I talk about this a lot, but it really is incredible just how quicklytime seems to pass isn’t it? I mean it’s somehow already been 15 years since Fable II released for the Xbox 360! How did that happen? Something else that’s been bothering me lately is that I don’t think I’ve replayed the game at all in that time. Again, how did that happen? I distinctly remember loving the heck out of Fable II back when it was new, and even now the game still inspires nothing but warm, even rose-colored memories.
Yet, I somehow managed to all but forget about it in the intervening years, only now remembering it because Cary’s been playing through the series on our YouTube channel (thanks Cary!). Yeah, I think the time has come to not only give Fable II another run, but also to finally play the original Fable and see what I’ve been missing all these years.
In general, whether or not the Fable series is actually good largely depends on who you ask, I think. The games certainly aren’t without their faults (especially Fable III) and absolutely don’t live up to the promises made by series creator Peter Molyneux before each game’s release. They’re also known for being pretty easy and rather simplistic as far as adventure-fantasy games go. That may be true, yet I think there’s still a certain charm to the series, even Fable III
As far as Fable II goes, I don’t remember it all that well to be honest. I know the basic plot and I remember it being kinda easy, but beyond that it’s just scattered images and moments like the first time you encounter a balvarine or spending a good couple of hours mkaing swords to earn money. Beyond that and the music, I think all that I have left of the experience are the warm feelings mentioned above. Whatever else Fable II might be, it’s undeniably charming.
…Oh right, and there’s also that point in the story where you can choose to either bring back everyone killed by the main villain…or you can bring back your dog. You’d think the latter choice would be included in the former, but whatever. As probably goes without saying, I chose my dog back in the day. What can I say? He was a good dog, I’m pretty sure the towns were only down like 1 or2 NPCs if you don’t choose to bring everyone back, so….yeah.
I also kind of want to revisit Fable III, but my memories of it aren’t so great. I’ve also had Angry Joe’s reviewof it ecohing in my head for a while now. I remember agreeing with most of what he said back when the game was new, but for me I think there were three main issues: The Sanctuary, the lack of difficulty, and being able to undercut your decisions by buying your way out of the consequences.
To keep it short, the Sanctuary took too long to navigate through and being able to steam-roll everything got boring pretty quick. As for making decisions, well Fable III tries to give them weight, but immediately undercuts it by allowing you to donate money to the cause. All you have to do to ensure you get tbe best ending is to just not advance the day/time in-game until you gather the necessary cash. It would have mde being a good character hard, but at least the whole “necessary sacrifices” theme would’ve had some impact.
Unfortunately, I’ve got nothing to say about the original Fable since I’ve never gotten around to playing it. Lots of fans who were there from the beginning say it’s the best of the three, but I don’t know why that is. Is the story better? Is the combat more challenging? Are the sidequests and other secondary content more interesting? Maybe it’s just more charming? I don’t know, and I need to find out. It’s going to be a busy winter season for games, but perhaps the time has finally come to give the Fable trilogy another proper look (not Fable: The Journey though. Yuck!)
Have you played any of the Fable games? Which is your favorite? What about them worked for you and what didn’t?
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VIRTUAL BASTION 
I’m biased, but the first and second Fable games are totally worth replaying. (Fable Anniversary in place of the original first game, preferably.) They are simple with moderately challenging combat but still magical and engaging. Fable III is also sort of magical and somewhat engaging…to a point. Not to spoil my own playthrough, or yours, but I would manage a thousand sanctuaries if the story didn’t totally bottom out in the third act. (The “buy your way out” scenarios play into that.) I still feel the utter disappointment that game brings on in the end, and it hurts.
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No, I know where you’re coming from with Fable 3. I haven’t played it since it first came out, and that’s probably becuase of how utterly disappointing Fable 3 was. The decisions weren’t as tough or as far-reaching as they were supposed to be; NPCs were somehow even less interesting, the Sanctuary sucked, and that utter mess of an ending left me wondering what the point of it all was. And yeah, that whole “I have money, so it’s fine” dynamic really put a disappointing bow on it all too.
What even was that whole thing by the way? Albion is going to be invaded by what’s basically a terror from another dimension and you’re going to defeat it by raising money and throwing guys with guns at it? Huh? It should have been something like finding a potent enough source of magical power to combat it or something.
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Ha, if throwing money at the “problem” (the interdimensional monster that’s shoehorned into the story) actually did anything, that might have actually made the game a little better. Problem is, the money means nothing in the end. You can be nice and raise no money, or be mean and raise all the money, but the outcome is the same. The only difference I’ve ever seen is that if you’re greedy and turn Albion into an industrial wasteland (in order to “win the war”), the citizens will hate the hero for awhile. But that’s only noticeable if you keep playing after the “end,” and there’s hardly any compelling reason to do so.
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Yeah, it’s kind of a triple whammy isn’t it? You’ve got two ways of governing that *should* create two vastly different endings, yet they don’t. You can buy your way out of what’s supposed to be the consequence for being a “good” ruler, and it doesn’t matter even if you don’t. Everything gets just as smashed up either way.
As aside, it really sucks that there’s no room at all for nuance in how you rule. You’re either a saintly king that dooms his country or a demon who’s even worse than his predecessor…who still winds up ruining the country even though it’s supposedly been saved from the out-of-nowhere monster. Dumb.
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