Fable 2 Official Site
Buy it at Amazon
Developer: Lionshead
Platform: Xbox 360
The first Fable was hyped as the greatest RPG ever to be sold — a huge world built upon promises that ended up failing to deliver. Admittedly, I never played the first, but it doesn’t mean I can’t be disappointed with the sequel.
I’m a sucker for RPGs. Where else can I be rewarded for obsessive tendencies — scouring less beaten paths for treasure chests, hunting for legendary weapons through difficult and time-consuming quests, and talking to every single NPC — even the generic ones named Villager? When someone promises innovation, I get excited. There are few RPGs released every year, and fewer that are actually worth playing.
F2 is all about choices. Or so you would think. Your first mission: Decide if your character is male or female. The first quests will put you in the middle of some difficult and personal choices — will you give the love letter to its addressee or the disapproving mother — to give you a taste of what’s to come.
As you complete major quests, your character ages, and so does the world around you. A city could spring up from a loan given to a struggling businessman. Positive decisions make the world more beautiful, negatives one change the landscape into a drearier one. Choices also affect your physical attributes. Eat vegetables or meat? Wield ranged weapons or cast spells? Killing innocents will make your character look more demonic — helping others will give you a fairer complexion.
Several features take the guesswork out of quests. A golden trail leads you to your next destination. Casting spells doesn’t require an extra eye on the mana bar because there is none — you’re free to throws as many fireballs as you wish. Healing’s done with the press of a button, as long as you have enough potions, and you can teleport to other areas you’d rather not run to. There’s no option to converse with the NPCs unless they’re specifically marked for quests, but you can put on a show for them through emotes. Impress someone enough, and you can marry. You can even marry someone of the same sex if they lean that way.
Choices, choices, choices. But for what? With choices come consequences, but in F2, do any of them really count for anything? Games like Fallout 3 put you in situations with far-reaching implications. When a quest character in Fallout 3 dies, that’s it — no going back. You could miss out on a weapon or the next link in that quest chain. In F2, going on a killing spree in town might feel dastardly at first until everyone respawns. Choices don’t make you especially more powerful or weaker, and don’t necessarily change the story. Each player might take a different road to the ending, but the endings for all will be the same — getting revenge on the guy who killed your sister. The same could be said of Fallout in terms of getting to an end, but with Fable, there is a feeling that the game is catered to the casual gamer who wants his RPG in smaller doses.
It’s an RPG that feels like it’s been stripped of all the work and achievement that comes in making critical decisions. You can buy and flip a house for profit, but what will you spend the money on? With no need to buy ammo or do repairs, all you have to do is stock up on the best items and play dressup with the rest of your bankroll.
After you finish the game, you can continue questing and living your fabled life. The question you’ll be asking yourself is: Do I care?
Graphics:
Spell-casting effects are impressive. Character models and clothing are unnattractive. Nothing extraordinary.
Soundtrack:
Music is nicely done except for the battle track which is completely underwhelming.
Playability:
Multiplayer and downloadable content which I did not really sample. After you finish the game, you can continue playing. More prisoners need saving. They’re where they usually are. You would think their captors would find better places to hide them.
Overall:
Hack, slash, cast, and cast your way through mundane quests in order to get revenge. You can choose to be evil or good, but it doesn’t really matter.
Rating:
2/5
For something a bit more specific: 10 Reasons Why Fable 2 Sucks
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