Hi,
I’m going to keep this as short as possible. I have supported this game since day one. However, in just over two months time a game by Bethesda will be coming out that’s in the same realm as CE.
I love this game for many reasons but hate it for two too many. Thralls AI and stability issues.
Im saying this bc I feel that, esspecially with the mass exodus of players on all platforms (that funcoms hopes will come back for a pet system with an AI that’s still crap), if these two things aren’t seriously addressed and patched in time for the competition’s game…not just a ‘we’re working on it but it’s very Technical.’… Myself, as someone who’s played since release and have built a lot and pvpd a good amount (in the past …) I’m done with you guys. Not the Devs fault or whatever … I’ll let hundreds of hours simply vanish gladly. My buildings weren’t built to last…but I never thought that I’d loose them by decay eventually, and that’s bc I quit the game. Not been raided by another player but just quit.
I’ve seen my PvP PS4 server go from no room on the server down to at present one person on during prime time. Those left on officials have mostly congregated to higher pop severs, which there aren’t many of. Or like me the rest have stayed on the server they built on initially.
It’s been fun-ish but I’ll gladly walk away if you guys don’t address major issues very shortly. Even that guy Firespark on YouTube is not going to cover the game much anymore. And that was his bread and butter. That says something about what’s happening. No pets will save the game if the core is still broken.
I give you my word, I will boycott anything you guys ever make again as well. I could send you a screen shot of how many times this game crashes on me in one sitting. I’ve never seen anything like it.
So if I don’t see anything about this or whatever it’s been swell. I hope you all find jobs somewhere else very soon, if your management doesn’t refocus efforts, and get this figured out.
I understand your frustration. I have experienced (and reported on) many of these ‘core’ system problems. I recently even started a thread in suggestions on how we seriously need an update focused primarily on an AI Overhaul for NPC’s. Thralls are such a big selling point in this game that it just seems a waste to not finish polishing that system, as it affects every mode of game play (PVP, PVE/-C, RP, Solo/Co-op).
Strides have been made in optimization with the most recent patches to testlive, but it takes time (and file size limits) for it to get implemented into consoles through Sony and Microsoft certifications. Hopefully they pull through soon and you get some much needed updates and fixes to your platform.
I’ll paraphrase what @Shadoza said, because it is very true. ‘Different strokes for different folks’. If this title doesn’t sate all of your needs, then the best of luck to you and I hope the best for your future ventures. Thank you for caring enough about the game to express your concerns. 
This game, for me, always had a limited lifespan on PS4, I picked it up as a stop-gap because I wanted to have a crack at a survival game on console.
I have to go away in about a month for ten days. I will not have access to the game while gone. By the time I get back all my wonderful constructions will have decayed and my legion of thralls will be floating in space.
This doesn’t worry me because at this time I will be too busy robbing stagecoaches in a certain open world, western themed game.
It was fun while it lasted but was never going to be a long time thing.
I have to agree with this. I love the Fallout franchise, but I have no interest in F:76.
F76 is an interesting social experiment. But I think it will boil down to only being played by alpha and omega personality types.
I’m not ashamed to admit i’m a pure Beta personality type. I’m quite perceptive, tame, loyal and cooperative. Not the sort F76 appeals to. But I’ll try it out anyway, cuz i’m a fallout fan. I already know F76 is gonna fail lol. Only beta types create content on servers that are conducive to trade and socializing… these installations will be destroyed on sight, especially cuz it rewards caps. Building decorated shooting-targets for players is not sustainable, and even if they make it game mechanically sustainable like easy to repair… it is unsustainable on an emotional level.
You can’t just build a social hub out in the middle of nowhere in a PvP setting, unless your sucking on some warlords ■■■■. It has not worked for humans up until the cold war era. Why would it work now? Why would anyone want to subscribe to that as a form of entertainment?
I just wanna role a nice VaultGirl and experience it for better or worse.
Agreed. And I acknowledge that Bethesda are well aware that most people (in an online multiplayer PVP setting) are going to be a—holes, and have tried to gamify that to some degree. But I have absolutely no faith in any game mechanic making people’s inherent assholery an enjoyable game mechanic (though I applaud them for trying).
Personally I’m looking forward to their next full Fallout game, hopefully with some of the base-building features from F4 and whatever works well from F76.
