BBC host outs Fable III?

What we heard: Twitter's a wonderful invention. Basically, everyone can publish a comment for the whole world to see as soon as it pops into their head, even if that information is utterly inane or entirely confidential. For the BBC's Jonathan Ross, the tweets in question mixed a little from both categories.

Last night, Ross attended the British Academy of Film and Television Arts awards ceremony for video games, at which Nintendo's Super Mario Galaxy walked away with top honors. Closing out the evening, Ross said in a succinct 140 characters or less, "Goodnight all. Must go to bed. Got asked to do voice in Fable 3 tonight. Subarashi. Oyasuminasia. Woss out." (Emphasis added.)

However, Ross didn't stop there. Later that night, he responded to a fellow tweeter's direct message, saying, "Yes they are doing it. [Comedian and The Guardian columnist] Charlie Brooker said he would do a voice for it to [sic]! Great fun!!" The following morning, Ross tweeted his somewhat ambiguous intentions to apologize to Peter Molyneux, before concluding the matter by tweeting, "Yes. No. There is no Fable 3. I don't know. Help me."

It wouldn't be at all surprising if Microsoft and Lionhead teamed for a new installment in the action adventure franchise. The original Fable was one of the Xbox's top sellers, and Fable II has garnered a number of awards since it launched for the Xbox 360 to a warm critical reaction in October 2008, including a BAFTA for best action adventure last night.

Furthermore, Lionhead founder Peter Molyneux has previously said that his studio already has the third, fourth, and fifth installments in the franchise mapped out. "We've got plans for Fable III, IV, and V, actually... It's a big story arc, and you can see that if you've played Fable II you'll recognise things from Fable," Molyneux commented in July 2008.

The official story: [UPDATE] It would appear Ross' claim to Fable III fame was a bit premature was a bit premature. "We have no agreement in place with Ross to work on forthcoming projects," a Microsoft representative told GameSpot.

As it would turn out, though, Lionhead is indeed working on more content for Fable II. "That said, it is true that we are not yet done with Fable II," the rep continued. "We are working on additional content for Fable II. That's all we can say for now. We will have more to share soon!"

Bogus or not bogus?: In light of Microsoft's comment on the matter, it seems possible that Ross has been asked to lend his voice to the forthcoming Fable II content. Being that as it is, the Fable franchise is one of the most popular Xbox 360 exclusives--having sold some 2.6 million units to date. As such, don't be surprised if and when Microsoft and its internally owned Lionhead Studios do announce a new installment in the franchise.