Bethesda has already released several DLC packages on other platforms hosting its post-apocalyptic RPG, Fallout 3, but not yet on PS3. Bethesda's Peter Hines, speaking to Eurogamer, says this will all change very soon as the company is nearly done coding Operation: Anchorage for PS3 usage. Unfortunately, Hines did not reveal a specific release date for the DLC.

It's interesting to note that, while Xbox 360 and PC owners have already enjoyed Operation: Anchorage and other such DLC, these DLC packs have encountered numerous problems in the past. Hopefully, these issues will not arise again in the PS3 versions, given the extra amount of time put into them.

How about that, this week's XBLM Deal of the Week is actually a deal. This week, you can snag the Fallout 3 "Operation: Anchorage" DLC for 560 ($7), 30 percent off the usual price of 800 ($10). Granted, you can pick up a used copy of the recently released "Operation: Anchorage" and "The Pitt" combo pack for about $15 at GameStop, but this download-only deal is still pretty decent. At any rate, it certainly stacks up better than most of the "deals" we usually see.

Add Operation: Anchorage to your Xbox 360 download queue

Imagine our surprise when we woke up this morning to discover Electronic Theatre reporting that Fallout 3's 'Operation: Anchorage' and 'The Pitt' DLC would both be released at retail in a single package. We made a quick check on Amazon and, sure enough, there it is. According to Amazon, the packaged will be released for both PC and Xbox 360 on May 26 (Electronic Theatre is reporting May 29 for the UK) for $19.99. Both packs are currently $10 apiece, so the retail package won't save you any money, but the box says it comes with a free Vault Boy poster, so that's something, right?

Curiously absent from the package is the upcoming 'Broken Steel' DLC. We would think a (presumably) $30 package that added 12-15 hours to Fallout 3 and made it open-ended would be a no-brainer, but apparently Bethesda has other plans.

We've contacted Bethesda for further details and will update this post when we have new information.

Source - Electronic Theatre: Fallout 3 Downloadable Content Retail Package Revealed
Source - Amazon: Fallout 3 Expansion Pack (Xbox 360)
Source - Amazon: Fallout 3 Expansion Pack (Windows)

Survivors of the Capital Wasteland will need to wait for Fallout 3's next two DLC packs a little longer. GameSpy reports that the follow-ups to Operation Anchorage, The Pitt and Broken Steel, will be delayed until March and April, respectively.

A Bethesda spokesperson confirmed to us the information is accurate. Guess this will give us more than enough time to finish the seemingly never-ending Nuka Cola Challenge.

Those of you who prefer to play Fallout 3 on the PC and have yet to download Operation: Anchorage DLC should take note of some reported issues. Forum users at the official Games for Windows site are reporting that the game fails to recognize the DLC in some instances. According to a GFW forum mod, it takes a couple of minutes to validate the DLC (see: boot up your game, go into the Wastelands, wait), but some users are still having problems accessing the content.

It's unclear whether the updated GFW Live interface plays a role or if it's just an isolated DLC bug, but we hope that Bethesda and Microsoft step in and clear this up soon.

In five short days the first of three downloadable content expansions will release for Fallout 3, exclusively on the Xbox 360 and PC. In preparation, Xbox.com has updated the Fallout 3 profile with four new achievements obtainable in the content expansion, Operation Anchorage. Totaling 100 GS points, three of the four achievements appear to be directly tied to specific missions found in the promised "4-5 hour" DLC pack, while the final achievement is awarded for completing the entire Alaskan adventure. The four achievements and creative descriptions added to the Xbox.com Fallout 3 profile are:

• Aiding the Outcasts (20GP) - Completed "Aiding the Outcasts"
• The Guns of Anchorage (20GP) - Completed "The Guns of Anchorage"
  
• Paving the Way (20GP) - Completed "Paving the Way"
  
• Operation: Anchorage (40GP) - Completed "Operation: Anchorage"

Operation Anchorage releases on January 27 and is priced at 800.

[Thanks to everyone who sent this in]

Today, three new shots of the upcoming Operation Anchorage DLC for Fallout 3 were released today and while they aren't nearly as exciting as the last batch of screens we're chomping at the bit to get our hands on the content. Landing exclusively on the Xbox 360 and PC on January 27, Operation Anchorage is the first of three announced DLC packs for the award-winning role-playing game. It's just around the corner and we have our 800 ($10) ready.

Bethesda just sent us word that the first Fallout 3 DLC, Operation Anchorage, will officially debut on Xbox Live on January 27th for the aforementioned price of 800 ($10, 50 caps or 100 pieces of scrap metal), which will hopefully give us just enough time to plow through the new content for Mirror's Edge and Fable 2.

Additionally, the developer has also pushed out a patch today for all platforms, which, among other fixes, finally keeps those pesky, murdered NPCs dead. Sure beats them coming back from the grave all bitter and willing to give you directions to the nearest hotel. It's the same patch PS3 owners got in mid-December, so check out the full patch notes here.

But there's more! The upcoming Fallout 3 Operation Anchorage DLC has been dated and given an official price. The 800 Microsoft point DLC will be available for download off the Xbox Live Marketplace on (drumroll) Tuesday, January 27th. Good times.

Situated in the exact opposite corner of the CES Central Hall, Microsoft must have been strategically placed so that no wars would break out between the two juggernauts. Although Justin McElroy thinks it's so that an employee from Microsoft won't fall in love with an employee from Sony and cause complete chaos. That's definitely more plausible.

However, just like Sony, Microsoft only had a tiny section devoted to gaming. You could get some hands-on time with Fallout 3, Lips, the new Scene It, Gears of War 2, Dawn of War II and Halo Wars. The rumor we'd heard that Fallout's upcoming Operation: Anchorage DLC would be there turned out to be untrue, so we spent most of our time beating young girls at karaoke with Lips. Okay, we kid. We geeked out on Dawn of War II. More on that soon. Meanwhile, enjoy the gallery below for you booth addicts.

Bethesda released new screens today for Fallout 3's Operation Anchorage DLC, along with word on how high it'll raise the game's level cap with the third DLC pack, Broken Steel, planned for March. The new Operation Anchorage screens (which can be viewed in the gallery below) reveal a ninja suit, a snowy lake landscape and a commie Chinese bunker. The DLC pack is scheduled for release later this month at 800 ($10, 50 caps or 100 pieces of scrap metal).

Bethesda also informed Eurogamer that Broken Steel will raise the player's level cap to 30. We'd previously known that the bump was coming, but had no idea how high. Patient folks may care to wait and see if a discount happens on the packs down the line. As for us, well... that ninja armor looks like it might be worth $10.

Fallout 3 was great, but it was lacking in one important facet: Battling the forces of communism. Expect this to be rectified in the game's first DLC pack: "Operation Anchorage," which Bethesda recently detailed for IGN. The four to five hour, 800-point ($10) campaign is a simulation of what producer Jeff Gardiner calls the "famous liberation of Anchorage from Fallout lore." That's right, virtually simulated red Chinese: Your days are numbered.

In the stealth/action focused mission, you'll fight your way into a Chinese base with new tools and perks at your disposal that will be exclusive to the DLC. IGN's got a lot more info, including Bethesda's plan is to increase the level cap with the third piece of DLC, Broken Steel. The wait for next year just got a little longer.