Review: Fable III

Lionhead visits Albion once again with a kingly twist.

Developer: Lionhead
Publisher: Microsoft Game Studios
Platforms: X360

When Lionhead Studios released the first Fable game back in 2004, people didn’t know what to expect. A Microsoft exclusive, Fable transformed the way that people saw RPGs. Instead of a game that made the player fight monster after monster in a grind to the finish, Fable made the player make choices; choices that would shape the world that their character inhabited, the story that they followed, and even the appearance of the character itself. Fable II followed in its predecessor’s footsteps 4 years later, offering players another chance in the world of Albion to create another Hero to save the land.

Now, two more years have gone by, and Lionhead is again trying it’s hand at the Fable franchise with Fable III. The storyline is similar to the other games in the series: You play a Hero, a person destined to do great things, and it is your job to help save the country of Albion from an oppressive ruler…only this time that ruler is your brother. The game is divided into two parts: The rebellion, in which you gather forces in order to depose your brother as ruler of Albion, and the part of the game where you are the new King or Queen of Albion and must make the tough decisions that rulers are faced with.

It is the second part of the game that really stands out from the other games in this series. While in previous games you made decisions that would affect certain individuals, Fable III allows the player to make decisions that will ultimately make or break the country as a whole. And while players may want to be the “all good” or “all evil” character that players of the Fable franchise have come to know and love, this game makes it more difficult to do so. There are some really tough decisions that your character must make about the welfare of his or her people, and even if you’ve been “good” all along, these decisions may make you take the practical choice instead of the choice that makes everyone happy.

Aside from the storyline, gameplay mechanics have also been changed. Instead of a huge user interface menu, you can now travel to the Sanctuary which is basically your character’s home away from home. Here, your character can pick out their outfits, equip weapons, dye their hair and clothing, etc. From the sanctuary you can also join in a game over Live with a friend who is playing, or even with a complete stranger. Ever present in your sanctuary is your trusty butler, Jasper (voiced by John Cleese). Jasper will tell you everything you need to know about your sanctuary and gives some pretty good hints as well. The only problem with Jasper…is the bug. Somewhere along the line, people have reported that in some games, Jasper’s voice stops working…which is extremely distressing considering that the voice acting is amazing.

Speaking of the voice acting, another great improvement to the series is that your character actually has a voice as well. Lionhead went through a lot of trouble with the voice acting in this game, having each voice actor record over 2000 lines of dialogue, including the snippets of conversation that your character catches as they are walking down the streets of the towns.

While this game is an improvement over the previous games in the series at least in respects, there are still some troublesome aspects. The design decision of getting rid of the emotion wheel, as well as the dumbing down of the XP system is questionable at best. Yes, it does allow for the more casual player to easily dive into the game but also segregates the older Fable player who has been with the series since the beginning. Along with the dumbed down aspects to Fable III are its multitude of glitches that seem to plague players. While I only experienced some minor glitches during gameplay, such as my dog getting stuck in a wall, other players have cited more drastic complaints. Jasper stops talking, characters disappear on the screen, and some people have even lost all of their gear and weapons and can’t continue playing the game. From all of the troubles, it seems as if Lionhead was pushing to get the game out before the holiday season. Instead, they should have tested the game longer and tried to push for better quality on the product that they delivered.

All in all, this is an enjoyable game, however. If you enjoyed the first two Fable games, I am sure that you will enjoy this one as well. It is witty, fun, and actually makes you think about your decisions, which is more than most games around today do.

 By: Alexandria Adams