5) Fallout 3 – Point Lookout
As Bethesda’s first attempt at breathing new life into the long-dormant franchise, Fallout 3 was met, thanks in no small part to its adopting the same template used for Oblivion two years prior, with similar levels of adoration. Besides the decision not to adopt the same isometric format of the originals, Bethesda’s interpretation boasted the same level of character customization, exploration and post-apocalyptic settlements as its forebears, but it didn’t quite manage to clear the final hurdle.
Given its open-ended nature, the fact that players’ own Lone Wanderer was locked out of exploring the Capital Wasteland upon concluding the main story left a lingering bitter taste in the mouths of many. That roadblock was successfully removed the following year with the launch of Broken Steel, but it was the add-on which followed that garnered the most praise.
Heavily influenced by monster movie cinema, Point Lookout offers a roundabout and refreshing change in tone and aesthetic, taking place in an irradiated swamp infested by mutants straight out of a Wrong Turn movie. Unlike Operation: Anchorage and The Pitt before it, though (both of which were criticized for a lack of exploration), Fallout 3‘s fourth and penultimate expansion felt every bit a natural addition to the base game, the success of which was clearly taken into account several years later for Fallout: New Vegas‘ Old World Blues DLC.
