New Fallout 4 Patch Intros Visual Enhancements, Fixes a Long List of Issues

Article by George Norman (Cybersecurity Editor)

on 02 Feb 2016

It’s been a while since Bethesda rolled out patch 1.2, the first official patch for Fallout 4. That update introduced just a couple of new features and fixed a fairly a short list of issues.

The latest update, patch 1.3, is more generous. It introduces more new features, including a couple of graphics options that make Fallout 4's world more detailed and immersive. It also fixes a heck of a lot more issues than patch 1.2. A detailed list of new features & fixes is available below. Take a look to see what you can expect from patch 1.3.

Fallout 4 Patch 1.3 – New Features
  • New ambient occlusion setting, HBAO+ (PC)
  • New weapon debris effects (PC NVIDIA cards)
  • Added status menu for settlers in your settlements
  • Added ability to rotate an object you are holding with left/right triggers and pressing down on left thumbstick lets you switch the rotating axis
  • Improved "ESDF" keys remapping support while in Workshop mode (PC)
NVIDIA worked with Bethesda on introducing the new graphics settings mentioned above, mainly HBAO+ and weapon debris effects.

What HBAO+ does is it creates a more realistic scene with extra depth and detail; it does this by significantly increasing the quality of ambient occlusion shadowing. HBAO+ uses DirectX 11 technology developed by NVIDIA to offer a more enjoyable visual experience.

The second new feature that patch 1.3 introduces is weapon debris effects. Available for PCs only and for NVIDIA graphics cards only, this is a high-end, GPU-accelerated particle rendering system powered by NVIDIA FleX (a particle based simulation technique for real-time visual effects).

Andrew Burnes, member of the NVIDIA Tech Marketing team, explains why FleX-powered weapon debris matter:

“Currently, if you shoot a wall or other surface with a weapon in Fallout 4, small debris particles are emitted from the bullet hole or weapon impact point before fading in mid-air. Similarly, if you shoot a soft surface and leave a crater a plume of dust and dirt is kicked up before quickly vanishing. With Weapon Debris enabled chunks of actual debris are rendered, and persist in the scene. In addition, these particles can be manipulated by player, NPC and enemy movement, and explosions, which send debris flying throughout the scene.”




To enable HBAO+ and Weapon Debris you must open the Fallout 4 launcher and go to Options -> Advanced. You will see dropdown menus for Ambient Occlusion and Weapon Debris.


Fallout 4 Patch 1.3 – Gameplay Fixes
  • 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

Fallout 4 Patch 1.3 – Quest Fixes
  • 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

Fallout 4 Patch 1.3 – Workshop Fixes
  • 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

Fallout 4 Patch 1.3 was released as a Beta this January and graudated out of Beta this week.

Patch 4.3 is already available for PCs, and should arrive as an automatic download on Steam. It’s coming to PlayStation 4 and Xbox One consoles later this week.

Bethesda always releases the PC version first and the console version after.


In related news...

When I'm not exploring the wasteland in Fallout 4, I'm out exploring the wilderness in The Elder Scrolls Online: Tamriel Unlimited. I bring this up only to mention that the first DLC pack of 2016 is coming soon.



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