One of the best things about Fallout 4 is that the open-world game is filled with secrets and hidden information. These secret gems are meant for only the most vigilant gamers to find. That is, until now. If you are reading this article or took an interest in it — chances are you want to find out the secrets.
From unmarked locations that are riddled with clues and loot stashes to the mysterious terminals inside an old bunker. So while you wait for Starfield to come out next year, try to explore the Fallout 4 world a little more. You never know what you might find.
So how might one go about discovering these so-called “secrets” of the game? Well, one way is to hack the game. No, we don’t mean “The Matrix” hacking — sort of. We’re talking about unlocking terminals. Unlocking terminals can make a big impact in fights by allowing you to control their security system.
So without any further delays, let’s get into what you need to know about hacking and terminals in Fallout 4.
Why is Hacking Important in Fallout 4?
Hacking can be a huge advantage to any character build in the game. A lot of the locations around the Commonwealth have terminals that enable you to unlock new areas, access security systems and operate robots to help fight on your behalf.
In addition, a lot of what Fallout 4’s stories and secrets are discovered through these terminals that are scattered throughout the open world. Hacking into them for more information gives you hidden knowledge and can even unlock a secret quest. For those who want to truly get the most of the entire game, this is something you will want to stay for.
Terminals are also able to reveal locations of secret objects or loots. If you aren’t hacking in Fallout 4, now would be the time to start.
Hacking Skill and the Terminals
If you have played Fallout 4, then you are familiar with the intelligence perk tree. The hacking skill that is required for hacking the terminals is affected by the hacking perk on the intelligence perk tree.
Leveling up your hacking skills will allow you to hack into higher-difficulty terminals in the Commonwealth. The terminals are ranked by a specific difficulty tier:
- Novice
- Advanced
- Expert
- Master
So what do these tiers mean?
Novice Terminals — are those that are available to pretty much everyone by default.
Advance Terminal and above — require that the player have a higher level of the Hacker perk. As you increase your level, you will unlock higher tiered terminals and other abilities. For example, when you reach the final level of the Hacker perk, it prevents you from getting locked out of the terminal when you have depleted all your chances. Basically, you will have an unlimited amount of tries to hack the terminal. (Cool, but it takes a bit out of the fun)
But Wait…There’s More
In addition to the Hacker perk, there are two additional perks that are able to help you out with your hacking skills. A little extra help never hurts anyone, right?
- The science bobblehead- this is an item that you will definitely want to attain. Once you have collected the science bobblehead, it will give you an extra chance of guessing a password when you are hacking the terminal. Basically, you have an extra life for hacking.
Here’s how to obtain the Science Bobblehead:
- Retrieve the Vault 75 lab access card from the Gunner Commander in the diner.
- Head over to the Vault 75 to begin a small side quest. The bobblehead will be located on the deck that overlooks the combat area in basement 3.
- Enjoy the additional hacking life.
2. Companion Perk (Close to Metal)- This perk is attained by reaching the highest affinity with Nick Valentine — the robotic detective. You can do so by agreeing to help Nick Valentine to hunt down the Eddie Winters Holotapes and complete the final personal quest (Long time coming). Even if you decide not to finish the task, it is best to take Nick along as a companion. We’ll cover why in the next section.
Why Nick Valentine is Important to your Hacking
Let’s say you don’t have the time to invest in the Hacker perk, because….stuff (obviously). Instead, what you can do is take Nick Valentine along with you as a companion. Here’s how:
- Nick Valentine will become available as a companion after you rescue him during the main Fallout 4 quest and investigate the Kellogg’s house in Diamond City.
Having Nick Valentine as a companion is great with his hacking abilities. You can ask him to hack into any terminals regardless of the difficulty level — thus bypassing the tiers (and saving lots of your time too). However, it is important to note that he will not always be successful. Higher difficulty tier terminals will result in higher chances of him failing and being locked out forever.
Don’t worry though, if he gets locked out of the terminal, you can still do it. Full circle (go figure).
Now, let’s talk about how to really hack into a terminal.
How To Hack A Terminal
Let’s get right into it. Here are some of the things you need before you start hacking away at those terminals:
- Locate the terminal you want to hack into
- Ensure you have sufficient hacking skills to hack it
- Interact with the terminal
- Top of the 3rd line — is the number of attempts available for that terminal (this will update with each failed attempt)
- If you do fail, you will need to wait a few minutes for it to cool down before you re-attempt it.
Keep in mind this is a mini-game within the bigger Fallout 4 game. The goal for these hacking mini-games is to figure out which of the random words appear on the screen in the password. You can click on the word to reveal how similar it is to the actual password through its “likeness” to the real one.
Likeness in this context means how many letters of the specific word are in the exact same spot as the real password.
For example, the words “FOLD” and “FOLK” would have a likeness rating of “3” since the first three (3) letters, “F”, “O” and “L” are in the same spot and order.
Alternatively, words such as “PENS” and “COAT” will have a likeness rating of “0” since they do not have any letters that correspond with each other in the same spot or order.
To assist you with the guesswork, the weird-looking symbols and gibberish writing also serve a function as well.
If you see a bunch of symbols that are enclosed within a complete set of brackets, it is a tell. Symbols such as (), [], {} or <>, and select them, the terminal will either reset your available number of tries or delete words that are not the correct password. So, pay very close attention to the symbols. The devil is in the details.
For more games to play on the Xbox – check out what’s coming on the Xbox Game Pass.