Fable III Interview, New Screenshots

1UP gives us a break from all of the Molyneux-speak we’ve been seeing for Fable III by bringing us an interview with lead designer Josh Atkins about the sequel’s combat system, character progression system, and more. Four new screenshots litter the Q&A, too:

1UP: Personally, I played a very balanced character in Fable 2, and there didn’t seem to be any major rewards for specializing in one aspect. Is that going to change in Fable 3? Is there any incentive for being a melee fighter to the exclusion of magic, or vice-versa?

JA: We have built Fable 3 to allow you to play a balanced hero who is powerful in all three areas of combat. One of our goals with Fable 3 is to make you feel as if you are the single most powerful person in the land, so we want you to be skilled at melee combat, ranged combat, and magic.

As we have continued to develop the franchise, we wanted to break out of the standard RPG conventions of having to specialize in a specific type of combat. Therefore we have moved our combat more toward a system where each of the combat types (melee, ranged and magic) are designed to really be complementary to each other, and you can switch between combat styles seamlessly in the heat of the battle for a more riveting action experience. In certain moments, one attack might be more beneficial than another but all the attack types are really designed to be used in conjunction with one another.

This more balanced system doesn’t mean that players can’t get the most out of one combat type though. [F]or the players that are interested, there are tons of rewards for focusing on specific areas of combat. Focusing on [specific styles] will not only morph your hero in specific ways, but it will allow you to get specific attributes on your weapons, and even give you specific achievements. [Also], the hero’s appearance and weapons morph with the combat style that players prefer. If you favor your melee weapon in battle, your hero will grow stronger in appearance. If you prefer the ways of magic, your complexion with change. You’ll also become more nimble if you continue to favor the use of guns.