The Insipidity that is Fable III

User Rating: 5 | Fable III X360
Short note: I have also contributed this review to Gamefaqs.

Over the following few paragraphs I will elaborate on my opinion of this game. I'll start by evaluating the story. Secondly, I will share my views on the graphics. After that, I will explore the gameplay with you. And lastly, I will produce my view on the soundtrack and the voice acting, followed by a summary of this review.


The Story

Fable 3 casts you in the role of the prince of Albion, king Logan's brother. Naturally, you soon discover that you are a hero; a spell-casting, hammer or sword-swinging master of combat. You are led to discover this because of the king's tyranny; you are expected to lead the revolution that will cast your brother from the throne, which will lead to your coronation.

This seemed to be the plot of the game, but it actually is not. About three quarters of the play time into the game, Albion is attacked by an evil creature that has control over darkness, and wishes to take over the world, basically. This evil creature, by the way, doesn't look half as intimidating as it should. It doesn't even look all that evil. Anyway, this being is to be stopped by garnering enough funds for the kingdom's treasury to survive the assault.

At this point, you have to make some decisions that either mold you into an even worse tyrant than your brother was, or into an absolute saint with angel wings. And this is where you'll start to get confused. You will be given choices such as: ''mine a certain area to gain resources to save a great deal of villagers'' or ''leave the area unspoilt, but kill a lot of villagers in the process.'' Now, you'd choose the first choice, since it's the most sensible thing to do, right? Wrong. The former of the two choices is considered 'evil' and the latter 'good.' As I said, confusing. I'm sorry, but who are Lionhead to decide what's good and what's evil? Neither of the choices is truly evil, but the latter choice is eco-friendly to a fault. Fable II actually had more depth to it, since you could be 'pure' or 'corrupt' in addition to being good or evil.

In the end, you're either an evil demon, or a righteous saint. I'm afraid things aren't always as black and white as your company logo, Lionhead.


The Graphics

I am pleased to say (if only slightly) that the graphics of this game exceeded my expectations. The world of Albion and its neighbouring country Aurora are marvellously detailed. The improved character models as well as the whole environment you play in will stun you as you look across realistic, sparkling water, toward a well-lit Bowerstone Castle on the atmospheric horizon at night.

As I said, the character models have been improved. No longer are you forced to stare at a character that is obese and deformed. No, you and everyone around you look the way they should look; attractive. Or at least not deformed. The villagers, however, all look the same. As I walked past a noblewoman, I could've sworn I had passed her twin a few seconds earlier.

There is some screen tearing, and there is some overuse of motion blur. The latter will most likely give you a headache. Well, that's what happened to me, anyway. But aside from what I mentioned here, the graphics are excellent, and the game looks unique.


The Gameplay

Never before have I experienced gameplay as dreadful as what I encountered in this game. Brace yourself, here we go.

Firstly, the combat couldn't be more tedious. In fact, even hack-and-slash games feature more exciting and skill-demanding combat than this game. Melee combat isn't useful at all; you could target every enemy individually, but if you can target them all simultaneously with magic, why would you? You might want to use magic exclusively, as there are no enemies that have a resistance to it. You could use a 'surround spell' and hit almost every enemy standing near you, and soon most, if not all of them will die. It's not as fun as it sounds, though.

Nearly all of the spells in this game are elemental (e.g. fire, ice, thunder), and they all lack 'punch', as you could say. You eventually learn to 'spellweave', meaning you can use two spells at the same time. However, this isn't as fun as it sounds, since your spells weren't very interesting in the first place. Spells don't become more impressive as you use them; they stay the same as your character becomes stronger. This didn't make any sense to me, for what is the point of getting stronger if you don't see your power reflected in your attacks?

And where is the challenge, or the sense of dread when a powerful enemy appears? Speaking of powerful enemies, there are none. There are no true 'boss fights' in this game. The only major battle you'll experience is in the beginning of the game, but that battle is merely a rip-off of Fable's first boss fight. You do get to fight the main antagonist, but it's beaten far too easily.

The ability to target an enemy's limbs has been removed from the game. The reason for this is unknown to me. I can only speculate that it was removed because it required brain activity. It's been replaced by a slow motion sequence that shows the enemy being hit by your attack. However, this sequence is triggered randomly, and often zooms in on your enemy when there's no reason to.

Now on to the main characters. They can't help you in your quests, and they are lackluster, to put it bluntly. Even though they all stand out from the crowd, they have absolutely nothing useful to tell you. You also won't feel emotionally connected to any of the characters, as they lack detailed background stories. Most of them don't have any kind of relationship with your character, and you don't get to build up one either. They've only come with you because they're supposed to.

And lastly, the 'breadcrumb trail'. This trail leads you to where your quest is. But there is a huge problem with it, as it often vanishes into thin air. And that's not all. If it hasn't disappeared, it often leads you in the wrong direction. It's an annoyance that should've been fixed.

To summarise, Fable III requires no tactics in battle, you can simply mash the B button and switch off your brain for the entirety of the game.


The Soundtrack

The soundtrack of Fable III doesn't suit the era in which the game takes place. Sometimes it reminds me of the first Fable, which isn't a good thing, since this game doesn't take place in a Middle Ages-like time. What annoyed me the most, though, is the fact that some pieces of the soundtrack have been borrowed from Fable II. Even the in-game dialogue has been partly recycled. The voice acting is superb, and is probably the reason why I didn't fall asleep playing the game. John Cleese in particular does an outstanding job as your butler, Jasper, though it's sad to hear him portray a character that is unworthy of his voice. Bernard Hill, the actor who plays Sir Walter Beck, disappointed me, as his voice is awfully monotonous throughout the game, almost as though Hill just wanted to get it over with. The actor who plays your character, the Hero of Brightwall, did a fine job. There isn't anything negative I can say about his performance, and nothing overly positive, for that matter.


Summary

Overall, Fable III doesn't do well. Its story lacks the atmosphere and epic feel that Fable I and II had, and the game lacks memorable characters. Combat requires neither skill nor thought, and the magic you use is unimpressive. Its soundtrack is mediocre at best, and the acting is its saving grace. The graphics are impressive; the game seems like a work of art at times. But with lousy gameplay, lackluster characters and story, and a largely recycled soundtrack, what good does that do?

Story: 3.0/10
Graphics: 8.5/10
Gameplay: 3.0/10
Soundtrack: 6.0/10

Overall: 5.1/10