West Virginia makes Fallout 76's Reclamation Day real

Fallout 76’s Reclamation Day is now a real thing in West Virginia, bizarrely. It’s the name of the first quest in Fallout 76 and the day the vault dwellers left their underground sanctuary to rebuild America from its ashes. The governor of West Virginia, Jim Justice, has decided to make this post-apocalyptic celebration official, formalising it with a proclamation that you can read below. 

When the latest Fallout setting was revealed in the first E3 trailers, West Virginia saw increased attention thanks to the hordes of Fallout fans hungry for more details about the game. The state officially partnered with Bethesda to take advantage of the potential influx of tourists, and it looks like making Reclamation Day real is one of those marketing stunts. 

The proclamation mentions all the historical, cultural and natural locations presented by Fallout 76, framing it as a great way to get to know the state. What it does not mention are the hordes of mutants, deadly radiation and that players can launch nukes to devastate whole chunks of West Virginia. 

Unfortunately, Reclamation Day won’t get you time off work.

If you’re a tourist in digital West Virginia, here’s how to get started in Fallout 76.

Fraser Brown
Online Editor

Fraser is the UK online editor and has actually met The Internet in person. With over a decade of experience, he's been around the block a few times, serving as a freelancer, news editor and prolific reviewer. Strategy games have been a 30-year-long obsession, from tiny RTSs to sprawling political sims, and he never turns down the chance to rave about Total War or Crusader Kings. He's also been known to set up shop in the latest MMO and likes to wind down with an endlessly deep, systemic RPG. These days, when he's not editing, he can usually be found writing features that are 1,000 words too long or talking about his dog. 

Latest in Fallout
Fallout 76 ghoul screenshots
How to become a ghoul in Fallout 76
Ghoul in sunglasses
Some Fallout 76 players have encountered a 'major game-breaking bug' which either makes it impossible to complete the ghoul quest or just makes you temporarily invisible
A ghoul player character standing next to another ghoul
'You are hereby conscripted': Fallout 76 players demand newly-transformed ghoul players help them mine radioactive ore
Male and Female Vault Dweller holding guns and cresting a hill with ruined city in background
The New Vegas remake of the Fallout 3 that never was just got its first demo, not to be confused with the straight-up remake of the cancelled Fallout 3 or, indeed, Fallout 3
Lucy smiling while using her pip boy
Ella Purnell dreads being typecast for her 'poop finger' in Fallout: 'This finger is the bane of my life'
Fallout 76 - a player in a vault suit gives a thumbs up
Fallout 76's former project lead says it's still his favourite game he worked on, but the initial reception was demoralising: 'I got yelled at in an Apple Store, I'll never forget'
Latest in News
Uplifted chimp Penn and cyber-rat Trip in the key art for Animal Use Protocol
Animal Use Protocol's dysfunctional chimp-rat alliance drags the Stasis series into a horrible new first-person era
A woman with short hair stands next to a pot plant, provocatively
GOG's version of Silent Hill 4 has been updated with missing content from the original console game
A blue dragon rises into storm clouds
Wizards of the Coast throws a bone to players who miss vanilla Magic: The Gathering with a dragon-themed set called Tarkir: Dragonstorm
Lonely Mountains: Snow Riders
Lonely Mountains: Snow Riders is getting a new mountain next month and a whole bunch more throughout the year, including a game editor
Lady smiling with the sun in her face
Clair Obscur: Expedition 33's director was 'starving for new turn-based RPGs,' and figured if he wanted them, there would be others out there who'd want to play his game
farcana
'The Middle East's answer to Marvel Rivals' is an 'AI-powered', crypto-infused hero shooter that looks like hot garbage