Publisher Bethesda has explained its decision to release its Fallout 3 DLC at retail, stating that the broader market is simply not willing to download games.

The firm is set to release three new retail SKUs for Fallout 3 this year, including Fallout 3 Add-on Pack 1 (which features DLC The Pitt and Operation Anchorage), Fallout 3 Add-on Pack 2 (which includes Broken Steel and Point Lookout) and a special Game of the Year edition, which will launch with all DLC in October.

“As a brand extension, DLC gives consumers a longer playing experience and helps maintain the profile, sales and shelf-life of the original game,” explained Bethesda sales director Paul Oughton

“Outside of the UK connectivity rates are not as high, so in these territories the boxed product is a primary route to market. Even in the UK a large element of consumers still want a tactile product in a box rather than downloadable code. Fallout managed to break out from purely a hardcore of gamers and it's this broader market that is less likely to download, hence the retail offering.”

For our full chat with Paul Oughton on the success of Fallout 3 and his recent triumph at the MCV Awards, click here.