Fallout 3 DLC dated, detailed

Bethesda has whipped the wrappers off three chunky downloadable additions to Fallout 3.

First to arrive, in January 2009, will be Operation: Anchorage. It's a military simulation that takes players back to the historical battle of Anchorage, where Chinese invaders threatened the future of Alaska.

The Pitt follows in February, and adds an industrial raider town in the remains of Pittsburgh, where players will face tricky allegiance decisions. (Jen or Ange?)

Finally, Broken Steel arrives in March. Here, players will be recruited into the Brotherhood of Steel, and be swept up in the furious termination of all Enclave supporters in the Capital Wasteland. Broken Steel takes Fallout 3 past the conclusion of the main quest.

There's no word on exact pricing, although Pete Hines has once again stressed (this time to MTV Multiplayer) that the DLC will be similar in many ways to Oblivion's add-on quest, Knights of The Nine.

This, remember, was open to both new and existing saved games from the main map, and was usually prompted by a letter in the inventory or by an NPC in one of the towns.

Knights of the Nine lasted a good few hours, too, and was released for 800 Microsoft Points on Xbox 360 (GBP 6.80 / EUR 9.60 / USD 10). PC owners eventually got the same standalone content for the same price.

Still, PC owners needn't necessarily fork out any extra money, as Bethesda is releasing the G.E.C.K (Garden of Eden Creation Kit) toolset for free in December.

This lets the curious tinker with any bits of data from Fallout 3; landscapes, towns, locations, nuclear rats, dialogue, weapons, armour, creatures and so on.

Fallout 3 was released at the end of October here in Europe, and was welcomed with a big critical hug from just about everybody, including Eurogamer.

Fans have warmed to the nuclear-radiant role-playing game as well, leading to over 4 million sales so far.

However, not all remained happy, as numerous bugs go unchecked on all three formats, of which the PC and PS3 versions appear to be suffering the most. Bethesda has promised patches for all platforms, but has given no indication of when they will arrive.

Until then, we've compiled a handy Fallout 3: Tripe Format Face-Off comparison article, complete with screenshots and video, to help you decide which version to buy.

And buying should be an easy choice, as our Fallout 3 review will point out.