Fallout 76's Massive Patches Are Bumping Up Against Internet Data Caps

Fallout 76's Massive Patches Are Bumping Up Against Internet Data Caps

Feeling the pinch.

News by Matt Kim, News Editor

Fallout 76 released a new patch today and it clocks in at nearly 50GB. This is just the latest large-size download for Fallout 76 since launch and it's getting to the point where gamers with capped internet can't download the game or the latest patch as it pushes their data limits too hard.

As video games become bigger in scale and size, those of us with unlimited internet plans have come to accept the longer wait times for downloads and installations as a natural consequence. But those of us under capped internet usage, the extreme sizes for games and game updates are making it so that playing recent launches are becoming more and more difficult.

Today's Fallout 76 48GB update is a good example. Online players who are in rural areas or have capped internet are finding it difficult to continue playing Fallout 76 when its most recent updates are pushing the 50GB download size. That puts an immense strain on how much they can use the internet with half a month still left to go in November.

This of course isn't the first high-profile, big download game in recent weeks. Red Dead Redemption 2 pushed nearly 100 GB worth of downloads on players and that of course also put a strain on internet usage for players.

Internet data caps are often referring to artificial restrictions placed on the transfer of data. This affects mobile phone usage but also home internet as well. Internet service provides continue to push data caps arguing "fair usage" but as technology advances it's becoming harder and harder to justify capping data and charging fees for overages.

We've come to learn a lot about how the internet is failing to catch up with big video game downloads as briefly discussed when we spoke with real cowboys for Red Dead Redemption 2. They briefly discussed the problems with rural internet caps, and much of the same grievances are playing out with Fallout 76.

If you were able to get the new update downloaded you can also check out our Fallout 76 guide for tips, or our Fallout 76 review-in-progress.

Fallout

Fallout 76

Matt Kim

News Editor

Matt Kim is a former freelance writer who's covered video games and digital media. He likes video games as spectacle and is easily distracted by bright lights or clever bits of dialogue. He also once wrote about personal finance, but that's neither here nor there.

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