I asked AI to make a graph of the effect of the Prime TV show on Fallout 76’s population. The solid line is Steam concurrent players; the dashed line is the peak.
I also asked for a summary of the updates on the timeline, to see the relative impact. Turns out, they don’t even count compared to the show.
# | Update / event | Date | What it added | Visible effect on Steam |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| — | Wastelanders + Steam launch | Apr 2020 | Human NPCs, dialogue, factions | The data starts here — ~15.8k avg, fades fast as launch buzz cools |
| 2 | One Wasteland For All (S2) | Sep 2020 | Level scaling, Daily Ops | Negligible |
| 3 | Steel Dawn (S3) | Dec 2020 | Brotherhood of Steel questline | Small |
| 4 | Locked & Loaded (S4) | Apr 2021 | Loadouts, S.P.E.C.I.A.L. tweaks | Small |
| 5 | Steel Reign (S5) | Jul 2021 | BoS conclusion | Modest bump |
| 6 | Expeditions: The Pitt (S10) | Sep 2022 | Instanced expeditions | Modest Oct bump |
| 7 | Atlantic City | Dec 2023 | New expedition region | Small |
| ⭐ | TV show season 1 | Apr 2024 | Amazon Prime series | The event of the chart — 72,930 all-time peak, +331% avg |
| 8 | Skyline Valley (S17) | Jun 2024 | First-ever map expansion | Real, but mostly riding the TV wave down |
| 9 | Milepost Zero (S18) | Sep 2024 | Caravans, legendary crafting | Small |
| 10 | Gleaming Depths (S19) | Dec 2024 | Raids return, 4-star legendaries, C.A.M.P. pets | Noticeable Dec bump (+34%) |
| 11 | Ghoul Within (S20) | Mar 2025 | Playable ghoul, Perks Catalog | Small |
| 12 | Gone Fission (S21) | Jun 2025 | Fishing | Small |
| ⭐ | TV show season 2 | Dec 2025 | Premiered Dec 16, weekly through Feb 3, 2026 | Second-biggest surge: +64% Dec → +31% Jan → peak Feb, then falls off after the finale |
I guess all I can say is that, if I were in a position to direct how the game is developed and marketed, I would be using this data more than they seem to be.
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