Fallout 4 players anxiously awaiting mods for the PlayStation 4 will just have to wait a bit longer. Bethesda recently announced that the company will delay bringing Fallout 4 mods to that console.
"We regret to say that the PS4 Mods Beta for Fallout 4 has been delayed," the company posted on Twitter. "We will update everyone when we can."
Why the delay? The Xbox One already got mods, so why can't the PlayStation 4 have them, too? One of the main issues is the size of the mods. The Xbox One allows for mods to take up as much as 2 GB of space on its hard drive. In comparison, though, the PlayStation 4 limits size to less than half that, 900 MB. Also, although Bethesda asks modders to keep their size limits down to 900 MB or less, that's a hard request to make when the Xbox One allows for a larger file size.
However, that's not the only problem: the PlayStation 4 version of the game also has more issues than its Xbox One counterpart that also affects Fallout 4 mods. The Sony console has problems with PC textures in the game, as well as issues with memory and performance. Bethesda needs to work with Sony to address these problems before proceeding with mods.
Another issue is that the PlayStation 4 sound format is proprietary, which means that sound files in mods aren't supported by the console. That's another hurdle Bethesda has to jump over to make them work on the system.
Bethesda's latest announcement probably means that the company hasn't been able to tackle these issues yet and needs more time in making sure that mods work properly. Yet, that's the upside to this news: Bethesda wants the Fallout 4 mods experience to go smoothly for those on the PlayStation 4, so if that means waiting a little longer, then so be it.
The idea of mods on consoles is still a relatively new concept, and gamers need to applaud Bethesda for learning how to make them work. Mods — which allow players to customize their game experience — were previously once only experienced on the PC, so bringing them to consoles opens up a whole new level of gameplay for those playing on the Xbox One or PlayStation 4.
Although Bethesda initially promised Fallout 4 mods for the PlayStation 4 in June, the date is now in flux, with the company hopefully announcing a new release date for PlayStation 4 mods soon.
