Fable II, the official thread.

[The Iron Ninja]

My sincerest apologies for not reading through the last nine pages before posting this, but I'd like to give my impressions of the game so far.

Overall I think it's a very good game, it would have been very hard to live up to the hype and yet I still view the game in a good light. So a great amount of kudos is due to Mr Molyneux and Lionhead for their efforts.

I do however have a one problem with it.

The co-op, promising local co-op and then keeping that promise is something I admire the designers for (not so for Pandemic with Mercenaries 2 *shakes fist*).
But I was under the impression that my entire character would join in, not just his stats.
The limited choices for the appearance of the henchman made things worse. Co-op is now simply a fun distraction, when it had the potential to be such a defining experience.

 

[Shadow Tyrant]

The reason they did that is because there's only one Hero per 'universe.' There's a book that explains the theory of "ORBs," and it basically explains the theory of multiple universes, where you make one choice and a different universe exists where you made the other choice, and that it's been rumoured that you can communicate with these other 'you's' and can see them as orbs in your world. It's really quite clever how they explained it. The book is in a bookcase on the upper floor of the bookstore in Bowerstone Market, if you're interested. But the point is, if you had both your Heroes in the same world, it would mess things up, since there are only supposed to be four.

 

[The Iron Ninja]

Still, I would have liked it better if my friend's actual characters (looking like they had intended them to look) could have joined in as henchmen, or at least have more options for what the henchmen look like.

 

[Alex_P]

So far I have been very pleasantly surprised.

The game is yet another fantasy hero-bildungsroman in the tradition of every lame fantasy novel and everybody's most boring and derivative D&D campaign, but it's so focused on being that kind of narrative and exploring all the nooks and crannies of that kind of narrative that it's actually good.

The Sims-like nature of all the non-heroic NPCs? Totally a metaphor for the hero/great-man's relationship with the people, distant and near-sociopathic as it must be!

-- Alex

 

[TheBluesader]

Has anyone else found the tone inconsistencies a little obnoxious? Sometimes it's very tongue-and-cheek, like with the bandits' nicknames. Then there's the syrupy tenderness from your spouse and the heavy-handed dramatic fantasy elements.

At times it reminds me of the old Sam Raimi Hercules and Xena, and Ubisoft's Beyond Good and Evil. As if anyone actually remembers any of those.

I mean, it's not painful or anything. But I personally would have enjoyed more humor and less self-importance.

 

[Shadow Tyrant]

Still, I would have liked it better if my friend's actual characters (looking like they had intended them to look) could have joined in as henchmen, or at least have more options for what the henchmen look like.

True, that would have been better. Or at least have a "henchman customization" menu. That'd be cool.

Has anyone noticed how much this game references the original? Like the one quote, ""Bandits burned down my village and killed my family, and I swore revenge. Cliche'd, I know, but that's life for you." - Overheard from a citizen of Albion"

It's all the subtle touches like that that really make the game what it is. How many of you have actually taken the time to read all the tombstones? All of which have individual names, by the way. I found one that said "John Atkins - Lost his balance." I don't think I've ever laughed so hard at a tombstone before.

EDIT: Added quote for clarification, since people posted while I was posting.

 

[Alex_P]

Has anyone else found the tone inconsistencies a little obnoxious? Sometimes it's very tongue-and-cheek, like with the bandits' nicknames. Then there's the syrupy tenderness from your spouse and the heavy-handed dramatic fantasy elements.

At times it reminds me of the old Sam Raimi Hercules and Xena, and Ubisoft's Beyond Good and Evil. As if anyone actually remembers any of those.

I mean, it's not painful or anything. But I personally would have enjoyed more humor and less self-importance.

Reminds me of Fritz Leiber.

-- Alex

 

[TheBluesader]

Has anyone else found the tone inconsistencies a little obnoxious? Sometimes it's very tongue-and-cheek, like with the bandits' nicknames. Then there's the syrupy tenderness from your spouse and the heavy-handed dramatic fantasy elements.

At times it reminds me of the old Sam Raimi Hercules and Xena, and Ubisoft's Beyond Good and Evil. As if anyone actually remembers any of those.

I mean, it's not painful or anything. But I personally would have enjoyed more humor and less self-importance.

Reminds me of Fritz Leiber.

-- Alex

Thanks, Alex. Never heard of this guy before, but I'm intrigued by what I see on Wiki. I've been intellectually enriched today by the interweb. Certainly beats the usual shame and deflation :]

 

[swift tongued]

I love magic in this game. My charecter is a straight pimp caster, it's fitting since there isn't any stamina for non magic fighting anyway. I mean in higher levels you have to charge up so using mgic is no more or less challenging then guns or arrows. Besides the game isn't meant to be challenging, I like for once feeling like a total badass that when I randomly see a group of bandits I can just magic wipe them. It's not like you heal easily, unless you constantly stock up on food and potions crossing the country side would be a pain if your charecter weren't completely OP.

 

[ImmortalItalian]

Jesus...

Spoiler

Winter Lodge in the Demon Door in Bloodstone scared the living shit out of me :l

 

[Ultrajoe]

Jesus...

Spoiler

Winter Lodge in the Demon Door in Bloodstone scared the living shit out of me :l

The overall effect of scenes is brilliant for this, imparting a mood or making much spookiness abound.

