Home Gaming Are you using Fallout 4’s Pip Boy companion app?

Are you using Fallout 4’s Pip Boy companion app?

1 min read
38

Pipboy

Companion apps, thankfully, have started going the way of the dodo. Even Ubisoft – once one of the biggest publishers to push the things – seems to have realised that nobody bloody uses them anymore, because more often than not, they just get in the way. Assassin’s Creed Syndicate doesn’t have a companion app, and next year’s The Division dropped its planned companion app support in favour of common sense.

In case you’ve not surmised, I’m not a fan of the things, and seldom play my games with a phone or tablet, connected to said game, sitting beside me. That’s changed for Fallout 4.

While the Pip Boy that shipped with Fallout 4 might ultimately be a disappointment, the companion app is anything but. It just works – and it does so independently of the silly, giant plastic bracelet.

Thankfully, I’ve avoided the temptation to duct tape my phone to my arm, because that app, for whatever reason, makes my Android-based phone overheat and goes through battery faster than I make my way through a pepperoni pizza. I do, however, have the app on my aged iPad 2, where it functions rather well.

I use to switch through inventory on the fly, without having to bring up the in-game Pip Boy, for dropping items and changing radio stations and pretty much everything else you’d use the Pip Boy for, including the map. Unlike many companion apps, the map functionality is fantastic, and doesn’t take too long to update, dispensing with the noticeable lag present in most other ones.

I think it works so well because it isn’t trying to do anything other than replicate the Pip Boy’s basic functionality. I mostly use it as a map that I can use without pulling up the in-game Pip Boy, but do appreciate being able to switch out weapons with a tap – so the app has become indispensable in my playthrough.

Tell us: Are you using the companion app?

Last Updated: November 12, 2015

38 Comments

  1. Alien Emperor Trevor

    November 12, 2015 at 12:04

    I don’t find it very helpful, it often bugs out & doesn’t display my inventory & changing radio stations never works. Hopefully it’ll improve once I get Fallout 4.

    Reply

    • Hammersteyn

      November 12, 2015 at 12:06

      huehuehue

      Reply

    • Grand Admiral Chief SpaceNinja

      November 12, 2015 at 12:08

    • RinceThis

      November 12, 2015 at 12:13

      hahahahahahah silly boy

      Reply

    • Greylingad[CNFRMD]

      November 12, 2015 at 12:20

      Yep, that’s my exact sentiment, still looking to get the backup files somewhere, to install the game though… What a mission that is…

      Reply

    • Havalynii

      November 12, 2015 at 23:55

      Troll level: Brotherhood of Steel.

      Reply

  2. Grand Admiral Chief SpaceNinja

    November 12, 2015 at 12:07

    I’m still trying to recover from the shock that Geoff is using Android…

    Reply

    • Hammersteyn

      November 12, 2015 at 12:11

      There’s something other than Android??? O_o

      Reply

      • Grand Admiral Chief SpaceNinja

        November 12, 2015 at 12:12

        SheepOS

        Reply

        • Guild

          November 12, 2015 at 12:16

          Baa Baa Baa still best OS 😛

          Reply

          • Grand Admiral Chief SpaceNinja

            November 12, 2015 at 12:34

            It can handle being dropped?

          • Guild

            November 12, 2015 at 12:49

            No problems. Can throw it and drop kick it. Got a special cover case for it.

          • Grand Admiral Chief SpaceNinja

            November 12, 2015 at 13:04

            GUILD_PROOF
            Patent pending

  3. Guild

    November 12, 2015 at 12:10

    I picture Geoff and Sandy like this at the moment….

    Reply

  4. th3SiCn3ss

    November 12, 2015 at 12:10

    Yes eye is, the app works brilliantly except for the as mentioned battery vampire it is. Apparently they used the exact same in game coding for the phone version, which explains why it’s so resource intensive.

    I had it in my CE pipboy & my phone tented to overheat pretty badly. Regardless it works, specially for on the fly mid battle stim packs.

