Game Review: Fable 3

We recently tried our hand at the new Fable 3. There are several things that were added or improved to make this new game not necessarily BETTER than its predecessors. The visual aspect of this new game was satisfying and the game creators have progressed Albion in time and consequently Albion has hit an Industrial Revolution. This means there were some significant additions to the game play factor, including a broader use of guns and fast travel. Another new aspect would be the change from being a silent main character to one that interacts freely with the NPCs. One amusing aside that was added to the game was the collection challenge of finding evil mouthy garden gnomes and "returning" them to their rightful place; by which I mean shooting the trash talking ceramic bastards in the face.

Ahem...sorry...Moving on.

In this new edition of fable, you are attempting to overthrow your brother, the D-bag king, and take his place on the thrown. This time around, creators have added the ability to travel into the broarder world beyond Albion's shores. As you play, you will be visiting what is essentially the Middle East. Here, you will face the possible future of Albion as Aurora has already been destroyed by the same evil that now threatens Albion.

The morality system we have become accustomed to in the Fable games has changed slightly in the way it manifests, but is still present and an integral part of how the game progresses.
As the future ruler of Albion, the decisions you make effect a much wider swath of people. Beyond that, the decisions you make regarding the kingdom once you HAVE taken the thrown will determine how the game will ultimately end for you and the kingdom of Albion. So, there are many more repercussions to the things that you decide to do or don't do.

The major flaw that stems from the additions and improvements would be the dramtically shortened length of game play. One thing we have come to expect from Fable games is a fairly lengthy amount of time devoted to the character and story. The quality of character and story in the newest edition is not in question here. Now, the story presented is a very rich and compelling one regardless of which way you choose to swing your moral compass. Sadly though, the length of game play was only about 36 hours. Now this isn't too shabby compared to other recent disappointments *cough cough forceunleashed2 cough cough* but it is a fairly dramatic loss of game time compared to the earlier two games and makes the question of paying $60 for it a rather important one. While we generally pray for games that take at least 30 hours to complete, we have come to expect more from the Fable franchise. Three days is plenty of time to rent it and enjoy it in its totality.