I can honestly say that if Bethesda pushes Creation Club down our throats with this new game, then I’ll most definitely be passing. As long as we have workshop and/or nexus mods available, then Conan who?? lol
At least for awhile, I recently broke the 1000 hour mark in CE, it’s rare for me to play a game that long. lol
By the way…is not like Bethesda games are less broken and frustrating than Funcom ones.
These two software houses are more known for their artistic departments, not really for their coding…which let’s be honest, suck big time.
I broke the 3000 mark on ARK lol. I also hit the 1K mark on Conan Exiles. Donnoh if that’s good or sad.
I’d like to ask, what is a reasonable expectation for the sophistication of NPC behavior? I’m not well versed in AI development for games, but I suspect, it would be quite difficult to program an NPC’s behavior to match that of a human player… Which is what we want, right? The closer the better, right? But, honestly, how realistic is realistic?
I disagree. Bethesda games have their issues, but you won’t find them with an AI that cannot attack for months and months.
Um… Several regions of Nul sec space in EVE Online beg to differ. They habe active hubs that are Freeport and exist in a very open PvP environment. The key is having ample space.
As for the OP’s notion that they will never buy another Funcom game, never can be a long long time. I was ticked when EA said there would be no Bard’s Tale 4 amd swore I would never buy from them again… Well… I still buy the occassional EA game…and we are going to be getting a Bard’s Tale 4.
I would just like consistent behavior. Sometimes they attack, sometimes they don’t. Sometimes they assist when you’re hit, sometimes they head straight after an NPC you haven’t even seen yet. Sometimes a group of thralls will stomp a hole in a wandering bear. Sometimes just one thrall in that same group will go after it. This to me is the problem, we have no clue how or when thealls will react. And this should be priority number one, not pets or sorcery or pretty building blocks.
Hope may well be on the horizon. Tascha reopened my thread on needing an AI Overhaul for NPC's, to inform us that it is in the works and in the near future.
I am an old Fallout fan dating back to the first one, but F76 does not appeal to me at all.
To me, CE has too much building stuff and not enough combat incentive (I play PVE). All about who builds the most amazing stuff. I work in rectangles for practicality (and because I am stupid).
PS - where is my horse you promised when I bought yet another Funcom game?
was thinking of f76 aswell but its one hell of a carebear game, you won’t get PVP from F76.
It’s basically duel invitations to fight.
You will be disappointed by how PVP works in F76 then, I think.
It took months of playing around with the 60 degree wedges to get the hang of them, but once you do, you can add them in places to add real a architectural flair to builds. They can still be the bane of my existence at times though (first world problems). 
The AI is next up on the chopping block for updated content after pets, so hopefully this translates into more useful thralls and more engaging enemies. Unfortunately, I don’t think we’ll see mounts for nearly a year, since it will require a basic remap of the entire game (mostly for consoles and low end pc’s). If you’re holding out for mounts, you better settle in for the long haul, lol.
In fact, if we think of this logic behind the duel im F76, this “invitation” may not be accepted and even then the player may continue to be hunted (and killed, in addition to having his junk looted and you will not get any additional rewards, like xp). Yes, there may be consequences for the killer if the other party does not counterattack (such as being sought out by body hunters and paying for the reward with their own caps), but perhaps the player remains interested in this extra “challenge”. Personally, I think it’s important to respect the player’s will in F76, even if it does have a more discouraging than really effective character about PvP without consent. If a person wants to play solitaire (in neutral mode) or friendly (co-op) only, that is a right of it. Even in GTA V where widespread chaos prevails, the player has the option of turning passive mode on and having peace if he wishes.
Although the systems are different, CE also considers that the PvP mode should be an option… and not an obligation. Nothing more democratic, considering that each player has his own style.
As for the day-to-day problems that this game offers (or has the potential to offer) since the legendary official release date, I would say that Funcom has planted what it is reaping. And in that sense, I think a timer has already started from the first day. Each player has their own personal hourglass, but the consequences are not a surprise or an injustice. Each consumer has their own critical sense. Fortunately.
Same genre with different aspects, CE is more hardcore than F76, thus making the online Fallout being more causal friendly. One that enjoys survival can easily play both, but of course, if FC doesnt put enough love in CE, the playerbase will just fade away, and as we already know Bethesda, F76 wont have any problems maintaining a big population.