lɐuǝɯo⊥ǝɥԀ
04-14-2009, 07:50 AM
Two downloadable content packs have been released already for Fallout 3 with mixed results. The general consensus among those who played the first, Operation Anchorage, found it to be too easy and too much unlike Fallout 3 proper. Meanwhile the second DLC release, The Pitt, was received to a much more favorable reception (especially from me). With the third DLC, Broken Steel, ready to be released in the coming weeks in very much the same overall size as the first two, it's clear Bethesda likes the idea of being able to consistently release frequent but still substantial DLC packs. This is at odds with the DLC treatment we saw Bethesda's previous game, The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion receive, where everything from small, insignificant add-ons (horse armor immediately comes to mind) to a full expansion pack (Shivering Isles) were released.
Bethesda's VP of PR, Pete Hines, discussed this subject with Gamasutra and why they've opted to go with the particular DLC model they have for Fallout 3. He explained:
What we discovered [with Oblivion] was that we want to be able to do stuff that doesn't take a year to come out.
All these people are out there playing our game by the hundreds of thousands on a daily basis and we want to be able to bring those folks something they could do in a much shorter time frame, rather than just saying, "See you next year." That instantly ruled out doing a big expansion because those things just take so damn long to do.
So we started looking at the biggest stuff we'd done that people really liked, but that we could do in smaller, digestible chunks.
I don't personally mind this approach, as it's nice to get content more frequently and with less risk than we would if Bethesda were working on a proper expansion pack. At the same time, I miss the feeling of knowing an expansion is going to include dozens of hours of new content, even if that does mean I have to shell out $30 and wait longer.
At least I have that problem to contemplate; poor PS3 owners of Fallout 3 have been left out in the dark altogether, with Bethesda essentially saying, "See you never." Such is the joy of being a gamer in the middle of a console war where exclusivity is the best weapon available.
1UP
Bethesda's VP of PR, Pete Hines, discussed this subject with Gamasutra and why they've opted to go with the particular DLC model they have for Fallout 3. He explained:
What we discovered [with Oblivion] was that we want to be able to do stuff that doesn't take a year to come out.
All these people are out there playing our game by the hundreds of thousands on a daily basis and we want to be able to bring those folks something they could do in a much shorter time frame, rather than just saying, "See you next year." That instantly ruled out doing a big expansion because those things just take so damn long to do.
So we started looking at the biggest stuff we'd done that people really liked, but that we could do in smaller, digestible chunks.
I don't personally mind this approach, as it's nice to get content more frequently and with less risk than we would if Bethesda were working on a proper expansion pack. At the same time, I miss the feeling of knowing an expansion is going to include dozens of hours of new content, even if that does mean I have to shell out $30 and wait longer.
At least I have that problem to contemplate; poor PS3 owners of Fallout 3 have been left out in the dark altogether, with Bethesda essentially saying, "See you never." Such is the joy of being a gamer in the middle of a console war where exclusivity is the best weapon available.
1UP