Gambling on Fable II Pub Games
It's been a bit strange reviewing Fable II Pub Games, because so much of its appeal is based on the prospect of coolness, rather than actual coolness. The game has limited entertainment value in and of itself, and most (if not all) of the folks who play...
It's been a bit strange reviewing Fable II Pub Games, because so much of its appeal is based on the prospect of coolness, rather than actual coolness. The game has limited entertainment value in and of itself, and most (if not all) of the folks who play it will do so with an eye towards the future, when they will pass on all of their winnings (or IOUs) to a Fable II hero. When that day comes, what will their gold buy them? What trouble will their debt bring down upon them? Will their hard-won items be a substantial boon? Indeed, will any of their time spent at the tables of Albion be worth it?
Personally, I want to believe that the items I win and the gold I accrue will be helpful, though more realistically, I'll be looking forward to an interesting visit from Bowerstone's debt collection specialists. Given the way that Peter Molyneux waxes on about the myriad possibilities within the world of Fable II, I'm inclined to let my imagination run a bit wild.
I picture returning to my abode after months of adventuring, eager to reunite with my wife and children, only to find a big foreclosure notice on my house. Wandering through the town, I spot a clutch of beggers on the street corner that, upon closer inspection, look all too familiar. My sooty, bedraggled spouse runs up to me and starts to lambast me vociferously, while angry negative numbers pop up above the heads of any passers-by as they judge me harshly. I manage to escape her wrath and crawl into a local tavern, where the convivial owner welcomes me like a long-lost son, puts a beer in front of me, and asks if I'd like to play a little Keystone to lift my spirits. Cue the bard, singing an old Albion folksong that sounds suspiciously like "The Gambler," by Kenny Rogers.
Alright, so that was a bit ambitious, but the truth is, there's no way of knowing how things will play out. It's just as possible that whatever winnings I do come away with will seem a paltry sum in the robust Bowerstone real estate market. The only clue Pub Games offers about the relative value of your winnings is in the list of items you can win in tournaments. So I present, for your edification, the names and Albion Market Values of those prizes:
Fortune's Tower
Plaits Hairstyle Card - 100 Gold
Dog Training: Backflip - 200 Gold
Highroller's Coat - 400 Gold
Potion of Will - 800 Gold
Championship Pistol - 1200 Gold
Keystone
'Deepest Dark' Chocolates - 150 Gold
The Sleepmaster 3000 - 300 Gold
Potion of Strength - 600 Gold
Tribal Warrior Face Tattoo - 1200 Gold
Championship Cutlass - 1800 Gold
Spinnerbox
Amazing Apple Pie - 80 Gold
'Hat, Headband, Moustache' - 160 Gold
Tribal Warrior Body Tattoo - 300 Gold
Potion of Skill - 600 Gold
Mysterious Ring - 1000 Gold
Not a bad array of stuff, if you ask me. A few clarifications: All items are accompanied by longer explanations that I'll refrain from listing here for brevity's sake. Each potion permanently increases the corresponding attribute. 'Hat, Headband, Moustache' appears to be the Albion version of rocks-paper-scissors. The Sleepmaster 3000 is a sweet-lookin' bed. And the last item in each category is almost assuredly one of the "...amazing items that you can't buy anywhere else in Albion," in the words of the in-game help text.
Fable II Pub Games is certainly braving new territory in the downloadable games space, and for that it is, at the very least, noteworthy. Whether it proves to be a savvy effort that Fablers will be happy to have played or a crude cash-in that leaves dedicated gamblers with little more than the equivalent of free hors d'oeuvres remains to be seen. Here's hoping for the former.
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Fable II
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- Publisher(s): Microsoft Game Studios
- Developer(s): Lionhead Studios
- Genre: Role-Playing
- Release: Oct 21, 2008 (US) »
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