For $90, I could have been doing this for months.

Fallout 3, Game of the Year? Well, since it sold about a bazillion copies I guess that was inevitable. Also to be filed under "inevitable" is the revelation that all that exclusive Xbox 360 downloadable content is about to make its debut on rival platforms, as well as to bundled in for free with the new edition. But take heart, early adopters! For your commitment to the cause, Bethesda are awarding you this shiny Fallout 3 dashboard theme!

I want that desktop theme, and I mean to have it, despite the fact that I didn't shell out for a launch copy of Fallout 3, but instead waited for the cheap option, nor shelled out the fifty bucks or so worth of Microsoft Points for the five downloadable packs that are now mine for nothing. Curse Bethesda and Microsoft for their constant exclusives! I must pimp my dashboard with post apocolyptic goodness!

... oh wait, I can buy the theme for three dollars. Yay!

Let's compare these sums side by side. Loyal and diligent Xbox 360 owning Bethesda fans: original game purchased at launch, five expansions of hit and miss quality, and shiny desktop theme - about one hundred and fifty smackeroos. Thrift minded individuals with Xbox 360s: Game of the Year edition with five expansions, and shiny desktop theme - maybe sixty three bucks.

Ouch. Now, to be fair, as smug as I feel about not having shelled out that extra money, I do wish I'd been playing Fallout 3 since October last year, but it's pertinent examples like these that remind me why I save my cash for small-run and indie releases that won't be restocked, and let the majorly-hyped titles drop in price, since they will sell enough copies to keep them in store for the next six years.

Microsoft's apparently timed exclusive on Fallout 3 DLC runs out just short of the GOTY edition; eager beavers can snap up the content packs via the Playstation Store at weekly intervals starting September 24th.

Fallout 3 Game of the Year edition, including all five expansions, launches for PC, Playstation 3 and Xbox 360 on October 13th, with an RRP of $49.99 for PC and $59.99 on both consoles.