    Reply

  5. RinceThis

    November 12, 2015 at 12:13

    What is an app?

    Reply

    • Guild

      November 12, 2015 at 12:14

      One day when you get a proper phone you’ll know till now continue with your Windows phone

      Reply

      • RinceThis

        November 12, 2015 at 12:14

        Hey! It has SMS! So shurrup!

        Reply

        • Guild

          November 12, 2015 at 12:15

          Listened to conversation on the radio yesterday about how the SMS is going extinct due to Apps such as Whatsapp. XD

          Reply

          • RinceThis

            November 12, 2015 at 12:16

            What app? 😛

          • Hammersteyn

            November 12, 2015 at 12:17

            That thing you use drunkenly(I assume) over the weekends are two in the morning

          • RinceThis

            November 12, 2015 at 12:17

            “are two in the morning?” You drunk boy?

          • Hammersteyn

            November 12, 2015 at 12:22

            lol oops

          • RinceThis

            November 12, 2015 at 12:23

            😉

          • Grand Admiral Chief SpaceNinja

            November 12, 2015 at 12:35

            He just are lost too renks wiff dat koment

          • Alien Emperor Trevor

            November 12, 2015 at 12:31

            Isn’t that Twitter now?

    • Heckers

      November 13, 2015 at 08:43

      They released a windows phone version too 🙂

      Reply

  6. Johann

    November 12, 2015 at 12:20

    If it wasn’t for the fact that it overheats my phone like a mofo I would have used it more. Nice idea, but I do not want to melt my phone everytime I use it.

    Reply

    • miaau

      November 12, 2015 at 12:26

      I hate that, I really, really do. Apps that just use so much of the phones resources that it starts heating up to that point, the point where you stop using that app. In 2015? Surely not.

      Reply

    • Geoffrey Tim

      November 12, 2015 at 13:04

      Yeah, precisely why I’m using it on ipad.

      Reply

    • Eric Woodley

      November 12, 2015 at 23:35

      I haven’t noticed much in the way of excess heat until I had to throw it on the charger, which is par for the course with my phone. I think some comparison of phones is in order, to see if there are any trends. I am using a galaxy note 5.

      Reply

  7. Greylingad[CNFRMD]

    November 12, 2015 at 12:24

  8. Lord Chaos

    November 12, 2015 at 12:38

    I’ve tried it with the pip boy, but ultimately ended up installing it on my tablet and using the tablet as my 3rd screen.

    Reply

  9. WhiteRock

    November 12, 2015 at 13:19

    Kinda forgot about it…

    Reply

  10. justlikemo

    November 12, 2015 at 14:02

    Everyone has a backup IOS device some where. Cos it just works.

    Reply

  11. David Weatherhead

    November 12, 2015 at 15:10

    I was planning on giving the app a shot tonight on my phone, especially for that ease of use instead of opening the pip-boy menu the whole time. However, I think I might “borrow” my wifes iPad, I think it might work a bit better there, bigger screen and all that.

    Reply

  12. Peter Pan

    November 12, 2015 at 16:34

    The moment I have downloaded the game, I’ll let you know. For some reason, my Steam downloaded the full game but didn’t bother to try installing from the downloaded files. So when I tried to make a plan, Steam decided to redownload the files. So, i have to sit through another 25GB download on a 4MB ADSL line (roll on Fibre in my area)!!!

    Reply

  13. Arcendus

    November 24, 2015 at 19:36

    Installed this on my Nexus 9 last night and I checked my tablet just now (it’s been off the charger since 8 am and it’s currently 12:30 pm, and it had charged to 100%) to find it hot to the touch and drained down to 44% despite my not having even turned the screen on until just now… and I’d most definitely backed out of the app. The process, apparently, kept my CPU awake regardless, so I’d recommend actually stopping the process on Android. First time I’ve ever encountered something like this.

    Reply

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