Review: Is Fable 2 a RPG for the casual market?
Fable 2 is considered to be one of the most hyped RPGs to hit the Xbox 360. In part this was due to Peter Molyneux’s insistence that his latest creation will be the masterpiece the original failed to live up to. The question remains – does Fable 2 have what it takes to live up to the hype?
Story
The original Fable received criticism for failing to live up to expectations set by Molyneux. Many of the promises made, such as raising children were hyped beyond what was delivered. However, I can assure the fans of the original that Molyneux delivered on everything promised.
The story of Fable 2 revolves around the theme of revenge and bears no resemblance to the original. The game’s story spans over 10 years and starts you off seeking vengeance for the murder of your sister. This brings you to Lord Lucien, who is the evil villain in the game.
However, the story is not as simple as it seems as there are twists and turns behind every situation. The story bears a bit of resemblance to that of Oedipus (minus the killing your father and marrying your mother part). Fable 2 has one of the best adventure stories to come along in a long time. You could say that the story is good enough to be used for an animated Pixar movie.
Visuals/Audio
The cut scenes in Fable 2 are beautiful, with graphics that are stylized to emulated games like Curse of the Monkey Island, which is considered to be one of the best adventure games ever made. However, characters can look blocky when the camera gets a bit too close.
At times the animation of the NPCs can get a bit choppy, but for the most part its not too bad. The voice acting is superb and fits perfectly with the setting of the game.
Design/controls
The game can be beaten in about 10 hours if you rush straight through the main quest, but add in the side quests and the total gameplay time can be stretched as long as 30 hours. Depending on the choices you make, your moral compass could go up or down. Make bad choices and your evil status will go up and vice versa.
Unfortunately, the decisions you make do not impact the end result of the game, but the town folks will treat you differently.
There is also the social aspect of the game where you have to gain status by executing the right action at the right time. This is probably the most primitive RPG element I have seen in any game. It borrows some ideas from the Sims, such as the way you can communicate with the NPCs. The range of actions run from farting to dancing.
The job/work aspect is probably the most tedious part of the game. You will need to take odd jobs to make ends meet, such as dancing for money (no, not that kind). Money will be a constant frustration until you discover the world of real estate.
The game does make traveling a breeze by utilizing several different aids. There is the fast travel method which can be found in the menu, and there is the bread-crumb trail helper which leads you straight to where you want to go. The game is really dumbed down for everyone including the casual gamer.
The combat is fairly basic as well, with one action move mapped to each button. Casting spells is probably the most complex combat aspect of the game. You can actually utilize spells successively to do a combo attack on the enemies. Unfortunately, once you discover a good combo attack, you will be able to easily overpower every single enemy in the game with it.
The online co-op mode is a blast to play with a friend. However, this mode can get old fairly quickly as there is no real investment for the joining member. Joining co-op members can not use their built up character in the game. Also, they will not be able to take any of the earned items back to their game.
Wrap-up
It is a hard to get over the feeling that Fable 2 is a complex game dumbed down for the casual audience. Not only are the battles and character progression mechanics simple, the adventure aspect has been eased as well. There is a dog that will find every item and treasure for you without having to lift a finger. There is even a fast travel option along with a bread crumb trail so you always know exactly where to go. With all of these mechanics and aids in place, it really makes one ask – where has the adventure aspect of the game gone?
Despite the tedious grind of working and selling, the game is fairly rewarding overall. The best aspect of Fable 2 is the execution of the beautiful story. I would highly recommend fans of the adventure genre to give Fable 2 at least a rent.
Score
3/5
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13 Responses to “Review: Is Fable 2 a RPG for the casual market?”
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February 11th, 2009
I didn’t find the story to be that thrilling (See : Deus Ex for a good storyline), however i enjoyed the whole ‘gone for x years’ part and coming back as everything had changed.
I agree that combat was kinda simplistic and repetitive, all I would do is use a lower level summon to tie up the npc’s and hit them with the most powerful fireball i could conjure (the area dmg one, not the directed fireball).
Playing the property market was fun but it was just a simple buy house a (and pimp it) until you have enuff money to buy house b, and so on. Which is fine I suppose, but there was no real challenge to it.
Never did find all the gargoyles or keys tho. Figured why bother if its not going to aid me in the game (which i had already finished).
February 11th, 2009
It’s time this site had another out-of-control angry fanboy thread, so when’s the KZ2 review coming Mike…?
February 11th, 2009
two months from now…
hahahahahahaha
dude… from your past reviews… I thought you were forgiving of games… now Im confused as shit…
February 11th, 2009
Latest review ever. This game came out in October. I’ve watched my girlfriend play and it does seem like it’s a pretty cool game. I played a little… and ran around farting on people. I’ll give it a serous go once she finishes it up.
I agree about the KZ2 review. That would make for an explosively fun thread. Also, it would be a bit more relevant since the game is coming out soon.
February 11th, 2009
Fable is whack…..
February 11th, 2009
The only thing that appeal to me about this game was the dog companion and playing online co-op.
Luckily soon I’ll get my fix of Fallout 3 dog companioning. Duno why I’m so excited about having a pet walk around in my game, guess it is because I haven’t played a game with one in before.
February 11th, 2009
Roy, I’ll be waiting on your official review of Fall Out. I’ve been unable to decide if FO3 would be right for me. Nice write up on the Uncanny Valley also by the way. I’ve heard of the concept, but never really had it fully explained.
February 11th, 2009
Sure, I will do an official review, since my most immediate deadlines end tomorrow (ff******ck), I will start reviewing games to pad my blog when I have time. Like Killzone 2 and Resi 5 as well as Fallout 3. I wonder what it takes for Metacritic to add you as a credible source…
I will no doubt tell you about it on here anyway though.
Glad you liked Uncanny Valley. It is probably the only bit of my history and theory lessons which I enjoyed last term.
February 11th, 2009
Id say with all the stuff I heard about Fable… it is made more for the casual market…
apparently making money on this game is REALLy easy…
Id still buy it…
February 11th, 2009
Arvis is playing Fallout 3… so Roy you should do something else… apparently.. Fallout 3 is more important than playing street fighter with me…
Arvis is such an asshole…
February 11th, 2009
Yeah so you forgot to mention that you have to find the upgrades for your Dog to find anything or else your stuck to a short small radius. Also, can’t you trun off the trail that leads you throughout the game? I believe you can. Personally I like the trail as it gets you to where you need to go instead of being lost in a hugh world. I thought it was a great game and a game that got game of the year by Joystiq and someone else in Europe. It’s not my everyday game but it was enjoyable.
February 11th, 2009
That new PoP had a trail you could follow. I’m glad that had it actaully. Trails aren’t always bad.
February 15th, 2009
“Fable 2 has one of the best adventure stories to come along in a long time.”
“The best aspect of Fable 2 is the execution of the beautiful story.”
Mr. Ferro, based on these statements, I highly doubt you played the main story more than an hour or so, if at all.
A man named Shamus has just proven everything you said to be wrong. He has several extensive posts covering every detail of the Fable 2 plot (spoilers abound, but in this case, let me assure you that they do not ruin the plot for those who haven’t played, but instead will allow them to cope if they ever do decide to pick up Molyneux’s latest).
http://www.shamusyoung.com/twentysidedtale/
(the site seems to be going under some maintenance as of this post, so if you don’t get a connection check back in a little… you know the drill)
Look, Mike, if you’re going to review a game, at least play it through. Don’t throw out a few quips that could have been taken from IGN or GameSpot and then tack on some worthless letter grade.