Terry Cotters cottage. Idyllic surroundings with a few visual clues. Add in the fact that your dog growls all the time that you are there and it becomes creep city. Fable 2 seems to grasp how environment can be used thematically. Memory lane was downright wierd.

I've been playing for 15 hours. 15 hours and they are giving me nostalgia! That should not be possible! I retuned to where you first play the music box and felt depressing-bloody-nostalgia! It's been less than a damn day! Hats off the Lionhead, if nothing else this has made me feel as few games can, and they are all instant classics in my book.

Fable 2 is an exception, it is above and beyond those other games.

 

[Erikaiht]

Hmm, anyone else had their child run off to be an adventurer, only to have to save their butts?

 

[neoxdonut]

Hmm, anyone else had their child run off to be an adventurer, only to have to save their butts?

My kid in Fable II ran off to some Hobbe Cave to be an adventurer, I had to go and save her butt..

 

[Amnestic]

Terry Cotters cottage. Idyllic surroundings with a few visual clues. Add in the fact that your dog growls all the time that you are there and it becomes creep city. Fable 2 seems to grasp how environment can be used thematically. Memory lane was downright wierd.

Loved that one. The atmosphere plus a referance to the Terracotta army=win. Most references in this game are pretty cool. I didn't get the Frankenstein reference until we were down in the basement with the machine.

Jesus...

Spoiler

Winter Lodge in the Demon Door in Bloodstone scared the living shit out of me :l

Spoiler: Me too

Second time I went through it I walked slowly so it wouldn't be so surprising. It STILL managed to catch me off guard. I grabbed the Master Longsword and dejectedly left

Edit:

Spoiler: Endgame

Is Theresa a Shadow Judge? The centre one had a pose and body-shape similar to Theresa. Admittedly Lionhead may have just used her model for the Shadow Judge character, but it seems weird that they'd deliberately change the centre Judge's appearance and have the other two as uniform.

 

[Alex_P]

"Memory Lane" demon door... look in the window of the last wooden house. Creeeepy.

-- Alex

 

[Willwillwritehiswill]

I chose the

Spoiler

'needs of the many' ending. I really do miss that dog :'(

 

[KeyMaster45]

I've heard Fable II has some pretty good achievements too, like killing a small innocent bunny

hehe, i got the bunny achivement last night, was bored so i decided to shoot a passing bunny.

Btw, Time Control Rank1 + Rank3 + Fire Ball/Force Push Rank 4= insta AoE death
If ur wondering why cast one rank then charge to a higher one it gives you enough time to charge up to rank 4 w/o anything being able to hit u, plus gives you time to run the hell away so you can cast or charge up and wait for the unsuspecting enemies to run into range after time is up.

My mage rox hardcore sox

I already talked about this giving a clear description of how a mage fight should go. Time Control 1, Run back some Time control 2. Lightning 5. Dead anything. ANYTHING.

I'll let you know when I start care buddy. I read yours after I posted mine, didn't feel very obligated to poor through 5 pages of text and spoilers for a game I hadn't finished yet, was just throwing in my 2 cents. By the time you have a rank 4 spell pretty much everything within your LoS dies upon cast so your way isn't necessarily the best/more fun way to kill stuff.

You want credit for the cookie cutter mage attacks be my guest I'll keep doing which ever looks cooler to me not caring what anybody thinks

btw, my mage still rox hardcore sox

 

[Bulletinmybrain]

I've heard Fable II has some pretty good achievements too, like killing a small innocent bunny

hehe, i got the bunny achivement last night, was bored so i decided to shoot a passing bunny.

Btw, Time Control Rank1 + Rank3 + Fire Ball/Force Push Rank 4= insta AoE death
If ur wondering why cast one rank then charge to a higher one it gives you enough time to charge up to rank 4 w/o anything being able to hit u, plus gives you time to run the hell away so you can cast or charge up and wait for the unsuspecting enemies to run into range after time is up.

My mage rox hardcore sox

I already talked about this giving a clear description of how a mage fight should go. Time Control 1, Run back some Time control 2. Lightning 5. Dead anything. ANYTHING.

I'll let you know when I start care buddy. I read yours after I posted mine, didn't feel very obligated to poor through 5 pages of text and spoilers for a game I hadn't finished yet, was just throwing in my 2 cents. By the time you have a rank 4 spell pretty much everything within your LoS dies upon cast so your way isn't necessarily the best/more fun way to kill stuff.

You want credit for the cookie cutter mage attacks be my guest I'll keep doing which ever looks cooler to me not caring what anybody thinks

btw, my mage still rox hardcore sox

Actually it was on the same page as yours and only a few posts above yours? Blind much?

/being a dick

 

[KeyMaster45]

Actually it was on the same page as yours and only a few posts above yours? Blind much?

/being a dick

i agree you were one.

on a side note, i made the original post from page 2 and closed out my browser to do other things than troll a forum racking up 2165 posts after making it, so of course I didn't see it.

to everyone else i suggest playing that arcade escape game here, was very addicting and fun

going spend time outside of the interwebs now

 

[Amnestic]

Actually it was on the same page as yours and only a few posts above yours? Blind much?

/being a dick

i agree you were one.

on a side note, i made the original post from page 2 and closed out my browser to do other things than troll a forum racking up 2165 posts after making it, so of course I didn't see it.

to everyone else i suggest playing that arcade escape game here, was very addicting and fun

going spend time outside of the interwebs now

Hope you enjoy your moral "superiority".