I played "Fable" – and it was bloody brilliant!
At Gamescom, I was able to play 'Fable' and talk to the developer studio Playground Games. The combat system is brilliant, the humor is wonderfully British, and the game world is beautiful. 'Fable' is going to be magnificent.
It’s been a long time since the «Fable» reboot from Playground Games was announced. About six years after the first trailer, the «Forza Horizon» developer studio is providing a deeper look at their work for the first time with a playable demo. At Gamescom, I get to go hands-on myself and fight my way through hordes of the undead with a sledgehammer and magic.
Two Associate Game Directors of «Fable», Will Kennedy and Craig Littler, guide me through the demo. Afterwards, the developers answer my most burning questions – and reveal which weapons and spells they prefer to use.
Dry, British humor
In the Gamescom demo, I explore an abandoned mine and then an enchanted, fog-covered forest. Kennedy emphasizes that the demo is only running on medium graphics settings – the developer studio wants to show that you don't need a monster PC to be able to play «Fable».
He’s right. Even without ultra settings, the game looks visually appealing. It’s just a shame that Playground Games chose such a gloomy and gray game environment for the Gamescom demo. Especially because the rest of the game world is convincing with beautiful, colorful fairy-tale landscapes.
Source: Playground Games
At the beginning of my journey, I meet Humphry – a former hero who is too old for this shit. From the start, he lets me feel that he has no desire to explore the mines with me.
Nevertheless, Humphry fights alongside me against the undead. At least in theory. The washed-up hero doesn't seem to be very accurate anymore. His strength is cracking wise. At least he’s excellent at that. The dry way the dialogue is delivered underscores the British humor that «Fable» wants to convey with its world and characters.
Grumpy Humphry quickly grows on me during our short time together.
Source: Playground Games
My highlight: We squeeze through a narrow gap in the mine. You know: the type of passage often used in games to load a new game section.
Humphry says: «Well, that looks absolutely safe. You go ahead.» As he struggles through the gap himself, Humphry grumbles: «Yep, caves were definitely bigger in my day.»
Source: Playground Games
A magical combat system
In the demo, I encounter skeletons that dig themselves out of the ground and green ghosts that possess these skeletons. If I kill a possessed skeleton, the ghost flees. I have to catch it before it disappears into the ground and digs up a new skeleton.
A challenging starting position that forces me to approach the enemies systematically – otherwise I remain trapped in an endless loop.
Source: Playground Games
My combat repertoire in «Fable» consists of three elements: melee weapons, ranged weapons, and magic. Before I dive into the first fight, Kennedy explains: «Our goal was to seamlessly combine all three elements. We call the principle 'Style-Weaving'. I hope that the demo gives you a feel for how easy it is to experiment with the elements and weave the attacks together.»
I play through the demo twice – in both runs, the development team provides me with different loadouts. On my maiden voyage, I am equipped with a massive hammer and a conventional bow. Four spells are available to me: I shoot fireballs like Super Mario, summon lightning from the sky, teleport to enemies, and turn them into undead chickens with the «Befoul» spell (yes, you read that right).
Source: Playground Games
At first, I focus only on my melee weapon, the hammer. My game character swings the huge thing around with effort. The impact when I hit enemies feels damn satisfying thanks to the combination of excellent animations, great sound design, and haptic feedback. Awesome.
Source: Playground Games
With every defeated enemy, I become more confident and start using my ranged weapon and magic as well. Despite initial skepticism, I realize that Playground Games’ «Style-Weaving» principle is more than just empty marketing fluff.
The controls feel intuitive, precise, and fast. Switching between melee, ranged, and magic works like a charm. I summon lightning while working on enemies with the hammer, teleport to fleeing ghosts to turn them into chickens, and shoot distant archers with a bow and arrow.
After my first run of the demo, I am convinced that the studio has achieved something very special with this combat system. Yes, perhaps even something magical (after all, we are talking about «Fable»).
Source: Playground Games
«'Fable' is about freedom – even in the combat system»
For the second demo run, Littler motivates me to increase the difficulty level. I get cocky and suggest turning it up by two levels right away.
«What could possibly go wrong?» I say to him. Littler replies: «You will die. That is what will go wrong.»
Source: Playground Games
He’s not wrong. I get beaten up from all sides. But that also has a silver lining: the higher difficulty level forces me to experiment even more with the various combat elements. This makes the combat system even more fun!
The hammer from the first run is available to me again. Instead of a boring bow and arrow, I find a crossbow machine gun in my loadout. In a short time, I unload up to 16 arrows into distant enemies and watch them squirm as they are riddled with holes.
My god, this weapon is cool. And helpful, especially against the nimble ghosts that I rarely catch in melee combat.
Source: Playground Games
The spells have also changed – except for the lightning, which I know from the first run. Now I summon magical daggers that automatically hit enemies near me – an excellent addition to the brutal crossbow. Furthermore, two spells are available to me that are particularly suitable for large groups of enemies: I can make several enemies float or knock them off cliffs with a powerful gust of wind.
I experiment happily with the abilities and keep finding exciting synergies between them. Due to the limited playtime, however, I have the feeling that I am only scratching the surface of the possibilities.
I ask the developers what their favorite strategies are.
Source: Playground Games
Kennedy explains: «I love making enemies float. While they squirm pathetically in the air, I attack them with lightning or arrows. To finish, I slam them into the ground.»
Littler prefers a somewhat more absurd approach: «I'll give you a good example of how we incorporate the typical 'Fable' humor into the combat system. If I'm overrun by enemies, I charge up my 'Befoul' spell and turn entire groups of enemies into helpless chickens. Then I roast the poultry group with a charged fireball.»
Thinking about the bizarre scene makes me burst out laughing.
Source: Playground Games
The spells in the demo are meant to be just a small taste of what awaits me in the finished game. Kennedy summarizes: « 'Fable' is about freedom. Not just in the quests and your decisions, but also in the moment-to-moment gameplay and the combat system. You should be able to put together your personal character exactly as you like.»
«Fable» has the makings of a hit
In addition to my hands-on demo, I watch a hands-off presentation. It takes place in the capital of the magical world of Albion, Bowerstone. Compared to the first demo, the game is running on ultra settings here – and it looks fairy-tale beautiful.
What I see confirms that «Fable» will also be convincing outside of the combat system. Bowerstone is a huge city with over 400 hand-crafted NPCs, all of whom go about their own lives with families, jobs, and hobbies.
There are over 130 apartments and over 30 shops to discover in the winding streets (which remind me of the crazy architecture of Diagon Alley from «Harry Potter»).
Crazy: I can go into every apartment and every shop. Even crazier: I can buy up every apartment and every shop and collect decent rental income as a landlord.
Source: Playground Games
In the demo, the game character has already bought their own apartment, gotten married, and started a family. Playground Games also emphasizes here how important freedom in the game is to them.
If you don't feel like life simulation, you can complete the main quest in about 20 hours. If you want to lose yourself in this world, you can spend countless hours in Albion. I will choose the second option.
Source: Playground Games
«We are huge fans of the original game» says Kennedy. «It is a huge honor to be able to make this remake. We hope that we have managed to capture all the elements that make 'Fable' so special. The British humor, the mix of fairy tales and dark moments, and the great player freedom, combined with tangible consequences.»
After the first Gamescom impressions, I would say that Playground Games is fully on track. Even more. I am sure: «Fable» will be, to put it as Britishly as possible, bloody brilliant.
Source: Playground Games
«Fable» will be released on February 23, 2027, for PS5, Xbox Series X/S, and PC.
My love of video games was unleashed at the tender age of five by the original Gameboy. Over the years, it's grown in leaps and bounds.
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