| Fable review |
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Fable (noun)
1. A usually short narrative making an edifying or cautionary point and often employing as characters animals that speak and act like humans.
2. A story about legendary persons and exploits.
3. A falsehood; a lie
4. A game that seems like it’s been in development since the dawn of time, that has been hyped to death, trimmed down and now could never possibly expect to meet the high expectations of the consumer market.
So which of these are true?
The cellophane has at last been unwrapped from the game that at one time had been proclaimed as the greatest RPG ever: it has a lot to live up to. You begin your adventure in a quiet village in Albion as a young child. It’s here you’re introduced to the game’s morality concept. Similarly to Knights of the Old Republic, you can walk down a light or a dark path; ultimately this will define the looks of your character and expose the abilities and expressions he has access to.
Life as a child is relatively short. Soon after completing your first task of earning money for your sister’s birthday present, events unfold that see the Heroes’ Guild having to rescue the young adventurer. The teen years are spent in training at the guild, familiarising you in combat with sword and bow and teaching the art of magic to the adolescent protagonist. After this point, progress in the game is left up to the player, giving the freedom to develop the character as desired. The time can be spent meandering around Albion doing your own thing, or used to advance the story through completing the fairly standard-issue core quests. These could involve rescue and escort missions, battling a number of tough foes or exploring an area of the world.
The story in Fable isn’t full of plot twists, or even that original, which is a bit disappointing considering the length of time the game has spent maturing. If hammered through it can be completed quite quickly, but by doing this many of the things Fable has to offer won’t be experienced. Fable isn’t just about doing quests, it’s about living the life of a hero or villain; it is here that it excels.
Although not as open ended as Bethesda’s Morrowind, the player is granted enough freedom to make the world his own. Should you so desire you can become a land lord, buying up property and renting it out to fellow Albion citizens for a profit. Maybe a trader’s life is more appealing, purchasing goods from one part of the world to sell at a gain in another. Perhaps your preference would be to become a home maker, and settle down with the other half for naughty nightly fun and games. Alternatively you could turn a profit by marrying in to money many times, beating your wife to death each time for a bit of coin. Or instead why not opt for a straight forward life of crime; waiting for shops to close up for the night, bribing the guards to look the other way, then stripping it of its contents to sell back to the owner in the morning. You can choose to do all or none of these things; it’s an RPG that can truly be role played.
The game’s lavish fantasy environments further pull the player into the leading role; there’s an organic and fairytale-like style to them. From the tranquil villages to spooky haunted forest locations, the attention to detail is awe inspiring. There is a lived-in look to the environment, as if it’s been there for a very long time. The downside is that areas can take a while to load up.
Sound design has also received a great deal of thought. It's not something that’s particularly noticeable, and that’s because the score and effects are never out of place; things feel just right. On top of that is heaped the voice acting; there’s something very tongue in cheek about it. Non-playing characters will make comments whenever you pass them by; and they’re not always complimentary. The way people react to you will depend on your alignment, your appearance and your renown.
Renown is earned by killing monsters, showing off your trophies or completing quests. The more renown you gain, the more famous you will become, changing the reactions of others around you. Be evil and ugly and people will quiver in fear or run away. Be heroic and beautiful and people will admire you and stand in wonderment at your combat skills, skills that will be used many times.
Fighting isn’t difficult, even in the boss encounters, but it has a solid feel to it as you unleash swords, axes, hammers and maces upon your many and varied foes. Hits are landed by pressing a single button; this in turn advances your combat multiplier. Get this high enough and a special unblockable attack can be unleashed. It’s possible to lock on to targets by holding the left trigger, but this isn’t really needed. In fact it’s often better not to target lock as it’s possible to aim at non-threat characters and kill them, earning evil alignment points. Unless of course maiming friendly characters is your goal.
Blocking and rolling is achieved by pressing the Y button, thus avoiding blows laid down by the enemy. Should you get knocked down and hit a lot, scar tissue will form on your character, but it’s almost impossible to completely die in Fable. Potions to restore health and will power can be bought, and they are plentiful; creatures often drop them when defeated or can be found by smashing open creates and barrels. If all health gets depleted, a resurrection phial will automatically revive you. Up to nine of these can be carried in inventory at any one time. This will make the game too easy for the more seasoned gamer.
It’s tempting to concentrate on melee combat given that this is the most effective style towards the beginning of the adventure. As progress is made through the game, using magic and ranged attacks begins to make more sense. The experience gained from killing and questing can be spent on improving statistics, skills and spells, some of which become very powerful in their execution, and it’s an area of the game well worth exploring. Whatever path is chosen it’ll affect the physical appearance of your avatar. Melee fighters bulk up, whereas magic users are weedy and age more quickly.
Exploring brings more reward in Fable, and it’s something that’s fun to do. Take the time to look around the environments and you will find a number of secrets: Silver and hidden chests, demon doors hiding treasures; these talking entrances need a specific requirement to be met before they swing open, such as being over weight. Like in real life, too much beer and too many pies will see your waistline expand.
Many facets of life in Albion are recorded statistically. Along with the number of different enemy types killed and favoured weapons wielded, the game tracks how many people are in love with you, how many wives you have and the number of times you’ve had sex. It tracks how much you drink, how much you puke and how far you can kick chickens; it’s totally trivial but most amusing.
There isn’t an easy way to break this, though: Fable isn’t the greatest RPG in the world ever. Many of the touted extraordinary features were dropped before the release but that doesn’t make it a bad game. Fable is a solid action adventure, which is best not rushed through if you want to maximise the enjoyment factor. The interaction of your character with the world of Albion and its inhabitants is its most enduring and enjoyable quality; it's important this aspect of the game is understood and explored. There will be those disappointed at the missing elements, but look at it this way: you went to a banquet expecting a twelve course meal and unfortunately it only had ten. That’s still a lot of calories. |
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System: Microsoft Xbox
Genre: Role Playing Game
Developer: Big Blue Box Studios/Lionhead
Publisher: Microsoft
Players: 1
Version: United States
Writer: Marty Greenwell
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Pros:
- It's an RPG you can Role Play
- The interaction with the world of Albion is enduring
- Lavish lived in environments
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Cons:
- It can be a short adventure
- The storyline is a little weak
- Load times are a little too long
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