Fable III Previews

A couple more hands-on previews of Fable III have surfaced, starting with an extensive two-part article at WorthPlaying (here and here):

Back at the Dweller Camp, all three components of the primary quest had been completed. We gained another follower and upgraded our skills once again. Most of the skill upgrades were fairly direct (better melee, more powerful gun, etc.), but one that is worth noting are the magic upgrades. Gaining access to different gauntlets meant we got to experience four different types of magic over the course of the game: fire, electric, ice and wind.

You start with fire, which can shoot targeted fireballs or simply do an area blast. Electricity acts like a magical stun gun and is impressive to see in action. Ice causes damage and slows down your enemies, and wind lifts them up and whips them about. Initially, you can only use one type of magic at a time, but eventually, you unlock the ability to combine them, which makes for even more useful attacks. Of the three weapon types, magic was easily our favorite.

Since the first major quest was over, it was time to move out and continue the quest for more followers. We followed Walter to the monorail station only to see it crash to the cavern floor after being sabotaged. It turns out to be the work of the goblin-like Hobbes. These underground dwellers apparently don’t like humans, and they’re not afraid to show it.

Adventuring through the underground caverns, this quest line gave us a chance to experience fighting alongside an AI teammate. Walter performed well, holding his own without appearing too powerful. Since we favored magic, we more or less treated Walter as a tank. We got the attacking Hobbes focused on him and then let loose with the electric and ice area-of-effect spells.

And then we head over to PALGN for less reading:

As many would have heard by now, Fable III forgoes RPG conventions such as experience points and hordes of new weapons. While some may be up in arms over such a move, it seems to come off reasonably well. In Fable III, as you complete work to become King/Queen your progress is measured by the number of followers that you gain along the way. Also, your weapons will change, depending on how you use them. Obviously though, you need some sort of tangible way of showing progress other than just an arbitrary numerical measure.

And so, you have the’ Road to Rule’, which is an actual path/realm that your character can enter and walk down. As you collect followers, treasure chests and segments will open up along the pathway. The chests may contain new weapons, attire, gestures, abilities and so forth. The path ends at the castle, suggesting that something else will measure/reward your progress once you become the ruler. Speaking of being ruler, we’re assured that you will face choices and consequences unlike you’ve seen before in a Fable game. Aside from apparently having a major game changing choice right at the beginning of the game, Fable III is looking to ramp up the stakes, especially once you become the ruler. And we were told that there will be scope for being a ‘˜bad’ ruler as well.