'Fallout 3' updates, news: RPG now available in Germany

Bethesda's role playing game "Fallout 3" has been removed from Germany's list of banned games and has already been launched for German gamers. The version is reported to have lesser violent content compared to the version in North America.

The Federal Department for Media in Germany originally listed the role-playing game as harmful to minors and has blocked the game from being sold in the country since its world release in 2008, according to GameSpot. 

IGN Germany said that Bethesda Softworks fought hard to appeal to the governing body to reconsider their decision after redesigning the game to suit the German standards of violent content in gaming. Fortunately for the game publisher, the organization considered their appeal and decided to unban the game, saying the content is no longer harmful in reference to the perspective of today's minors.

It was reported that the process had to go through scrutiny from a council of 12 composed of representatives of different German community groups, the Department of Media Harmful to Minors, and State Assessors. This appeal also purportedly caused Bethesda thousands of Euros.

Insiders say Bethesda started their petition to the German government three years before the end of the decade-long sentence, which will be in 2018.

Germany has a list of games banned from being launched in their country. Previously among them were id Software's "Doom" and Bethesda's "Wolfenstein: The New Order". The ban on "Doom" was only lifted after being blocked from the country for 17 years. "Wolfenstein," on the other hand, was redesigned where Swastikas were omitted and the "Nazis" were renamed as "The Regime."

In related news, "Fallout 4" expansions have been announced by Bethesda. These include a set featuring a post-apocalyptic "Maine's Bar Harbor" called "Far Harbor," also considered the biggest landmass add-on made by the game publisher. Other expansions in the works are called "Automatron" and "Wasteland Workshop." It was also announced that the game will be priced at $50.