Fallout 3: Broken Steel Review
"War... war never changes," Ron Perlman utters the legendary phrase, the screen darkens, credits slowly crawl from the bottom, followed by the green main menu. Is that all?! Yes, that's it. You can start over if you like. No? Then click the Uninstall icon; they're not going to show you anything more...
If you've completed the main quest of Fallout 3, you're familiar with this. A series of black-and-white images, a rehearsed speech, minimal player influence on the events in the Capital Wasteland. You wouldn't expect this after the diverse and interesting endings of Fallout and Fallout 2. How could this happen? Such a massive and deep game, yet choice, non-linearity, and world responsiveness begin and end in one place—in the project management booth of "Purity." And no one cares that instead of Megaton, there's now a very deep radioactive pit. Nobody cares that ghouls inhabit Tenpenny Tower, or that Paradise Falls was destroyed by a follower of the California Rangers. The player seems to have never existed, as the journey along the walled-off story path cannot be called personal involvement. Fallout 3 unpleasantly surprised... with negligence, and such things don't go unnoticed—Bethesda's forums were flooded with threads like: "Where are the endings?" or "Is this how it's supposed to be or a bug?" The developers remained silent, the game faded away, and people began to forget about it...
Charge!
To prevent the post-apocalyptic world from slipping into oblivion, Bethesda decided to implement a series of measures that had been well tested in previous projects (Morrowind, Oblivion—count how many expansions they have). The first patch was the add-on Operation Anchorage. A brief stroll through snowy mountains and a failed combat mode. Then there was The Pitt, which, while decent, ended far too quickly. The third add-on, Broken Steel, comes from a different series. This isn't a separate quest, but an expansion of the original game, a continuation of the story.
After launching the "Purity" project, the chosen one doesn't die, doesn't disappear into the void, but wakes up in the Citadel… with the ability to grow to level 30, a new quest to destroy the Enclave and save the universe. Interestingly, in the add-on's description, the developers particularly emphasize the world's reaction to your actions. That is, if you poisoned the water with the FEV virus, life in the Wasteland will become sadder, and locals will comment on the situation. Have they fixed the endings? No, don't delude yourself. The influence on the world is still limited to that single choice—poison the water or not. All other actions will go unnoticed, so in terms of correcting mistakes, Broken Steel absolutely failed. On the other hand, this is the biggest add-on (at least for now); perhaps it can offer something more?
What are we playing?
Much like in the original Fallout 3, Broken Steel has a storyline and several side quests that have no impact on anything. Most secondary tasks revolve around guarding, delivering, selecting (and so on) water, which is now produced day and night by "Purity." In reality, there's only one interesting quest—about fake Aqua Pura that supposedly heals the dead. The others are more suited for a postman (with a gun)—pick up, protect, bring or kill, and deliver. Boring.
Ten new levels make the player even stronger, perhaps too much. With the right character development, you can max out all skills to 100, and your health will be such that you can punch Enclave goons without any armor—they haven't changed with level growth at all. And this isn't due to the abilities (perks) of level 20+, as they are practically or absolutely useless—depending on your playstyle. For example, Party Boy (at level 28) frees the character from alcohol dependency… very useful, to say the least. -1 Agility, -1 Charisma—this is insignificant anyway, and that dependency wears off on its own. Another "super cool" ability—Rad Absorbation, gradually decreases the character's radiation level from gamma rays. And that's at level 28, when any traveler's pockets are probably overflowing with Rad-Away. Not to mention there are doctors or simple sleep, as a last resort. Out of all 14 new abilities, not a single one is even slightly useful. It's discouraging.
A boost to the monster roster? Nothing interesting or fresh has appeared—just the same scorpions, mutants, and ghouls, now grown one and a half to two times bigger. They kill faster, live longer, and look a little different. To put it mildly, it’s a weak motivation for exploration.
Among this set of disappointments, it’s not the story that stands out, but the action. The main quest of Broken Steel is more like a fun shooting gallery. There are no long and interesting dialogues, detours, or unconventional solutions. You arrive somewhere, shoot everyone, then move on to another location, restoring justice there too. No need to think here—just shoot and that’s all. But compared to Operation Anchorage, the fights have become much more spectacular and organic. There's no forced or unnatural feeling to the events. Everything fits within the world and atmosphere, which in some places can even surpass the legendary predecessors.
Is it a verdict?
Somehow Bethesda missed the mark with Broken Steel. It shouldn't be a separate paid add-on; it should have been included in the original game. And now it's too late—many have already been disappointed with the ending, shelved the game, forgotten about it, and no tweaks or paid "add-ons" will revive any interest. Too little, too late.
However, if you haven't played Fallout 3 but are looking for a reason to start, now you have one. Broken Steel is perfect for those who haven't ventured into the Capital Wasteland yet. With this add-on, the vast world will become even bigger, even more mysterious. The experience counter won't end at three-quarters of your journey, and a whole bunch of side quests and little secrets will become even more abundant.
Pros: atmosphere; spectacularity.
Cons: primitive content; lack of innovation; useless abilities.
Rating of the game:
2.7/5
Review taken from StopGame.ru
written by me, kosher copy-paste