Fable III

Fable III
Studio	Lionhead Studios
Publisher	Microsoft Game Studios
composer	Russell Shaw
Erstveröffent- lichung	Xbox 360 : October 29, 2010 PC : May 19, 2011
platform	Xbox 360 , PC ( Windows )
genre	Action RPG
Subject	Fantasy , steampunk
Game mode	Single player and multiplayer
control	Gamepad or mouse and keyboard
system advantages preconditions	Core2Duo 2 GHz or AMD Athlon X2 4000+, 2 GB RAM, 256 MB graphics card from Nvidia 7600 GT or ATI HD 2600 Pro, 12 GB hard drive, Windows 7 / Vista / XP
medium	DVD-ROM
language	German
Age rating	USK PEGI
information	RPG with a good / bad system

Fable III is the third installment in the popular video game series Fable . The game, which belongs to the genre action role-playing game , was developed under the direction of Peter Molyneux of Lionhead Studios and published by Microsoft Game Studios . First published on October 29, 2010 for the Xbox 360 console , it was implemented on May 19, 2011 for Microsoft Windows .

Development history

Scenario and differences to the predecessor

The game world is now based on the early 19th century. The time of the Industrial Revolution , with brick factories, steam engines and starving workers, uniforms and weapons that are reminiscent of Napoleonics . Political as well as social grievances of that time are picked up and mixed with elements from fantasy and steampunk . In the meantime, the medieval world of the debut has become an industrialized sewer in which ashen people vegetate. The aim of the game is to overthrow a tyrannical ruler in order to then rule the empire yourself.

Compared to its predecessor Fable II , some changes are noticeable. There are no more screens and there is no inventory either. Instead, acoustic and optical signals indicate the state of the game figure. In addition, the "accommodation" was created, which you can visit at any time at the push of a button, and which now serves to equip the hero, to dress or to query the status and various options. The game dispenses with the experience points typical of many role-playing games, and instead offers so-called “guild seals”, which you receive for actions and tasks completed, and which you can then invest in the hero's development in a kind of intermediate world. This serves to represent the symbolic way to the throne. In Fable III , the hero's external development is also more subtle. If the depiction in the two predecessors was covered in comics, for example in the clearest form with a halo for a good hero, or horns and red-hot eyes for an evil one, this is now less conspicuous. A scoundrel, for example, shows himself to be more “realistically” recognizable here through paleness, drawn down corners of the mouth and black circles under the eyes.

All the weapons the player wields change depending on the style of play. Different actions or the attitude of the hero are reflected in the weapons and change their properties and appearance. For example, murdering the innocent leaves a saber dripping with blood, while an STD gives a gun a poisonous aura. The interaction with other characters in the game world is now much faster and easier, which is why the new "Dynamic Touch" system is used. Emotions and gestures can be carried out easily, as well as being increased and strengthened more easily by holding the button down.

The player also has to deal with how a society works, such as crime, poverty and taxes. In Fable III , the decisions of the player are consistently presented. If, for example, he collects very high taxes in one place, the residents become noticeably poorer, the houses become dilapidated and the people on the streets become hostile towards him. If you allow all alcohol consumption, people are initially satisfied, but this then leads to quarrels and drunkenness on the part of some citizens. The game does not offer different endings to the plot, but depending on how the game is played and the decisions made, each player will leave the world in its own unique state.

Like its predecessor, Fable III has a cooperative mode that has been significantly improved. So a second player can bring all his items and his own dog. The second player can explore everything freely without being limited to one camera. Some tasks are suitable for solving together, and it is also possible to marry another player and father or adopt children with him / her.

At the beginning of the game you can choose between the sex of the character again. However, playful differences do not result from this choice. The salutation as well as the reactions and sexual preferences of some characters change. If the previous game is still on the hard drive, the gender of the former king / father or queen / mother is also based on this.

Intentions and backgrounds

Fable III was first announced by Peter Molyneux at Gamescom 2009 in Cologne.

Josh Atkins, Senior Design Director at Microsoft Game Studios , commented on the intent and concept of the game:

“What is really interesting about“ Fable III ”and different from the last two games: It has a lot to do with real life, where good and bad is not so easy. There are quite a few questions that have loads of shades of gray. Life is just the same, when you make decisions, there is no such thing as pure black or white. So we try to add shades of gray, ask moral questions that really need to be thought about. We are concerned with the effects that some decisions have. "Does the life of one individual mean more than the life of many?" That is a question, for example, and it would also be interesting in reality. "

- Josh Atkins : Conversation in the M! Games

The aspect of morality has also been further developed. While moral decisions were usually kept rather simple in the two previous games and in games from other manufacturers, the developers now paid special attention to them. Atkins continues:

