Fallout 3 DLC Review

With two more DLCs on the way for Fallout 3, and the PS3 finally getting some of the action, I think its time to look back and give the first three of them a general review as a whole package. Lets face it, they will all be released on a Game of The Year edition most likely anyway, but for those of you who have been holding your breath, waiting for all them them to arrive before getting them, this review may give you an insight into what these are all about.

The first DLC content for Fallout 3 was the Operation Anchorage pack. While it was relatively short, and brought nothing new in terms of perks or level advancement to the table, you as the player were rewarded with quite a bit of new gear at the end of the affair. Chinese stealth armor, a few guns, an electric spewing sword, and a new set of winterized power armor were certainly worth it.

I did see the frame rate stutter problems in certain sections where I don't believe I normally would have. Fallout 3 normally runs very decently on my 360, and these few stutters were out of place. They did not ruin the experience though. The lack of mission depth was something that may not interest all players. You know when going in, that this is only a simulation. The game-play itself never lets you forget that. It seems almost generic, and is almost an after-thought. Still, for those looking to squeeze a few more hours out of the Fallout 3 world, this will do the trick, giving you a little longer to use that VATS goodness to destructive ends. This is a one time play through though, and it cannot be revisited.

Next was the problematic The Pitt. I downloaded this as soon as it appeared on Live, and never had a problem with it. Though later, I heard nonstop complaints that it had been removed soon after to be patched and fixed, as there were problems with it. I had zero issues with this DLC save for one time it froze on me, and I had to do a hard reboot of the machine. PC gamers seem to have had far fewer problems with this one that 360 owners, though these have all been patched by now, and it should run smoothly.

As for game-play, its far richer an experience than the Anchorage DLC was. No new levels or perks to speak of yet, but players were given access to a few new weapons. One of which is basically a spinning blade on a motorcycle swing arm. This beastly machine is sure to slap a grin of faces as blood flies from one end of the wasteland to the other. And anyone familiar with Pittsburgh will surely hold a place in their hearts for the terrain. The story was also far more rewarding, being that your character must give themselves into the bonds of slavery in order to save the rest population from this very fate. You get a very cool set of power armor from the slaver leader , not to mention from finding steel ingots you will be rewarded with a few new weapons. The main body of these consist of the Perforator and the Metal Blaster. You can revisit Pittsburgh any time you wish, after the mission itself is over.

The last, and most complete upgrade to the Fallout 3 title is Broken Steel. PC owners will no doubt yell and scream about even more glitches and problems that came with this DLC, but 360 owners should have nothing to fear. Ive read of a few isolated cases of certain NPCs not responding to activation, thus the quests could not be finished. I have not encountered a single problem with this one. What else does it give you? It gives your character a second chance at life at the end of the main story arc, so yes, this means you need to finish the game. Once the end movie is over, you will be revived by the Brotherhood of Steel, and be ready to continue on your way to wasteland domination.

Finally, we are granted a new level cap, weapons, armor, the whole shebang. With your new cap set at 30, you are given the chance at 10 more perks, though there are actually 14 more. 6 new achievements will have more thorough gamers gunning for a few extra hours as well. So now you can pick up that "lead belly"perk you wanted before, but needed something else instead. The new weapons are insane, such as the Heavy Incinerator, basically a napalm launcher, and Tesla cannon which will now make very short and bloody work of those pesky Verti-birds used by the Enclave remnants. Imagine a giant bolt of lightning coming from a cannon on your shoulder. Take that, Enclave flunkies.

The story in this is the best so far, not because of the story itself, but because it is a continuation of your characters life. After you complete Broken Steel, you can live on. No untimely death this time, that is unless you get killed by the hundreds of Enclave soldiers that want your head. With this DLC, we finally get a chance to bring our dead hero back from the grave, and wreak havoc in the wasteland once more, with new toys, abilities, and yes, enemies. The new Super Mutant Overlord is quite a formidable force, as are the albino rad scorpions. There is also a new variation of Enclave soldier which has a set of fire-oriented armor who carries the above mentioned Heavy Incinerator. These are certainly scaled to your level, but the Overlord seems roughly 5-10 above you at all times.

Over all, these additions all add to the complete-ness of the game itself. If you have located every place on the came map, and done over other quest, these are a great way to extend the life of the game. By now, they all have been patched, so the initial problems with them are probably fixed, so you can enjoy them worry free.

Though these additions don't bring anything new in terms of graphical technology, or sound, the game play has been enhanced expanding your hero's horizons beyond the grave. I wholly recommend these while waiting for the additional two coming this summer. Check out IGN for the scoop on the upcoming releases.

8.5/10 (my score)