Gameplay:
Fable 2’s tale resides in the land of Albion, the same as the original, but is set 500 years post of the events in Fable. The original Fable told of a young boy who, after losing his family to bandits, is taken in by a guild that teaches and cultivates heroes. This young boy then grows to be the most powerful hero in all of Albion, eventually killing the evil Jack of Blades, and claiming the title of king. So with Jack of Blades killed everything thing should be just grand in Albion, right? Well if you answered yes then you were very, very wrong. Which is good, because if you were right then we wouldn’t have a game now would we? As for Albion, with the defeat of Jack, the citizens of Albion, the very citizens the heroes had sworn to protect turned against them, bringing about an almost absolute genocide of all heroes. Now, 500 years later, as evil once again begins to stir, Albion will cry for a hero yet again, one as powerful as the legendary Jack slayer. For more on the events between Fable and Fable 2 please click here.
The overall game play of Fable 2 is much improved over the original, ushering in a new combat system as well as a much larger game world. There are still quite a few problems facing the game, but I will get to those later. Let’s start with the good first shall we? First off the new combat system, to me anyway, is absolutely brilliant. It is simple enough that a four year old would be capable of beating opponents, yet deep down it is complex enough that even the most experienced gamers will find it a challenge to master completely. The battle scheme consist of the X, B, and Y buttons, each controlling its own individual branch of combat, the combos are usually time based requiring you to hit the buttons at the correct moment. Best of all there is no mana bar, yes you heard correctly, no mana bar, if you wish to sit there and blast fire balls rapidly into the side of a farm house for hours while laughing hysterically at the frightened citizens, then be my guest, it won’t cost you a thing. That is of course if you don’t hit their windows, they are touchy about those windows.
Second major improvement is that the game is less scripted than previous and the game world is defiantly larger, though it still can feel a little like your trapped in a hallway in many parts of the game. Another thing I personally enjoyed, though not really an improvement just a change, was that they stripped the armor value from clothing, so now you can wear whatever you wish into battle without fear of reduced stats, though I wish they would have included plate and chain mail armor, instead of just cloth outfits. My third and final major improvement is the dog. The dog was a very smart inclusion into the game, because not only does he add some extra value to the gaming experience, he is also very useful for finding items and pointing out things that you would have found difficult to spot on your own. Plus he is just plain fun to goof off with.
Now the negatives, as you know if you played the original game, the Fable series is based largely upon self choice, causing you to make difficult choices between good and evil, each coming with its own reward. By reward of course I am speaking only to the ones who play on the evil side, because the developers apparently saw fit as to punish every person who thought to be nice, by inflicting some bodily harm or giving only a fraction of the reward to the good side. Take this quest for example, you have to choose between sacrificing a young girl‘s youth, or allowing yourself to be harmed in her place. The evil side allows her to be stripped of her youth and then skips off on their marry way pillaging and burning to their evil little hearts content, the good side on the other hand is graciously handed decades of wonderful age increase and large ugly red glowing eyes. After which the girl simply thanks you and runs off, no rewards, just a few extra good points, which eventually will get you this nifty halo, that may or may not decide to even load, depending on how the game feels that day.
The multiplayer is unique in that it managed to destroy nearly every expectation of Fable fans everywhere. Instead of the mini MMORPG we had all come to expect, we get a terrible coop that requires your characters to be within about thirty feet or so of each other, this causes horrible camera angles and limits freedom drastically. Also you cannot import your own character, which means that awesome Gandalf look alike you spent hours creating, yeah no ones going to see him. In short do not buy this game for its coop.
A few more minor negatives are lack of challenging or creative boss battles, the fact that the legendary weapons are all remarkably weak, the vendor sells better items, and the ending is extremely, and I cannot stress extremely enough, anti-climatic.
Graphics:
One of the things that stands out about Little Big Planet the most is the artistic graphical design. In a nutshell, Little Big Planet is about small people made out of different fabrics going through obstacles in a tiny world. The art direction is phenomenal and really sets the tone for the game as a whole. One of the first levels has you jumping over mushrooms and leaping from tree stumps in a tiny garden. The overall design of the visuals is simply breathtaking and helps a player become immersed in the environments of the game.
Sound:
From the sounds of a lush forest, to the clicking and firing of your musket, the sounds stay very nice and consistent through out the entirety of the game. The voice overs in particular can be absolutely hysterical, in a good way.
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Rating:
Story: 8.0
Game play: 9.0
Graphics: 8.5
Controls: 9.0
Sound: 8.5
Reply Value: 9.0
Overall: 8.7
Own, Rent, Avoid:
Own: This game is a buy for fans of the original Fable who wish to unlock everything, a rent for people who just want to beat the single player.
Last Thoughts:
I found Fable 2 to be a very charming and entertaining game, full of life, sheltering an abundance of activities, with a truly engaging and evolving world. Though there are still many problems facing the game, the good out weigh the bad, enough to allow you to forgive them. The multiplayer is still absolutely horrible and should be an after thought when considering this game, only buy this game if you will enjoy the single player.
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Written By
Ethan Stroupe
2/13/2009
