DLC Details

• Main Title: Fallout 3
• DLC Title: Broken Steel
• Released (UK): 05/05/2009
• Current Price: 800 MS Points (~$10 US)

Background

Aside from a few poorly thought out elements to the plot e.g. how could little lamplight still exist as a colony of children so long after the war, if there was a major flaw present in Fallout 3 it was the finality of the ending which prevented you from continuing to explore the capitol wasteland once the main quest was complete. Broken Steel rectifies that flaw and retcons the ending so that you can continue your adventure, and lifts the level cap from 20 to 30 adding new perks along the way. Broken Steel also changed the ending so that your companions can perform the task instead of yourself instead of them giving you a stupid destiny line, not that it matters given the nature of the retcon.

New Content and Integration into Original Game

Excluding the level cap change and a few new enemies and pieces of equipment, almost all of the Broken Steel content takes place after the ending to Fallout 3, and the plot starts two weeks after the ending cutscene which you still see. The choices you make at the end of the main game are also integrated in a small way into the plot and are referenced in new Three Dog radio broadcasts who also references your new adventures, for the most part though the ending choice appears to have little impact on the plot.

The main plot surrounds the Brotherhood of Steel mopping up the Enclave remnants, with a new series of small sidequests surrounding the distribution of water. You get to see Liberty Prime back in action again, and there is a new enclave super weapon that you have to take out. Once you have completed the new quests, assuming you did not decide to press 1 instead of 5 at the end, you get a few new ongoing tasks along the lines of the Megaton Scrap metal collection and the karma based character killing perks.

New Achievements

Once they start to work properly, there are 6 new achievements, 3 of which are tied into the new plot and 3 which are to get to level 30 with certain types of Karma, fortunately there are a few new perks that instantly change your level to Good, Neutral or Evil so these will help ease some of the annoyance that these tasks can present.

Positives

• The changed ending
• The Tesla Cannon
• The increased level cap
• New enemies and weapons
• Its yet more Fallout 3

Negatives

• Little in the way of moral choices in the main plot and the “bad” ending is an idiotic choice
• The new Three Dog material sounds a little off compared to the original

My Recommendation

Buy – 9/10

Broken Steel is the best of the DLC released for Fallout 3 to date, with the expansion to the original story, plausible change to the ending of the game, and the references to your choice at the end. The main flaw I found is that, as with the main game, there is no option to switch sides and back the enclave, and while it is worth pressing 1 rather than 5 at the end just to see the outcome, from a role playing perspective there was no reason for including the choice.

If you were waiting to see what all the DLC was like before buying, then there is no real choice but to buy Broken Steel, and there could be an argument to buy it just because it open ends Fallout 3 and raises the level cap. The only reason you may want to hold off is so that the achievements can be fixed.