Fable III hands you a crown, then asks whether you deserve to keep it. Lionhead Studios built its 2010 action role-playing game around a bait-and-switch: the revolution is only half the story.
Trailer, via IGN.
Logan, King of Albion
The game opens 50 years after Fable II. Albion is under the control of Logan, a tyrant king and the older brother of the player’s character, the Royal Hero. Logan has ruled four years and has grown worse, to the point that he recently executed a citizen for a minor crime. When protesters come for him, the Royal Hero must choose between sacrificing the group or their own love interest.
That choice sets the tone. Sir Walter Beck, the hero’s mentor, urges escape and rebellion. Joined by the butler Jasper, the Royal Hero flees the castle, finds a hidden dimension once used by the former king, and meets Theresa, the Seeress of the Spire, who foresees them ruling Albion and saving it from a terrible fate.
Building a Revolution
The first half is recruitment. The hero gathers Sabine, leader of the mountain-dwelling Dwellers; Major Swift and Ben Finn of the Royal Army; and Page, who leads the Bowerstone Resistance. Logan catches wind of the plot, captures Swift and executes him for treason.
The cast is unusually deep for the series. Michael Fassbender voices Logan. Ben Kingsley is Sabine, Stephen Fry is Reaver, Simon Pegg is Ben Finn, Naomie Harris is Page, Zoë Wanamaker is Theresa, Bernard Hill is Sir Walter Beck, John Cleese is Jasper, and Nicholas Hoult is Elliot. That lineup does more work than the script asks of it.
Good, Evil, and a Dog
Combat runs on three attacks: melee, ranged and magic. Weapons change shape based on what the player does, and critical hits trigger kill animations matched to the weapon and the enemy. A morality system sorts most actions as good or evil, with generosity and forgiveness on one side, greed and cruelty on the other. Side quests and crimes like robbery or murder move the needle too.
A pet dog travels with the Royal Hero, can be named, played with, petted and scolded, and can guide the player to treasure. It is the warmest thing in a game about hard arithmetic.
After a successful revolt, the player becomes the monarch and is tasked with attempting to defend Albion from a great evil.
The Second Half Is the Point
Once the hero takes the throne, a force from Aurora called The Darkness threatens Albion, and the player decides how to answer it. This is where Fable III earns its keep. The kingdom-management half turns every earlier kindness into a budget problem, and the promises made during the revolution come due.
It does not fully land. The industrial-age Albion, with its factories and resource gathering, is a strong setting that the back half underuses, and the moral binary stays crude. But the structure is braver than most 2010 role-playing games, and the voice work carries scenes the writing does not.
Key facts
- Released: 29 October 2010 (Xbox 360); 20 May 2011 (PC, via Games for Windows and Steam)
- Platforms: Xbox 360, Microsoft Windows
- Developer: Lionhead Studios; Publisher: Microsoft Game Studios
- PC version adds Hardcore mode and 3D functionality
- Critic aggregate: 7.8/10 (8 outlets)
Fable III is a game that trusts its own twist. The revolution is the tutorial; the reign is the test. That gamble is worth more than its uneven execution, and it is why the game still reads as the most interesting entry in the series.
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