Fable 3, while an enchanting game, has too many problems to recommend as a full-priced title.
Fable 3, like its predecessors, takes place in the land of Albion. Albion has changed a bit since we last saw it in Fable 2, as the character you played in Fable 2 ruled the land and changed it for the better, regardless of the choices you made in that game. The cities are new, the landscapes have changed, and not many places exist which can be recognized from the first two games any longer. You play as the son or daughter of this hero who forever changed Albion, serving as a prince or princess, while your older brother rules as King. You quickly learn that your brother is a tyrant, and your goal then becomes overthrowing his regime and taking power yourself, hopefully as a more benevolent ruler. The story is pretty predictable and standard fare for a game of this type, the only real highlight coming in a section in the desert where you encounter a dark, evil foe which can render even your great hero helpless. The story does present interesting moral dilemmas, especially at the end, but then forcibly tries to classify them as "good" or "evil," which lessens their emotional impact.
On your quest to take control of Albion, you will meet many allies who agree to aid you in your cause, but none of them are particularly interesting or memorable. Neither is anyone in the world of Albion at all, really, as the multitude of NPC's you encounter in the various towns and their surrounding areas are more like throngs of mindless robots than unique people. Their interaction with your hero really does not extend beyond cheering at you if they like you or booing and hissing if they dislike you, making interacting with Albion's citizens largely a waste of time. They will respond to the many expressions your character can perform in a variety of ways, but this has been stripped down from previous games to two or three options that simply improve or damage your relationship with a person. Previous games allowed you to choose from a variety of actions to perform, which makes Fable 3 disappoint in this respect. To make matters worse, to bring your relationship with a person to the next level, they will send you on a tiresome fetch quest of some kind or another. The incentive to do these is low, unless you are looking for marriage. Marriage in Fable 3 is one of those things you'll probably try once or twice. There really is no rhyme or reason to choosing a mate, as there exist only maybe ten or so different NPC types across Albion, and choosing one virtual zombie to marry over another often comes down to whom you run into first. You can start a family, but since the relationship system in this game so shallow, you likely won't spend much time around them.
Fable 3 also suffers from a lack of variety in quest structure. While a few of the larger quests will have some polish and variety to them, most quests simply boil down to running to a certain place and killing anything you run into along the way. Adding insult to injury is the sheer number of escort and fetch quests (not even counting the aforementioned friendship quests) that crop up. At least 4 different quest lines and achievements are tied to acquiring X number of items that are scattered across the land, and these artificially pad the length of the game if one wishes to fully complete it. Escort quests require you to hold the hand of the NPC you are protecting, but these often are tests of patience, as hand-holding slows your movement speed down and is also very buggy. NPC's get stuck on the environment, will sometimes just stop for no reason at all, and sometimes the hand-holding mechanic is a pain to get to work to begin with. It's a mess, and these bugs add frustration to already tedious quests.
Saving the game somewhat is its sense of humor. Much of it is hit-or-miss, but it does have its sincerely funny moments and witty dialogue that break up the tedium of the game as a whole. One memorable quest has you become a character in a parody RPG board game setting, while another has you dress as a chicken and herd a chicken farmer's escaped flock. Many of the NPC's have the funny line or two they'll rattle off now and then, and quest descriptions are chock full of humor. Comedy is one of the game's greatest strengths, and truly saves it from deeper mediocrity.
Another one of Fable 3's greatest strengths is its presentation. This truly is one of the best looking Xbox 360 games out there today, and the graphics match the fantasy setting perfectly. Character models are detailed and convincing, environments are full-fledged and varied, the cities are vibrant, and the beasts ferocious. The game sounds just as good too, with top-notch voice acting, music, and sound effects, and all of these work together to immerse you in the land of Albion. The game does a great job of portraying the suffering felt in the industrial part of Bowerstone, the poverty of the mountainfolk, the posh nature of the wealthy, and the carefree nature of those who dwell in the forest. It is a shame the personality of these characters is so lacking, as the presentation to set them up gets mostly top marks. Also of note are the many outfits available for your character, and the level of customization and detail here is impressive.
With the good comes the bad, unfortunately, as is the case with much in this game. The presentation is wonderful, but the game can't seem to keep up a lot of the time. The frame rate often dips during combat or when a lot of characters are on the screen at once, which really ruins some moments of the game. The sound also has its hitches, but the frame rate issues are a real killer to the otherwise spectacular presentation.
In truth, the downsides to Fable 3's strengths are its greatest disappointments. The game offers freedom, but you are often restricted to linear exploration in its environments. The game has a robust economy, but money is far, far too easy to obtain in large sums, making owning every property in Albion a simple matter. The game does away with the traditional pause menu system, which offers a nice change of pace, but this means simple actions take longer to perform. A character is there to greet you upon pausing the game, but he often prompts you to purchase the premium content offered as DLC, which is a sin that caused me to deduct a point off my review score automatically. You are given the freedom to marry, terrorize, or kill nearly NPC you want, but none of them have personalities which differentiate them enough from any other where this is worthwhile. Little glitches also abound throughout Fable 3, and it is hard to go a few minutes without coming across a new one. I think a few more months in development could have smoothed out some of these issues, and would have created a higher quality title in the end.
One more area the game struggles in is combat. The game offers the freedom to choose between melee, ranged, and magic combat, and the ability to switch between them at any time. However, area of effect magic spells easily outclass the other two combat types in power, throwing off any sense of balance between the combat options. Also, melee combat is a bit buggy and sluggish, never feeling quite right. Ranged combat is functional, but targeting specific enemies is difficult, and the camera often goes haywire when you aim down the sights of your gun. Dodge rolling to avoid enemy attacks is far too powerful, as it makes you invulnerable to enemy attacks while performed. Many spell and weapons are available, the weapons being upgradable, but many of them simply aren't worth using in any situation and simply collect dust in your weapons room. No matter what type of combat you prefer to use, the game is also far too easy. Health potions are plentiful and cheap in town shops, your character can take a beating before dying, and few enemies are tough enough to pose any real threat to you. It is easy to get through Fable 3 without dying, though you will likely have a few close calls in the tougher parts. I believe it is safe to say that this is the most challenging game in the series, but given the cakewalks the other Fable games were, that is not much of a statement.
I could go on further about the specifics of Fable 3's strengths and shortcomings, but there are too many to discuss without creating a tedious list. Instead, I will summarize by calling Fable 3 a mediocre fantasy action RPG whose reach exceeds its grasp. There are lots of good ideas here, as it does offer more freedom to interact with people and do things other games don't even come close to approaching. However, doing these things is purely optional, and the big question you ask yourself is: why? Why start a family? All of these things are done simply for their own sake, and while their addition is nice, they aren't done well enough to leave a lasting impression. When you get down to the core elements of the game, you see a multitude of glitches, an unbalanced combat system, a throwaway story, and a whole lot of tedious quests that are chores to complete rather than the fun they should be. Fable 3 may look pretty, but once you look past the thick layers of polish they sprinkled atop the land of Albion, you will truly see how much substance the title is lacking.