Graphics card manufacturer Nvidia has come up with an interesting way to showcase its latest line of graphics cards. The company is releasing a Fallout 4 mod on Friday named Vault 1080 to demonstrate all the latest graphical bells and whistles available.
Vault 1080 was developed by Nvidia’s internal Lightspeed Studios and will be available to download for the PC version of Fallout 4 on Friday, September 2. This is the first-ever gaming mod released by the company and serves as part advertising and part brand new experience for fans of the game with high-end hardware.
The mod features over an hour of gameplay set in a vault beneath a gothic-style church. Nvidia describes the Vault 1080 as similar in size to others littered about the Commonwealth from the main campaign.
Nvidia turned the dial up on graphical features to create an ominous mood throughout the Vault 1080 experience. Special attention is paid to the lighting to create an almost horror game-like look for the Fallout 4 mod.
“Volumetric lighting features extensively – in ways not seen in the standard game – while shadows are more realistic and velvety than ever,” the company explains. “This is thanks to HBAO+ and its control of ambient occlusion, which creates authentic depths anywhere a light source is blocked, no matter how small or fleeting.”
It’s not just the look of Vault 1080 that creates the creepy Fallout 4 experience. The new questline featured in the mod completes the mood with a dark storyline.
“It’s a Fallout vault like you’ve never seen before,” Nvidia explains. “It’s certainly taken its toll on its occupants. They’ve become a congregation that embraces the darkness and sickness, and they’ve done it – so they believe – to survive. They’re not the friendliest bunch. But is the whole thing built on lies? The truth is deep within Vault 1080, through a whole lot of fearful mystery. Find it and decide for yourself whether the monsters deserve their salvation… or not.”
PC gamers interested in trying out the Vault 1080 mod will be able to check it out when it hits the mod section of Bethesda Softworks official website Friday. Note that this will likely be available for PC only. No special hardware requirements have been announced to play the mod, but obviously, a Nvidia 1080 graphics card combined with some kind of Intel Core i7 processor and at least 8GB of memory will be needed to get the full effect.
Xbox One owners shouldn’t expect to see the mod available on the console. It won’t have the power necessary to run the graphical showcase portions, plus it uses an AMD graphics processor anyway. It will be a pleasant surprise if Vault 1080 does show up, though.
PlayStation 4 owners still do not have the ability to download and use Fallout 4 mods. There has been no update on the status of supporting mods on the console since Bethesda Softworks first announced the delay two months ago, as covered by the Inquisitr .
Meanwhile, Fallout 4 players should expect mods to be the primary way to extend the life of the game going forward. Bethesda just released Nuka-World , the final DLC for the game, this past week. The expansion adds a soda-themed park where players can work to become the Overboss of three different Raider Faction by pacifying different sections of the park, most of which are twisted takes on Disney World. There’s plenty of new weapons to collect as well, including a Paddle Ball that can shock or explode on contact with enemies and an acid soaker pistol.
Will you try out Nvidia’s Vault 1080 mod for Fallout 4 ? Sound off in the comments below.
[Image via Nvidia]
