Blast’s “Best Game fo E3” will be released October 28, Bethesda Softworks confirmed Wednesday.

“We are very excited to let gamers get their hands on Fallout 3, the latest chapter in this beloved and highly acclaimed franchise,” said Vlatko Andonov, president of Bethesda Softworks, in a statement. “To meet the huge demand for this title by our fans worldwide, we are planning one of the biggest launches of any game released this year.”

Bethesda is the powerhouse behind the mega-award-winning Elder Scrolls franchise.

ZeniMax Media Inc., the parent company of Bethesda Softworks, announced Mnday that it has begun direct publishing operations in Asia with the establishment of its Tokyo-based subsidiary, ZeniMax Asia K.K. ZeniMax Asia will be publishing titles throughout Asian territories under the Bethesda Softworks brand.

“This office will publish games in Japan from Bethesda — Star Trek: Conquest, Star Trek: Legacy, and Fallout 3 — as well as games from other publishers, including Bully (PS2), Bully SE (Xbox 360), and Major League Baseball 2K8 (PS3/PS2/PSP/X360),” said Pete Hines, spokesman for Bethesda.

“Establishing operations in Asia is very important to us as we continue to expand our presence in markets outside of North America,” said Robert Altman, ZeniMax CEO. “In addition to ZeniMax Europe Ltd., our direct relationships throughout Asia allow us to bring exciting titles like Fallout 3 to gamers across the globe.”

The Asian operations of the Company will be headed by Tetsu Takahashi, General Manager, ZeniMax Asia KK. “We are happy to be part of the ZeniMax family,” said Tetsu. “Extending their direct reach throughout Asia is an exciting, new phase in the Company’s expansion and we look forward to building upon their excellent reputation.”

Bethesda Softworks has put out a new expansion pack for The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion, one of the highest rated role-playing adventure games ever released.

“The enthusiastic response we’ve received to our downloadable content has been overwhelming, and we’re excited to bring Oblivion fans a full expansion,” said Vlatko Andonov, president of Bethesda Softworks. “The world we’ve created for Shivering Isles is unlike anything you’ve seen or played in Oblivion and we can’t wait for folks to play it.”

Most gamers are familiar with Shivering Isles, which hit shelves in March for the PC version. The Xbox 360 version was released on Xbox Live Marketplace, for 2,400 Microsoft Points ($30). The expansion was originally announced on January 18, but here we have the PS3 version on November 20. We also saw the Knights of the Nine, another expansion, earlier.

Shivering Isles adds 30 more hours to Oblivion and is optimized for HD video at 480p or 720p.

The isles are Mania and Dementia with a whole new lot of side quests and dungeons. New creatures include the Gatekeeper, a collection of body parts sewn together and the Knights of the Order, which are made up of tree roots.

Shivering Isles is about 1/4 the size of Cyrodiil, the Oblivion main map, according to Bethesda. Your existing character will work fine with it, and you can breeze between the worlds back and forth.

If you’re an Elder Scrolls fan, you don’t need me to tell you what to do here.

Quick hits:

Publisher: Bethesda Softworks
Developer: Bethesda Softworks
Platform: PlayStation 3 (Xbox 360 and PC versions previously released)
Genre: Role-playing game
Players: 1
Launch Date: November 20, 2007

Playability: 5 out of 5 stars
Learning Curve: 4 out of 5 stars
Sound: 5 out of 5 stars
Graphics: 4.5 out of 5 stars
Overall: 4.5 out of 5 stars

• See a world created in Sheograth’s own image, one divided between Mania and Dementia unlike anything you’ve experienced
• Battle the denizens of Shivering Isles, a land filled with hideous insects, Flesh Atronachs, skeletal Shambles, amphibeous Grummites, and many more
• Find and wield new weapons and armor or have new ones forged for you
• Explore a bizarre landscape filled with twisting, vast dungeons buried within the roots of the trees themselves
• Requires Elder Scrolls IV: Obilivion software to play