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So have you been paying attention to the news lately? Did you know that Bethesda was giving away a free theme to everyone that purchased all of their DLC for the hit game Fallout 3? Well incase you had not purchased the DLC and want a chance to win a free copy of the theme just sign up on our forums and be an active member! Later this week one lucky forum member will win a code to download the hot new Fallout 3 Premium Theme!

If your a member of the forums stay tuned to this thread here, if not sign up for them here.

Xbox LIVE Premium Theme Released for “Fallout 3” Fans

Today Bethesda and Microsoft revealed that a premium theme for “Fallout 3” will be released on Xbox LIVE on Oct. 1 free of charge for all players who have purchased all five “Fallout 3” Game Add-ons as of Sept. 22. Gamers who have purchased all five Game Add-ons (English only), including “Operation: Anchorage,” “The Pitt,” “Broken Steel,” “Point Lookout” and “Mothership Zeta”, will receive a token from Microsoft to download the theme for free starting Oct. 1. “This is something we’ve been asked about a lot and we’re happy to finally be able to bring it to fans as a small token of our appreciation,” said Todd Howard, game director and executive producer for Fallout 3. The theme is also available for purchase at 240 Microsoft points.

Check out the screen shot.

Rant or Rave about this here.

Point Lookout is available now on your Xbox 360 Marketplace.  If you are unsure of what this is, it is the fourth DLC for one of the best RPGs released in 2008.  A trailer for it is here and you can read our review of the game here.

Game on!

Enter the simulation pod and embark on one of the greatest military campaigns of the Fallout universe – the liberation of Anchorage, Alaska from its Chinese Communist invaders. Experience harrowing winter combat using Fallout 3’s patented V.A.T.S. targeting system, and employ powerful new equipment like the Gauss Rifle, Chinese Stealth Armor, Winterized T-51b Power Armor, and more. Enlist today, soldier!

Download it here for 800 MS Points.  More screen shots here.

Editor to be Available in December; Downloadable Content coming for January, February, and March

Bethesda Softworks®, a ZeniMax Media company, today announced plans to make both its editor and downloadable content available for its award-winning game, Fallout® 3 in the coming weeks. The official editor for Fallout 3, called the G.E.C.K. (Garden of Eden Creation Kit), will be available for free download in December and will allow Games for Windows® users to create and add their own content to the game. In addition, the first official downloadable content, Operation: Anchorage, will be available exclusively for the Xbox 360® video game and entertainment system from Microsoft and Games for Windows® in January, and more downloadable content coming in February and March.

“We’ve always seen the original world of Fallout 3 as a foundation for even more content. Some created by us, and a lot more created by users,” said Todd Howard, game director for Fallout 3. “It’s fun to create your own character, but it can be equally fun to create your own adventures. We can’t wait to see what the community does with the G.E.C.K.”

The release of the G.E.C.K. provides the community with tools that will allow players to expand the game any way they wish. Users can create, modify, and edit any data for use with Fallout 3, from building landscapes, towns, and locations to writing dialogue, creating characters, weapons, creatures, and more.
Three downloadable content packs will be coming to Xbox 360 and Games for Windows Live starting in January that will add new quests, items, and content to Fallout 3.

• Operation: Anchorage. Enter a military simulation and fight in one of the greatest battles of the Fallout universe – the liberation of Anchorage, Alaska from its Chinese Communist invaders. An action-packed battle scheduled for release in January.
• The Pitt. Journey to the industrial raider town called The Pitt, located in the remains of Pittsburgh. Choose your side. Scheduled for release in February.
• Broken Steel. Join the ranks of the Brotherhood of Steel and rid the Capital Wasteland of the Enclave remnants once and for all. Continues the adventure past the main quest. Scheduled for release in March.

Released on October 28 in North America and in Europe October 30, Fallout 3 has been hailed as one of the most anticipated games of 2008, and received a 10 out of 10 review score from Official Xbox Magazine, a result then repeated around the world with perfect scores by some of the industry’s most influential and respected critics including: Gamespy, GamePro, UGO, the Associated Press, MSN, The Washington Post, Guardian, FHM, G4-TV, The Toronto Star, and Eurogamer. MSNBC’s review offered the observation that it viewed “Fallout as a no-brainer for game of the year.” The Daily Star in the UK echoed that conclusion, saying “You can hold all bets on game of the year – I think we have a winner.”

Fallout 3 features one of the most realized game worlds ever created. Set more than 200 years following a nuclear war, you can create any kind of character you want and explore the open wastes of Washington, D.C. however you choose. Every minute is a fight for survival as you encounter Super Mutants, Ghouls, Raiders, and other dangers of the Wasteland.

