The DLC of Fallout 3
What DLC to Pick Up and Pass Up for Bethesda's Post-Apocalyptic RPG.
Sep 24, 2009
Five downloadable content packs have been released for Bethesda's award-winning, post-apocalyptic RPG shooter hybrid that expands the story of Fallout 3 through the Capitol Wasteland and beyond. These content packs add new areas to explore, new enemies to fight, new weapons and armor, and continue the main storyline that ended in the original game.
Unfortunately, not every DLC pack is worth the price of admission. This guide is for the undecided Xbox 360 and PC owners who haven't committed to a DLC pack or the patient Playstation 3 owners waiting for their promised Fallout 3 content on the horizon.
Operation: Anchorage
The first of the DLC packs and also the weakest of the bunch. Operation: Anchorage smartly moves the action from drab, muddy wasteland of Washington D.C. to the frozen tundra of Alaska. The player's character uses a virtual reality training simulation that drops them a mountainous war zone, fighting with American soldiers against the invading Chinese military.
Although the change in visual palette is welcomed, Bethesda makes the mistake of sacrificing one of Fallout 3's greatest strengths: its immersion. The player is essentially playing a videogame inside a videogame, severely weakening the storytelling power the main game had in spades. As this is just a simulation of a historical event (in the game's story), the player character ultimately has little impact on the world.
This extra content is easily passable except for compulsive collectors who need every weapon and stitch of clothing available.
The Pitt
One of the Bethesda's stronger DLC addition takes the player's wastelander to the rusted remains of Pittsburgh. Whereas Washington D.C. is a fragmented collection of survivors, The Pitt (as its now called) is a large city filled with several competing factions.
The steel industry continues to thrive with the help of a workforce of slave labor. Not only is The Pitt an interesting and visually different location but the gameplay is more varied than the fare found in Operation: Anchorage. Players will find themselves forced into slavery, fighting for their freedom in gladiatorial combat, and ultimately leading or crushing a revolt when challenged with a morally ambiguous choice that's rarely found in the clear-cut, black-and-white world of Fallout 3.
Best of all the new areas continue to exist even after all the quests have been completed. Unlike Operation: Anchorage, players can return to The Pitt any time they wish.
Broken Steel
Broken Steel does two notable things that the other DLC doesn't do. First, it increases the level cap from 20 to 30 and adds several new perks the player can unlock on those levels. Secondly, it does away with the ending that disappointed gamers and gives the main storyline a more satisfying conclusion. Broken Steel removes the game's ending allowing players to continue with their character indefinitely.
Although the new quest material is more of the same found in the original game (battling with the Conclave), it is interesting to watch the wasteland undergo major transformations because of the player's actions.
This DLC is a must-buy because it happens to add the most to the game. It isn't the most fun DLC for Fallout 3, but it's not the worst of the five either. The new level cap, new weapons, and story conclusion are worth the (roughly) 10 dollar price tag.
Point Lookout
The strongest DLC offering out of the five. Point Lookout takes players on a boat ride to Maryland where they'll travel through swamps and dilapidated fairgrounds while battling inbred mutants and a religious cult.
Point Lookout doesn't change the game up in any significant way, it just offers the most interesting location and missions of all five DLC packs. Point Lookout is a very different experience, both from the main game and the other content packs that add new, permanent areas to explore.
Each hour of this DLC is different from the last. The player's character moves from defending a mansion from rampaging cultists to searching swamps for a hallucinogenic plant. The land area of Point Lookout seems to be the largest added to the game yet with numerous different locales to explore.
Mothership Zeta
Mothership Zeta comes in second to last. Although it is by far the most different experience of all the content packs it ends up being overly linear and overly repetitious. The player is abducted by aliens and must tear through hundreds of big-eyed alien goons that differ little in appearance and attack patterns.
Most of the mission consists of finding giant, glowing tubes and blowing them up. Repeatedly. There are a few stand-out moments, like when the player's character is initially abducted or when they have to strap on a spacesuit and walk on the outside of an alien craft orbiting Earth, but for the most part it's just mindless killing.
The game's saving grace is a team of characters, abducted from different time periods and kept in stasis, that help the player overthrow their alien abuctors. The child, the cowboy, the soldier from the war with the Chinese, and the Japanese samurai are all interesting characters and keep this DLC pack from entirely being alien mutilation.
Like always, the pack includes new weapons and armor for the player to pick up. The alien weapons are pretty much like the laser rifles found in the main game except they fire white beams of energy instead of red.
Conclusion
The bottom line is that every one of these DLC packs are good and are competitively priced compared to most DLC on the market. But for those not willing to spend roughly 50 more dollars on Fallout 3 can choose from the DLC offered.
Gamers who haven't yet purchased Fallout 3 would be wise to wait for the upcoming Fallout 3: Game of the Year Edition which includes the main game and all five DLC packs for the same price as the original game.
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