At first glance, Fable seems to give off an endless amount of freedom. Unfortunately, this isn't the case.
Fable begins with a short introductory FMV show-casing the game's strong point; it's graphics. Fable looks amazing, with bloom-effect, soft-shadows, and even leaves sway as the wind blows. However, a good game is not determined by it's graphics, it's the gameplay that truly matters. But before I get into that, I would like to give credit where credit is due. This is truly one of the most beautiful games i've ever seen, on any platform. Dungeons give off an eerie, fog-like atmosphere, while forest have adequate shadowing and beautiful details such as swaying branches, butterflies fluttering about, and even the moon's reflection shines upon your character, giving him an eerie, white glow. The game is also amazingly stable, with a great framerate, considering how the beautiful the game is. The characters do look somewhat blocky and cartoonish, but that was probably the aim that Monyleuz was shooting for, this is after all, a 'fairy-tale' adventure of 'epic proportions'.
As for how it sounds, amazing is the only word for it. A beautiful soundtrack changes and accompanies you depending on the places you visit. For example, visit the graveyard and be spooked by a calm, somewhat dreadful track, giving off a feeling of terror, literally. The NPC's in Fable also have alot to say, depending on what it is you do. This is interesting, considering there are many 'trigger-commands' that can be pulled-off and set off a reaction to an NPC. Farting, for example, will result in an NPC showing his/her disgust through words. The voice acting in Fable is decent, though not the best. The characters sound somewhat dead, and unenthusiastic while speaking. This drags the game down, but it isn't the worse example of bad voice acting in a game.
Now to get into the gameplay, Fable's weakest feature. Well to start off, you block with Y, and attack X, and can trigger a strong power-attack using B if you parry your enemy's attacks. Fable also revolves around the concept of freedom, something this game truly lacks. Freedom shouldn't be confined to narrow, enclosed paths, or not being able to even swim. The world of Fable is roughly 1/3 the size of Oblivion's, and 1/5 the size of Morrowind's.
To be fair, there is a big amount of armor, weaponry, and things to eat through-out Fable. There are also 'Demon Door's, which only open if you satisfy it. These are usually petty tasks, and not very interesting. For instance, one Demon Door opens if you eat constantly, and gain weight.
Fable's combat-system isn't very deep, since you can't really pull-off any type of combination. There is an ample amount of spells to master however, such as Stop, which freezes the world around you, and Berserk, which bulks you up to a Hulkish mass of strength. Leveling up in Fable is pretty basic. Kill your opponents, collect the green orbs, and head back to the Guild to spend your experience orbs.
Fable's story consists of a young boy, whose parents village was ransacked, and father murdered. Seperated from his Mother and SIster, he is taken in by Maze, a battle-hardened mage who takes him to the Guild, the place where you recieve your training and quests. Fable is roughly 20 hours, and there are no other difficulty options to choose from. You'll breeze through Fable, and will probably only die once, with the last boss battle. The plot is also pretty bad, since I never really understood what the purpose of my main character was. He was never given a real background, and never even spoke, so that is kind of a letdown.
All in all, Fable doesn't really succeed in becoming the greatest RPG ever, nor does it come close as stated before. Though credit must be given for atleast making an attempt to challenge RPG heavyweights that give you freedom such as KOTOR and E3:Morrowind. There is also a fair amount of replay value in Fable, since you could go for evil, or good. There really isn't that many ways to experience Fable in reality, but there are some good parts to it, and for them you'll need to dive deep into the freedom portion and see where your imagination takes you.