In Defense of Fallout 3's "Operation Anchorage" DLC
Fallout 3 is a big game, but it isn't terribly long. It takes 20-25 hours to level up to level 20, and then you are done (until the March DLC, at least), so it is a game that you should be playing multiple times. There is so much to see and do and so many different ways to do it all, that if you are playing through the game only once you are kind of missing the point. Every time you replay the game you'll go through Operation Anchorage again, so that 2-3 hour mission gets multiplied two or three or four times, which seems pretty darn solid for $10. Also, you get new weapons and armor and that you can use outside of the simulation, so your $10 and 2-3 hour trek is going to reward you with many more hours of use and a lot more value outside of that specific mission. I really don't think value is a problem here.
There is also the complaint that the mission is too different from the rest of the game. It is too action oriented and the role playing aspects fall to the wayside since it is a simulation. Maybe we played a different game or something, but pretty much every mission switches over to "combat mode" and the role playing stuff happens pretty much exclusively outside of missions. I don't see how the gameplay in Operation Anchorage is any different from the Reily's Rangers mission or when you're raiding vaults or museums in the main quest. This game is pretty darn action-y, and complaining that the DLC is too action oriented seems pretty strange.
Operation Anchorage is a nice change of scenery and rewards you with some nice new toys to use in the main game. I have already played through Fallout 3 three times now, and definitely feel like I got my $60 out of it, so paying an extra $10 for more stuff to do seems like a good investment to me.
What do you think?
Comments
i have it - havent beaten it yet, but god it is nice. I cant wait to beat it and get my new stuffz, winterized combat armor… trench knife and guass rifle… would you mind telling me all the good stuff you get @ the end? im VERY curious
I haven’t got the add on yet but for me it’s a ‘no brainer’, the game is brilliant, as was oblivion and morrowind (apart from the oblivion animation freeze), and to be able extend that gaming experience for such a small fee is fantastic. Why should a developer create any further gaming experience for no reward. No TRUE fan of the game would have a problem with this, end of story.
Go Bethesda (but a fix for Obliv. would have been nice too).
Ruprecht TN
Eric, good article and I mostly agree with you. I thought Operation Anchorage was great quality, a nice and unique experience, I even thought the action-oriented scenario was alot of fun. The price isn’t a huge deal for DLC of that quality, even though it was PAINFULLY short. I disagree that it has that much replayability across characters, though. I’m sure I will re-visit it someday, but I am not itching to go back right away with my 2nd and 3rd characters, and here is the reason: Lack of choices. The ONLY real choices you have in this scenario are choosing your loadout and AI squad mates which I don’t think will change the gameplay all that much.
I loved the DLC mission, they did a good job on all of it, but for an RPG of this caliber I wish they would have included a few more decision points or a few places in the mission where you could let your character’s morality decide.
I beat the game with level 16 I believe, then Operation Anchorage came out, i purchased it but for some reason i cant play it.
Am i missing something or do i need to beat the last level again?
How does it work?
someone please let me know.
Thank you
Fallout 3 is an amazing achievement for a game and i have enjoyed it ten times more than i enjoyed Oblivion aalthoug Oblivion is an amazing game also. I think the point of Fallout is to play it or percieve it exactly however you choose either an action or RPG or a mixture, there are all elementsto enjoy for all enthusiasts, i haven’t purchased the DLC yet but have just got my 1000 AP on Fallout 3 so i will be getting a.s.a.p and will take it for whatever it has to offer action or otherwise. I think we all agree that Bethesda are amongst if not the top at games creation
@Jonas,
you have to activate it, i assume you’re playing on the PC version.
When you launch the game, click “data files” rather than “play game”
enable the “anchorage” checkbox
and play away