latest Fallout 4 update adds a new ambient occlusion setting called HBAO+. You probably recognize that setting from other titles—by taking advantage of DirectX 11 features, it significantly improves the quality of ambient occlusion shadowing, giving scenes more depth and detail.
"In addition, Fallout 4’s HBAO+ implementation includes the long-distance HBAO+ rendering feature that debuted as one component of 'HBAO+ Ultra' in another recent release. This new feature enables HBAO+ ambient occlusion shadows to be rendered far into the distance, improving image quality screen wide. This is especially noticeable in cities with large buildings that are accurately shadowed by HBAO+ as far as the eye can see," NVIDIA explains in a related blog post.
NVIDIA's been working with Bethesda on graphics upgrades for Fallout 4, one of them being new weapon debris effects specific to NVIDIA graphics cards. The setting is called Weapon Debris and if enabled, Fallout 4 will render chunks of actual debris that fly through the air and persist in the scene. They can even be manipulated by the player, NPCs, enemy movement, and explosions.
Rounding out the list of new features is the addition of a status menu for settlers in your settlements, the ability to rotate an object you're holding with left/right triggers and pressing down on the left thumbstick, and improved ESDF keys remapping support while in Workshop mode on the PC.
As for the fixes, here are the ones for Gameplay:
The patch is available as an automatic download for PC players on Steam and will be available to Xbox One and PlayStation 4 later this week. Among its highlights, the latest Fallout 4 update adds a new ambient occlusion setting called HBAO+. You probably recognize that setting from other titles—by taking advantage of DirectX 11 features, it significantly improves the quality of ambient occlusion shadowing, giving scenes more depth and detail.
"In addition, Fallout 4’s HBAO+ implementation includes the long-distance HBAO+ rendering feature that debuted as one component of 'HBAO+ Ultra' in another recent release. This new feature enables HBAO+ ambient occlusion shadows to be rendered far into the distance, improving image quality screen wide. This is especially noticeable in cities with large buildings that are accurately shadowed by HBAO+ as far as the eye can see," NVIDIA explains in a related blog post.
Source: NVIDIA
NVIDIA's been working with Bethesda on graphics upgrades for Fallout 4, one of them being new weapon debris effects specific to NVIDIA graphics cards. The setting is called Weapon Debris and if enabled, Fallout 4 will render chunks of actual debris that fly through the air and persist in the scene. They can even be manipulated by the player, NPCs, enemy movement, and explosions.
Rounding out the list of new features is the addition of a status menu for settlers in your settlements, the ability to rotate an object you're holding with left/right triggers and pressing down on the left thumbstick, and improved ESDF keys remapping support while in Workshop mode on the PC.
As for the fixes, here are the ones for Gameplay:
- General memory and stability improvements
- Improved performance when looking through a scope
- Fixed issue where player could warp to a different location when aiming
- Companions can no longer get stuck with radiation poisoning
- Fixed an issue where Vault 81 residents would not dismember correctly
- Big Leagues perk now displays calculated damage correctly
- Fixed issue with third person camera not displaying properly after exiting certain crafting stations
- Fixed an issue where subtitles would occasionally not update properly
- Effects will properly be removed on companions when items are unequipped
- MacReady’s Killshot perk now calculates headshot percentages properly
- Fixed an issue with NPCs getting stuck in Power Armor
- Fixed a rare issue with companions getting stuck in down state
- Second rank of Aquaboy now calculates properly
- Fixed an issue with resistance not always lowering the damage correctly when added by mods
- Enabled number of characters available when renaming an item (XB1)
- Fixed issue with player becoming dismembered while still alive
- Robotics expert is now usable in combat
- Stimpaks can now be used on Curie after the transformation
- Playing a holotape found in wilderness while switching point of view no longer causes the screen to blur or controls to be locked
- Fixed an issue with "Taking Independence" where the minutemen remaining from the battle against the Mirelurk Queen would not gather in the Castle
- Fixed an issue where invulnerable characters would get stuck in combat
- Fixed an issue where Preston would send player to a settlement instead of a dungeon as part of a Minutemen quest
- Fixed an issue where Synths could attack the Castle while the player was friends with the Institute
- Fixed an issue where killing a caravan would leave a quest open
- Fixed an issue where Dogmeat would stay at Fort Hagen after "Reunions" was completed
- Fixed an issue where the player couldn't talk to Desdemona to complete "Underground Undercover"
- Fixed an issue where the player could get stuck exiting the cryopod
- Fixed an issue where the player could no longer get Preston as a companion
- In "The End of the Line," fixed an issue that would prevent the player from killing the leaders of the Railroad
- Fixed an issue with Minutemen quests repeating improperly
- Fixed an issue where the player couldn't get back into the Railroad headquarters after being kicked out of the Brotherhood of Steel
- After finishing "The Big Dig," fixed an issue where Hancock would no longer offer to be a companion or help with the "Silver Shroud" quest
- Fixed an issue with obtaining the Dampening Coils from Saugus Ironworks before going to Yangtze
- During "Unlikely Valentine," fixed an issue where the player could be blocked from entering Vault 114
- In "Confidence Man," Bull and Gouger can now be killed
- During "Taking Independence," fixed an issue that would prevent the radio transmitter from powering up
- In "Human Error," fixed an issue where killing Dan would cause the quest to not complete properly
- Fixed an issue with "Tactical Thinking" where leaving dialogue early with Captain Kells to reprogram P.A.M. could cause quest to not completely properly
- Fixed a bug that would cause settler counts to appear incorrectly
- Fixed an issue that could prevent the player from setting up a supply line in settlements with a high population
- Improvements to snapping pieces together while in Workshop mode
- Fixed an issue that caused powered items to stop functioning permanently if its power source was ever removed
- Player can now build workbenches in their Diamond City house
- Building wires no longer uses up copper
- Fixed issue with certain settlement attacks not generating properly
- Fixed an issue with settlement happiness calculations
- Settlers assigned to weapons stand will now stand next to it
- Diamond City house now shows provided power
- Repairing items will now correctly consume resources
- Fixed an issue where companion would ignore commands at workshop locations
- Fixed an issue with crops appearing destroyed after saving and reloading
