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Fallout 3: Mothership Zeta - review

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Fallout 3: Mothership Zeta - review

Slightly more fun than an anal probe

Words: Rob Taylor, GamesMaster UK

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We’re not game designers, but if we were making a DLC pack about alien abduction set in the universe of Fallout 3 we wouldn’t make the following four dumb errors...

1) Kick off with a hackneyed surgery scene. 2) Present the ETs as unimaginative little ‘grey’ rip-offs with unappealing personalities. 3) Abandon the series’ outstanding role-playing roots for repetitive, rubbish corridor blasting. 4) Make every single quest a thankless exercise in marching halfway across the uniformly uninspiring Mothership to press a few buttons and wreck the odd machine.

Mothership Zeta – despite some serious potential – achieves the dubious honour of beating Operation Anchorage as the true stinker of the five DLC packs for Fallout 3. It ignorantly revels in every facet that Bethesda’s classic ever struggled with – from an overemphasis on combat through to poor opponent AI and trudge-heavy corridor questing – while ignoring everything that first made us bestow a 9 on the original, utterly brilliant title.

Mothership Zeta doesn’t just feel incongruous and ill-at-ease in the Fallout 3 universe, it also plays like Dogmeat’s arse. Fallout completists won’t be able to resist downloading, but that doesn’t excuse such a shoddy climax to this standout RPG.

Aug 20, 2009

25 Comments

Order Comments: Newest First | Oldest First

Jordo141 - 3 months 3 days ago

Hmm, shortest GR review ever.

Also, wasn't going to get this ways and now I'm completely sure of not purchasing this.

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may.be.vital - 3 months 3 days ago

I was not expecting this :( I was getting the impression that Bethesda had gotten the hang of making Fallout DLC

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Cyberninja - 3 months 3 days ago

wow did not think fo3 could have dlc that bad

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sixboxes - 3 months 3 days ago

Hey Jordo141, you need to check out their review of the latest Watchmen episodic game to see the shortest. This definitely has more words, and more pictures to stretch it out. The screens make it look like something completely different from fallout - did it start out as a different game that they knew sucked too much to sell on its own?

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killerwhalen - 3 months 3 days ago

Wow, I just got blasted backwards, I was expecting this to be a home run for Bethesda. this just makes me more sure of the fact that I can still have fun with Fallout 3, sans DLC, or until something awesome comes out. What's the next one supposed to be called? New Vegas?

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Wubbles - 3 months 3 days ago

My eyes actually widened reading that, anal probe strap-line. I must be the only person who thought Operation: Anchorage was really cool, however. Maybe those bizarre ideas I have will apply here.

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Ragingbull45 - 3 months 3 days ago

i will not buy this

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TheIronMaiden - 3 months 3 days ago

I downloaded it the hour it came out, beat it 3 hours later. Could've been A LOT better, but being the hardcore fallout fan I am, I had to download it.

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shadowless92 - 3 months 3 days ago

i admit with GR it wasnt great and infact im not finding point lookout that gd
i think all the dlcs just take u out of the feel of the game except broken steel
the items are great though
i noticed so many glitches in MZ and 1 is that when u look out at space when u move the stars move really oddly and doesnt work it looks like the spaceship is in a room painted black with stars on it quite odd
and also general chases coat is glitched to be winterized combat armor and the picture for the drone cannon when looting is a box with a cross in it saying error
and i did find that i cudnt be bothered after 10 mins and just wanted to complete it and get back to the wasteland
i do love the guns though
i was hoping for a friendlyy alien too but no luck i guess i feel like bethesda was lazy on this dlc
sorry to go on and on im just saying =P

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darknight721 - 3 months 3 days ago

fucken nice

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iKOemos - 3 months 3 days ago

Ouch.

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EnyoAyoSeshiAdele - 3 months 3 days ago

why do you wait so long to review them I manage to finish most dlc's in a couple of hours

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crumbdunky - 3 months 3 days ago

I was one of the few, though there were some more who shared my opinion that Bethesda hadn't grasped the Fallout universe or atmosphere with ~Fallout3,who didn't really rate Fallout3.

I just felt it was an OK game that didn't live up to either it's predecessors in the series(of which I'm a massive fan)or the pre release hype that I admit to getting caught up in. The shooting is woolly at best and VATS is underwhelming too.

I finished the main game pretty quickly and as it was the summer drought I got the DLC(well the first three)the other week and if this is even worse than those it must be appalling.

I'm not, by the way, saying F3 is a bad game it's just not a very good Fallout game imo and even fails to live up to Oblivion in my book and the DLC, largely, has done very little to convince me that Bethesda understand what the original Fallout games were about.

I know I'll get lynched for this but I'm just being an old, honest Fallout and RPG fan who didn't get the kicks he expected when the game dropped and none of the DLC that I've seen has elevated the game above the merely playable-it's a decent enough gamebut I just don't get why people rave more about it than the amazing first and second games.

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darksplurge - 3 months 2 days ago

I don't think theres much to worry about,I'm sure someone will modify it to make it much better.

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Pelico - 3 months 2 days ago

Obviously Mothership Zeta wasn't as good as some of the others, but if you purchase it KNOWING it's not the greatest, you won't be so disapointed, which ultimately makes you enjoy it more. Personally, I thought it was worth the 800 points, because it was a pretty decent change in pace for Fallout.

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kc2 - 3 months 1 day ago

@ crumdunky

I agree, it's a fun game, sure, but really I never felt that immersed in the game, and it feels very underwhelming.. I felt oblivion was a much better game....

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CreeplyTuna - 3 months 1 day ago

i will probably purchase this used at gamestop, install it onto my 360, then return it for a full refund. then it will probably be worth it=D

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Cwf2008 - 3 months 1 day ago

I dont get it why all the negativity around this DLC? I personally liked it. Also am i the only one here who liked Operation Anchorage? That was a good DLC too...oh but i forgot not every game can be as good as Gaylo

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Gingerbread - 3 months 1 day ago

yea this dlc wasnt good at all all you did was shoot aliens and press buttons and travel so far just to go in the same looking hallway as you were in before. what a waste of $10!

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PrivateYmo7 - 3 months 1 day ago

Hey, GR! You're being too critical! Slow down! I think it's nice change the air a little bit(wasteland>space)and get alien weapons to use them in the Wasteland. All the DLCs for F3, in my opinion, are pretty fun and great.

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