One of the most captivating moments in the original Fallout 3 didn't involve nuclear warheads, super mutants, or irradiated giant ants. No, this moment was distinctly more X-Files in nature.
After following a mysterious distress call in the outskirts of the Capital Wasteland, curious players stumbled across a mangled alien spacecraft that had crashed into the barren landscape. The saucer's cockpit window was smashed open, it's lone occupant, a green spaceman, lying dead in the dirt.
The crash site yielded a supremely powerful Alien Blaster weapon, loads of radiation, but little else in the way of any backstory or explanation, much to the disappointment of many fans.
Bethesda Softworks hopes to shed some light on this close encounter of the third kind with Mothership Zeta, the fifth and final content add-on for 2008's acclaimed post-apocalyptic RPG shooter.
Aliens Seek Vengeance in Fallout 3: Mothership Zeta
As in previous Fallout 3 expansions, Mothership Zeta will begin with players responding to a radio transmission that triggers a new quest line. This time, the distress signal will lead players back to the alien crash site from the original game, where they will be greeted by the downed alien's angry comrades.
The new storyline will see the player soon beamed up onto the eponymous mothership, which is shown hovering in orbit just above the Earth in screenshots. From there, the "Lone Wanderer" of the Wasteland will be tasked with escaping the ship with several other abductees and thwarting the aliens' long-brewing plot against the Earth.
Like The Pitt and Operation: Anchorage, this latest add-on will take place in a strictly confined area - the alien spacecraft - with access to the rest of the Fallout 3 world cut off until the quest is finished.
But unlike previous add-ons, Mothership Zeta promises a completely unique visual experience. In addition to new alien creatures and weapon models, the textures and art inside the alien vessel will be entirely new. This will hopefully limit the many moments of deja vu that detracted from Fallout 3''s past add-ons.
Another feature unique to Mothership Zeta will be the ability to spacewalk outside the ship, a gameplay mechanic that also worked atmospheric wonders in EA's zombie-alien thriller Dead Space.
The developers have hinted at a much more involved and consequential plot than seen in previous add-ons. The aliens, it appears, have been monitoring Earth for a long time, and the story should elucidate their role in the devastating war that destroyed most of human civilization.
Mothership Zeta is set to be released for Xbox Live and PC on August 3. It will also be released for PlayStation 3 later in the summer.
More Alien Conspiracies in Fallout: New Vegas?
With Mothership Zeta wrapping up the Fallout 3 saga, an entirely new Fallout game taking place in post-war Las Vegas is currently in the works.
Under development by Obsidian Entertainment, a company with ties to some of the original Fallout games, Fallout: New Vegas uses the same Gamebryo engine of its immediate predecessor and will play much the same way.
It's still unclear whether the game will allow players to venture into nearby Area 51, but it isn't out of the realm of possibility given the Fallout franchise's twisted take on '50s-inspired sci-fi.
Fans can look forward to rummaging through burned-out casinos and hotels sometime next year on the PC, Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3.
