Fable III Preview

A brief preview of Fable III is up at GameInformer, courtesy of a demonstration given to them by Lionhead’s Peter Molyneux during this year’s E3. Why Peter’s last name is misspelled throughout, though, I have no idea:

Molyneaux started the demo with a stark admission: He didn’t like Fable II’s story, and considers it generic and forgettable. With Fable III, the team at Lionhead set out to craft a story that is instantly understandable and appealing: Your mission is to amass enough power and fame to overthrow the tyrannical dictator of Albion, then step into his shoes and rule the land yourself. Your coronation will come roughly halfway through the story, and introduces a variety of new gameplay elements, as you allocate your kingdom’s wealth, settle disputes brought before you in court, and decide whether to honor or forget all the promises you made to your supporters on your rise to power. You’ll still have the ability to travel the countryside slaying hobbes and searching for treasure with your trusty pooch – but you’ll probably have to don a disguise in order to be left alone. Molyneaux stated players will learn certain truths about power, which may result in you acting more like your despicable predecessor than you would like.

Molyneaux’s criticism of Fable II didn’t end with the story: the worst part of the game, he told us, was the start button – the player was constantly drowning in statistics and lists and never really felt like they were leveling up or amassing a fortune. For Fable III, all of the items that were previously hidden in menus now reside in the Sanctuary, a series of rooms that house your various collections. Your faithful butler Jasper (voiced by the hilarious John Cleese) assists you in each of the Sanctuary’s areas. These include a dressing room with the hundreds of clothing items you have acquired (Jasper will lay out select costumes for you on mannequins); an armory that displays all of the weapons you’ve collected or crafted; and a treasure room, which will slowly fill with mountains of gold as you accumulate wealth (there was also a co-op room, but Molyneaux wasn’t talking about it yet). As Molyneaux showed off a long line of customized swords – the visual style of your weapons now evolve based on how you use them – it was instantly clear how much more rewarding collecting items will be in Fable III.