“We want the player to feel something. We want him to experience emotional moments. The key is to ask the player questions, get them to think about how they feel about something individually. But there is another level for us, namely to make sure that the questions are about more than the answers "I am good" or "I am bad". We are past this stage. "Fable III" has a message that reads: "It is hard to have the power to make decisions, it is hard to be a leader." What happens when you combine morality with responsibility? "

- Josh Atkins : Conversation in the M! Games

action

Fable III takes place around 50 years after Fable II . Albion has now entered the industrial age. After the old monarch, the protagonist of the previous game, died, the crown and rule over Albion passed into the hands of his eldest son Logan. Logan, initially a benevolent king, however, evolved into a tyrant over the past four years . Poverty, misery and violence are now the order of the day.

As a player, you take on the role of the younger child, either daughter or son. At the beginning of the game, an alleged uprising is violently suppressed and the ringleaders are arrested. The prince's lover, Elise, is now also suspected of being a spy. After protests by the prince, Logan sadistic joy leaves his younger brother to decide the fate of the accused. Will he have the rioters executed and spare his girlfriend? Or is he sacrificing his loved one to save the group? After this hard and traumatic decision, the will to resist grows in the young prince. At first he only finds support in his mentor Walter Beck, an old companion of his father, who has long been a thorn in the side of Logan's change of character to a cruel despot, as well as the loyal servant Jasper and his own dog. Walter also reveals his hero lineage to the prince, since the time is now ripe. Heroes were once numerous, but have now become rare in the empire.

It is now up to the prince to win allies for a rebellion. First he tries his luck with vagabonds who live in the snow-covered mountains in eastern Albion. They suffer from hunger because Logan has banned the people from hunting and logging. They are also harassed by a gang of mercenaries. According to some evidence, Sabin, the suspicious old leader of the vagabonds, pledges his support to the hero. Then the trip goes to the remote city of Brightwall to win the local population for themselves and their own cause. The prince found further allies in Major Swift and Ben Finn, of the royal army. Both feel obliged to the people and disapprove of the despot Logan. They and their troops are waging a desperate defensive battle in a fort against "hollow men", zombie-like skeletal warriors who rise from their graves. Eventually the hero and Walter arrive at Bowerstone, the great capital of the empire. The misery of the population is particularly evident in the neglected industrial area, with all its factories, whose huge chimneys darken the sky. Child labor, prostitution, beggars and criminals shape the streetscape. Any defiance is nipped in the bud there immediately. The perverse, but also charismatic industrial reaver, who is responsible for Albion's economic affairs, is primarily responsible for this. This is also where the first contact with the “Bowerstone Resistance”, a small rebel group active underground, was made. The leader, Page, initially has great reservations, mainly because of the hero's noble descent. The king’s activities are no stranger to these activities, and so he has Major Swift publicly executed by his own elite soldiers in order to set an example. Before his death, Swift left a message that allies were also to be found in distant Aurora, a desert area outside Albion deep south. There, however, the population lives in fear of a creature called the "creeper", a vicious shadow creature that brings death and suffering to the city at night. The prince takes on this problem, and first ensures security in Aurora, whereupon Kalin promises loyalty to the alliance. But now the extent of an enormous threat is revealed. The "crawler" swears to gather his strength to overrun Albion with his shadow creatures and to wipe out all life. Kalin also reveals to the prince that his older brother Logan visited Aurora four years ago and that the "creeper", seriously injured, barely escaped with his life.

Back in Albion, the real revolution begins. The battle begins in the old town of Bowerstone, which is badly damaged. The prince, the won allies and royal troops storm the castle against Logan's elite guard. After the successful overthrow, with the forced abdication of Logan, the hero is crowned the new king. Logan, whose fate is to be decided, gives good reasons for his adamant behavior. For years aware of the imminent danger from Aurora, he made every effort to improve the work performance of the people, to set up a defense army with high tax revenues, and to maintain discipline; all for the good of Albion.

Now as ruler, the hero faces the choice between keeping his promises and gaining popularity among the people as a patron. However, social and benevolent choices can be costly, and the Aurora threat remains. Therefore, the expensive construction of a powerful army is essential. Award the promised home to the vagabonds or not? Raise or lower taxes? Build an orphanage, or would you prefer a brothel? End child labor and set up schools or expand oppression? The new king now has to decide on these and numerous other questions.

