Bethesda Announces Downloadable Fallout 3 Content

— -- Want to know what a Garden of Eden Creation Kit really does? How about "create and add your own content" to Fallout 3's bleak, brown-dipped world? Yep, Bethesda's releasing their official editor for Fallout 3 in December for free and dubbing it the G.E.C.K. after the in-game briefcase filled with seeds, fertilizer, a cold fusion power generator, and a basic replicator designed to let you begin anew after emerging from one of the game's underground vaults.

You won't need seeds or cold fusion generators to get your fingers dirty, of course, just a keyboard, mouse, and some creative brio.

Spend the game hunting down a G.E.C.K., use it to re-sculpt your particular slice of reality. Kind of a clever little meta-loop when you think about it.

That's not all. Come January, Bethesda's going to release three Xbox 360 and Game for Windows Live exclusive content packs. From the press release:

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.

PlayStation 3 owners: Don't worry too much, I suspect there's light at the end of the (slightly longer) tunnel for you, too, per this from the press release:

"...and more downloadable content coming in February and March."

Let Bethesda disavow it, but I read "February and March" as catch-up time for PS3 owners. Why Sony isn't being more aggressive about getting these deals first, however, is a mystery.

Fallout 3 had me smiling ear to ear until it ended with a whimper, so I'm tickled to see there may be a few more reasons to keep it on my hard drive after all.