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Fable Review - Xbox

Fable. A timid story of revenge, that nobody should have to go through. Your town has been seized by bandits, and you are the only known survivor as far as you are aware. Your choices from there are entirely up to you. Choose the path of the dark side to seek revenge with those that were supposed to protect your town, or become a goody two-shoes (don't worry, it's what I did) and destroy all evil that lurks in the world of Fable. Join us as we finally delve into this epic RPG and discover whether or not Fable is a fable worth telling.

Gameplay

The millions of hours being put in to Fable around the world justify the fact that anybody can honestly call this game a fine piece of work. A brilliantly laid out combat system, along with a free-cam so you can fight from any angle makes Fable a great game to play, and watch in the midst of a battle. It now becomes clear why Sudeki was released a couple of months before Fable at a cheaper price however. Sudeki is quite similar to Fable, only a completely different storyline, and the ability to use more than one character. The worlds however are similar in the fact that you have to move from one area to another, which includes a small amount of loading time. This is most likely Fable's biggest downfall, as many gamers (including this reviewer) thought the free-roaming in Fable would be of a much higher caliber than the end result.

For those unfamiliar with Fable, firstly.. Where have you been? This is quite possibly one of the most hyped up RPG's ever. This however, is the main reason why quite a lot of people around the world aren't as impressed with Fable as they thought they would be. It is not Halo, it is not Mario. It is an RPG at its finest. Peter Molyneux knows this, Die hard RPG fans know this, but unfortunately the hype has swept across into the world of the FPS and platformer fans, causing confusion. RPG's are meant to put you in the shoes of a character, and let you do whatever you want. Unfortunately though, gamers often like to be told what to do - thus exploiting Fable's weakness to the common gamer. Don't buy this game if you're not interested in roaming the lands, much like Aragon or Legolas in Lord of the Rings.

Back to the combat system however, you can bind your buttons to whatever you want simply through the menu. This allows for a quick health recovery, or a quick magic attack, and many other useful tricks in combat. It's impossible to say how you may end up fighting through Fable, as there are so many different weapons and magic items throughout the game that you may ... (continued next page)