Original source available here.

Introduction:
2258 – The year you are born; welcome to the world kid. After spending 19 years locked into a vault were you create your character and are run through a well done tutorial, you are unleashed upon the capitol wasteland to do good or evil as you so choose. Oh the choices! Fallout 3 is an open ended RPG made by the creators of the Elder Scrolls series, Bethesda Softworks. So grab your bat and BB gun and step out into the world of tomorrow. There are plenty of nuclear zombies and various other baddies to go around.

Gameplay:
Fallout 3 plays like a hybrid between a first person shooter (FPS) and a turn-based strategy game. It’s turn-based in that you seemingly get to take several ‘turns’ while the enemy moves in slow motion. It’s more of an enhanced and stat-driven bullet time without all of the cool/stupid flipping and sliding around. The FPS parts of it work fairly well as long as you are not expecting call of duty or something. It’s not really an FPS; it works very similarly to Oblivion’s combat system, except the ranged combat is made easier by allowing you to do more damage and to have a faster rate of fire than bows, for the most part at least.

Everything is managed from your PIPBOY 3000, a little computer that you have attached to you at your 10th birthday party. It keeps track of your health, skills, SPECIAL stats, perks and any items or quests you might obtain on your journey. The way the PIPBOY has been seamlessly merged with the world helps to create one of the most immersive feelings I’ve played through in a long time.

The VATS system, which is what drives the turned based combat, is quite useful for several reasons. It helps conserve ammo; if something surprises you, VATS is there to slow down the action and help you regain your thoughts. This may sound like ‘cheating’ to some, but you have to remember that it’s like having a computer programmed into your neural system.

The story of Fallout 3 revolves around your search for your dad and why he left the Vault when you were 19. So, in 2277, you set out looking for him. The main quest line is fairly standard with a few intriguing twist here and there. No one is a white knight in shining armor in this world. They all get hits placed on their heads by bad guys.

Unfortunately, the game suffers from several of the same flaws that plagued Oblivion. The characters sometimes seem to be animated like walking mannequins. Several of them will even stop whatever they are doing and talk to you if you walk up to them, even if you are already talking to someone else. Thus, it’s like trying to listen to two or three people talk at the same time. It can be very difficult. Their path finding is much better in this game, but when they run into each other they still look rather amusing.

Extras:
After the main quest line is done (well I should say before you finish it, as this game does have a definitive ending and no save+ mode), there are still plenty of side quest to keep you busy for hours and hours. The potential replay value in the game is huge, with the standard three major endings (good, evil and neutral), and 3 major permutations of those depending on some choices you made during the main quest. On top of the differences in the ending is the impact that the decisions you made in the side quest totally up to a reported roughly 50 distinct endings for Fallout 3. Even if you only count the major differences in endings, it’s still at least 9 different ones. That’s a lot of replay.

Not to mention, there are often several ways to approach every quest. It is possible to inadvertently skip the first 30 to 40% of the main quest by stumbling upon your dad somewhere out there, or any other NPC that is further down the quest line than where you currently are. Some skills and perks also allow you to just skip a quest by convincing someone that you don’t have to do go get that for them or that you will do it after you’ve found your father. This is something I found to be quite good about the game, choices and lots of them.

Fallout 3 is strictly a single-player game and does not feature multiplayer over Xbox Live.

Conclusion:
Calling it Oblivion with guns is unfair to Fallout 3 and to FPS fans. Fallout 3 is not the perfect game that everyone would hail it to be, but it is also not the horrible abomination that previous Fallout fans claim it is. You do not have to have played the first two Fallouts to enjoy Fallout 3. This game is quite enjoyable as a standalone, though the first two might give you more insight into the world. While being genuinely challenging, Fallout 3 is still definitely the best game to come to the 360 this year. It’s a great contender for the game of the year award and anyone over the age of 17 would be doing themselves an injustice to not at least look into renting this title.

Score: 8.75

Bethesda has just released 5 new videos for their upcoming title, Fallout 3.  These videos are gamplay that was first shown today at this year’s PAX expo in Seattle, WA. They are in-depth and include developer commentary.

Part 1 (Escape)

Part 2 (Megaton)

Part 3 (Wasteland)

Part 4 (Super-Duper Mart)

Part 5 (Tenpenny Tower)

Game on!

Bethesda softworks has just announced that their upcoming title, Fallout 3, will have a playable demo at PAX 08 in Seattle, WA. 

I’ll try to make sure I get my hands on the demo ASAP, so I can share my impressions. 

Don’t forget, 360 Rant Rave is covering all 3 days of PAX, direct from the expo.  Stay tuned.

 Game on!