Fable Anniversary Reviews

The upside is that Fable Anniversary is still the same great old title it always was. The downside is it's still the same great old title it always was.

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There’s nothing quite like the Fable series. While many roleplaying games draw on the fantasy of Tolkien and George R.R. Martin, Lionhead’s leading franchise imbues fairy tale and folklore with the youthful adventure of the Harry Potter books, the irreverent buffoonery of Monty Python and the bawdy humour of Chaucer. It makes for a uniquely characterful experience.

I was waiting for the opportunity to return to Albion, I was happy with the prospect of releasing the first Fable in a completely new setting. However, I did not expect that the Lionhead studio would not pay so much attention to the technical aspects of its production.

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As there's no real burden of expectation on its shoulders, it's hard to imagine anyone getting angry with Fable Anniversary, and yet it's equally hard to shake a feeling of disappointment. It's the original, rather than this update, that's the problem. Fable's fundamentals already had a major overhaul in 2, and while a return to those ideas in rawer form provides an insight into the evolution of game mechanics, it also serves as a stark reminder of its age. Albion's rustic embrace is as warm and inviting as ever, but harsh reality gatecrashes this wistful Anniversary celebration.

Fable Anniversary’s personality has proved truly ageless, even if some of its mechanics haven’t. Inevitably, its doesn’t feel as fresh today as they did in 2004, but the strange and beautiful world of Albion, with all its weird idiosyncrasies and wildly varied accents, is as absorbing and lovably, peculiarly British as it ever was.