After a year, the attack on Albion takes place. When the hero and his companions confront the "creeper", Walter takes possession of it. After the final fight, the "creeper" is defeated and Walter succumbs to his wounds. The state of the country depends on how powerful the built-up army was due to the accumulated wealth. Could all citizens be saved? Or is the country completely depopulated? Finally, the seer Theresa decides on the hero's reign. Was he a kind, benevolent ruler, or a worse tyrant than his brother? With what sacrifices were the shadowy beings beaten?

synchronization

The professional voice output of the game received a lot of praise. In the English original, well-known actors such as John Cleese , Ben Kingsley , Michael Fassbender and Simon Pegg also work . Often a negative point of criticism with video games, the German dubbed version is also considered excellent here. This was created by 4-Real Intermedia under the direction of Michael Blay. Professional speakers from film, television and advertising were also involved. The German purchase version only contains the German language version, but the English version can be downloaded free of charge on request.

character	English speaker	German speaker
hero	Louis Tamone	Michael Deffert
heroine	Rachel Atkins	Claudia Urbschat-Mingues
Jasper	John Cleese	Steffen Wilhelm
Walter Beck	Bernard Hill	Achim Barrenstein
Reaver	Stephen Fry	Helmut Winkelmann
Sabin	Ben Kingsley	Aart Veder
page	Naomie Harris	Luisa Brandsdörfer
Elliot	Nicholas Hoult	Christian Oliveira
Ben Finn	Simon Pegg	Michael-Che cook
Logan	Michael Fassbender	Dieter Gring
Theresa	Zoë Wanamaker	Sabina Godec
Major Swift	Edward Hardwicke	Michael Deckner
Ransom Locke	David de Keyser	Gordon Piedesack
Saker	Sean Pertwee	Sasha Nathan

Reviews

Magazine / website	Rating
M! Games	90%
GamePro	88%
XBG Games	86%
360 Live	9.0 of 10
4players	85%
Consol Plus	89%
Metacritic	80%
GameRankings	80.52%
GameStar	82%

The reviews of Fable III were consistently very positive. The atmosphere of the game, the orchestral soundtrack, composed by Russel Shaw , which is reminiscent of the early works of Danny Elfman , the gripping plot and the captivating staging received special praise . The only slightly improved graphics, isolated bugs and occasional bumpy animations gave cause for negative criticism.

Christian Neeb from GEE magazine even sees the game as a socially critical work that deals with capitalization and impoverishment. He sees it in the tradition of other English works on the subject, from Oliver Twist by Charles Dickens , to the destruction of the environment in The Lord of the Rings , to the film This is England . Neeb emphasizes that the game confronts and questions political decisions. He describes Fable III as "a dream of a role-playing game and a nightmarishly good political simulation".

In the M! Games editor Max Wildgruber praises the fact that Lionhead, unlike its predecessor, succeeds in bringing Albion closer to the player. He also mentions the "atmospheric story, with lovable characters who look comic-like, but come to life through masterful writing and speaking and self-reflective, thoughtful moments". His conclusion is: "A brilliantly told drama about power and responsibility."

Novels about the games

• Peter David : Fable: The Order of the Balverine , February 2011, Panini Verlag , ISBN 978-3-8332-2238-2
• Peter David: Fable: Blood Ties , October 2011, Ace-Verlag, ISBN 978-1-937007-40-9 (English)
• Christie Golden: Fable: Edge of the World , August 2012, Del Rey-Verlag, ISBN 978-0-345-53937-3 (English)

Web links

• Fable III at MobyGames (English)

Individual evidence

1. ↑ http://www.gamestar.de/spiele/fable-3/news/fable_3,46137,2321940.html
2. ^ Christian Neeb: Fable III . In: Volker Hansch (Ed.): GEE Magazin . No. 57 , December 2010, p. 26 ( Article archive [accessed June 29, 2011]).
3. ↑ M! Games , issue 10/2010, page 47, Fable III preview
4. ↑ M! Games , issue 10/2010, page 46
5. ↑ M! Games , issue 10/2010, page 47
6. ↑ GamePro , edition 12/2010, page 53
7. ↑ M! Games , issue 12/2010, page 53
8. ↑ GamePro , edition 12/2010, page 53
9. ^ XBox Games, Issue 52, page 43
10. ↑ 360 Live , issue 10/2010, page 27
11. ↑ http://www.4players.de/4players.php/dispbericht_fazit/360/Test/Fazit_WANY/360/18598/69853/Fable_III.html
12. ↑ Consol Plus, December 2010 edition, page 51
13. ↑ http://www.metacritic.com/game/xbox-360/fable-iii
14. ↑ http://www.gamerankings.com/xbox360/971431-fable-iii/index.html
15. ↑ GameStar , edition 07/2011, page 76
16. ↑ GEE , edition 57, page 26
17. ↑ M! Games , issue 12/2010, pages 52–53