As much as I adore Bethesda, I can’t say I’ve ever been overly impressed with its engines.
I don’t feel that the Creation Engine nor the Creation Engine 2 have yielded particularly strong results when it comes to visual fidelity.
Starfield, for example, was made within the Creation Engine 2 and lacks the realism of, say, Horizon Zero Dawn, a game that launched six years prior.
Of course, realism isn’t everything in gaming but I’d argue that’s what Bethesda is aiming for.
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I don’t particularly see any evidence of stylisation in its graphics.
All of this being said, Bethesda’s graphics are by no means bad; I just would love to see them truly step it up a notch.
Let’s hope we get that wow factor in The Elder Scrolls VI - and Fallout 5 beyond that.
In the meantime, tech wizard Digital Dreams has brought to life the type of thing I suppose I’m hoping we see.
The modder has applied a silly amount of mods to Fallout 4 to give it a next-gen look, and it injects the game with a new lease of life.
The world feels vibrant, detailed, and even more beautiful.
You can see the digital showcase for yourself below.
To achieve this, Digital Dreams applied over 1,170 mods, so you won’t be able to replicate this on a bog standard PC.
If you do have a decent bit of kit though, there is a mod and preset link in the video’s description.
I’m far from being the only one who’s impressed.
“Looks awesome bro!! Mods keeping old games alive,” wrote one viewer.
“Bethesda should improve a lot, they’re stuck in the past,” added another.
“Good job with the modding as it looks much better than default,” one comment stated.
I will say that the rain effects are a tad … overdone?
But this is a simple modding project.
It’s a good idea at the very least of what the future may hold. Hopefully, Bethesda is ready to tap into its next-gen potential.