First Impressions - Fable III
Fri, November 5, 2010 at 4:20 PM 
Fable III
Developer: Lionhead Studios
Publisher: Microsoft Game Studios
Release Date: October 26, 2010
Date of Play: November 4, 2010
Stated as politely as I can manage, Fable II was a game I came to rather dislike. Perhaps it was Peter Molyneux’s incessent promising of features he couldn’t deliver, perhaps it was a case of high expectations being soured by a good, not great, game, or perhaps it was simply bad timing. Fable II released a week before the magnificent Fallout 3, after all, giving me only a short time in Albion before being blown away by the openness, freedom, and expansive world to explore in Bethesda’s somewhat wonky masterpiece, leaving Molyneux's world feeling a bit lacking by comparison.
I would call my time with Fable II enjoyable, to be clear, but I would classify it as good, not great. The ending was lousy. The game world felt small. And it had some issues mechanically that took me out of the experience, such as the absolutely stupid relationship system based on absurd repetitions of dumb animations, or the occasionally frustrating, simplistic combat.
Still, I liked the idea and the humor of the world, and I hope that Fable III might deliver a better overall experience. I must admit to being highly skeptical of Molyneux’s ability to make this happen, but I’m going to try to keep an open mind. In an interesting twist of fate, the tables are turned from two years ago. Fallout: New Vegas released a week before Fable III and a negative first impression of Obsidian’s lazy sequel leaves the door open to a reversal of fortunes. Can Fable III take back the crown and impress a hardened skeptic who wrties off Fable II as a loss and never even played the original Fable?
Let’s find out.