Review: Fallout 3: Broken Steel

Anyone that has read the reviews for the two other pieces of DLC for Fallout 3 will know that at first I had concerns about the pricing, and whether the content was value for money.

It is safe to say that I have no such concerns after a marathon bit of gaming, playing the Broken Steel DLC.

Rewriting history

Unlike the two previous bits of content that could be started at any point during the game, Broken Steel can only be started once the main quest line has been completed. If you have completed the game, you’ll be all too aware you couldn’t go any further. Well Broken Steel rewrites the ending and opens up access to the Wasteland once more. It also increases the maximum level your character can reach, raising the ceiling from level 20 up to level 30. If you haven’t completed the game, this will become active anyway.

So once the main quest has completed, the final video will play. However, a new cut scene will now load with some new information being given to you. Eventually a new quest will be made available.

Altogether there are three new quests to complete which will appeal to all types of player. You can either blast your way all the way through or even attempt a more stealthy approach, using weaponry only when required.

Deathclaws, hundreds of them!

One thing for sure is this new DLC is a lot harder than the The Pitt and Operation Anchorage. You’ll come into a lot of contact with Deathclaws, more so than at any other point in the remainder of the game. If you haven’t come across a Deathclaw yet, I won’t spoil the surprise for you.

Two of the three missions are so challenging, you will quickly find your ammo levels depleting, your best weapons condition worsening, or in my case actually breaking. Plus you’ll be stocking up on food like crazy. I have no idea how many Stimpacks I actually went through while playing through this content. The most annoying thing for me personally was I had to lower the difficulty level. Otherwise this review would still be unwritten while I try to get past another pack of Deathclaws.

A nightmare, or pleasant dream?

And yet while this sounds like a nightmare, there is something that keeps dragging you in. Yes you keep dying and having to reload to an earlier point, but the important thing is you do keep playing. The story has you hooked. You want to know where it’s going next. And it’s once again testament to the development team at Bethesda Softworks. The sole purpose of a game is to keep you entertained and wanting to play. Bethesda has certainly achieved that.

I mentioned earlier that I had to lower the difficulty level so I could get through the content and write this review. The first two pieces of DLC were around four hours long. Naturally I assumed it would be the case with Broken Steel as well. I am happy to say I am very wrong, and it’s the main reason why this pack is such value for money.

I’m not entirely sure how long it took me to complete the extra content, but looking at the save files I had it looks to have taken around ten hours. And speaking to other gamers who have completed the Broken Steel pack, it can take up to 12 hours depending on your difficulty level and how much you explore and investigate.

Freebies galore

You’ll also pick up some handy freebies along your travels. But what you manage to pick up depends on how much you do deviate and explore. There is a suit that can come in handy, and what has to be one of the best guns designed for the game also becomes available.

But the three quests are just a snippet of the extra game time made available from this DLC. Increasing the maximum level to 30 brings with it more skills and abilities to unlock, plus it gives you even more reason to further explore the Wasteland.

The one thing I can pretty much guarantee will occur from playing the Broken Steel DLC, is you will want to pick up Fallout 3 once more and play it. Complete the quests you missed off, and explore the places yet to be encountered.

The best so far

And this is why Broken Steel is by far the best piece of DLC to be developed and released by Bethesda Softworks so far. The extra achievements, more than double game time compared to the previous content, which is for sale for the same price as Broken Steel, plus the entertainment and fun you will have with this pack is definitely worth it.

Even right at the end after completing the quests and heading in one direction, you have the option of taking a completely different course to what you were expecting. And this will change the remainder of the game for you once you get back into the Wasteland.

This is without doubt the best DLC to date, and it makes the anticipation for the next two pieces of content that have just been announced even greater. After creating this masterpiece, Bethesda has a mighty task creating something just as good. I can’t recommend Broken Steel highly enough. If you have Fallout 3, you need Broken Steel to go with it.