I've got mixed feelings about Fable 3 so far. I have to confess a 'i just can't quit you baby' relationship with Lionhead studios and old Peter Molyneux. I keep buying Black & White games when they come out, and I keep buying Fable games too. Lured in with his promises on how things will be different from the last time, yet.....
I dunno, in a way I can appreciate what they're trying to do, but in terms of execution, they always seem to pull off a "C grade" (in my opinion) each time around, passing but weak. This time around they've changed up some stuff, with the intention of cleaning the interface, removing traditional HUD elements or xp gains and menus. THis....doesn't always work, resulting in some cases of un-intuitive backwards tracking through the 'menu' to get what you need.
Likewise the expressions interface is supposedly more dynamic but also more restrictive. In previous versions, you could do multiple-person affecting expressions to influence their feelings towards you, now you have to do each one individually. Need to impress townspeople? Now you need to engage in the expression-minigame with EACH person you want to affect. Also, there tend to be some oddities.
You're generally presented with a 'choice' of Nice Rude and Funny options. However, depending on what you've unlocked, these choices are no longer context sensitive, instead queuing up in the 'same order'.
For example, here are my current defaults that come up with pretty much any applicable person I interact with: Dance (nice) Belch (rude) Chicken (Funny), so when I show up to any person, my only 1st option for nice is to DANCE WITH THEM. So apparently the best way for me to raise friendliness with that straight male guard with my straight male prince is to dance with them. Full of dips, and hell, if I extend it, the Dirty Dancing "Baby Lift" finishing move. Then my option of nice changes to either chat or patty-cake.
Apparently I can't immediately threaten anyone either, to get to that rude expression, first I have to belch in their face, THEN I can threaten them. Largely it serves to paint the idea that perhaps my Prince character is retarded in some way.
-more to follow
Full Version: Fable 3
Molyneux's third strike has long since passed. Maybe you gave him the whole inning?
~J
~J
*sniffle* I just can't quit him.
Heh.
Other thoughts:
- I've noticed an odd inversion when it comes to Demon Doors from Fable 1 to Fable 3. From Fable 1 to Fable 3 opening Demon doors has become more complicated, in some cases requiring 'end game' qualities (for gear, etc) or in one case at least, you CANT DO IT ALONE, that's right your single player experience now requires another player for at least 1 of the doors. The second thing, From fable 1 to Fable 3, the rewards have become worse. For the most part in earlier games, Demon doors hid Legendary weapons. In Fable 3, in some cases its lesser stuff like potions and 'guild seals' which is fable 3 version of experience points.
- Some of the odd, annoying linear map qualities remain. A map might look wide open, but oops, there's that ankle high rubble thats going to be an invisible wall you have to run all the way around. The static invulnerable hedge makes its reappearance. You may control the elements, able to rain fire with demonic glee, and carry bladed weaponry that cuts through steel and stone, but nope, a bit of shrubbery will make you go around.
- Real Estate annoyances. Like previous versions, you can buy and rent out homes and businesses. Thing is homes you rent out continuously degrade in 'health' requiring period repair. However, you need to repair each house individually, tehre's no 'repair all' management function. Sure repair is relatively cheap compared to the rent you get between 100 health and 0 health of a home, but once you have more than 10 houses, it can get aggravating, pretty much like the 'expression use on NPCs 1 at a time' thing. Im finding it far more beneficial to just not own houses and instead own businesses.
-Some positives: I do like the flourishes and 'slow-mo death action' cams that get triggered when you flourish, or apparently as your star rating in particular weapons increases the occasional 'crit-cam', wonderfully hammy in some cases. One flourish has my character turn to the camera as if breaking the fourth wall, with his free hand counting 1 2 3 as his pistol fires off shots to blast away a foe. All in awesome slow mo. My warhammer 'crit' can sometimes show an upwards sweep knocking the opponent into the air followed by a baseball like home run slam.
- The game is funny. Dialogue, random comments you hear as you walk around, even panicked chattered from mob groups as you kill them off.
-
Heh.
Other thoughts:
- I've noticed an odd inversion when it comes to Demon Doors from Fable 1 to Fable 3. From Fable 1 to Fable 3 opening Demon doors has become more complicated, in some cases requiring 'end game' qualities (for gear, etc) or in one case at least, you CANT DO IT ALONE, that's right your single player experience now requires another player for at least 1 of the doors. The second thing, From fable 1 to Fable 3, the rewards have become worse. For the most part in earlier games, Demon doors hid Legendary weapons. In Fable 3, in some cases its lesser stuff like potions and 'guild seals' which is fable 3 version of experience points.
- Some of the odd, annoying linear map qualities remain. A map might look wide open, but oops, there's that ankle high rubble thats going to be an invisible wall you have to run all the way around. The static invulnerable hedge makes its reappearance. You may control the elements, able to rain fire with demonic glee, and carry bladed weaponry that cuts through steel and stone, but nope, a bit of shrubbery will make you go around.
- Real Estate annoyances. Like previous versions, you can buy and rent out homes and businesses. Thing is homes you rent out continuously degrade in 'health' requiring period repair. However, you need to repair each house individually, tehre's no 'repair all' management function. Sure repair is relatively cheap compared to the rent you get between 100 health and 0 health of a home, but once you have more than 10 houses, it can get aggravating, pretty much like the 'expression use on NPCs 1 at a time' thing. Im finding it far more beneficial to just not own houses and instead own businesses.
-Some positives: I do like the flourishes and 'slow-mo death action' cams that get triggered when you flourish, or apparently as your star rating in particular weapons increases the occasional 'crit-cam', wonderfully hammy in some cases. One flourish has my character turn to the camera as if breaking the fourth wall, with his free hand counting 1 2 3 as his pistol fires off shots to blast away a foe. All in awesome slow mo. My warhammer 'crit' can sometimes show an upwards sweep knocking the opponent into the air followed by a baseball like home run slam.
- The game is funny. Dialogue, random comments you hear as you walk around, even panicked chattered from mob groups as you kill them off.
-
Well, crap, just ran into a game-screeching-halt bug. Apparently I'm not alone. Here's the bug.
Currently stuck in a main-quest dungeon, supposed to lead an NPC out, however the bug is that the 'interaction' prompt doesn't show up, meaning you can't take the npc by the hand, and you can't lead them out. Can't lead them out means you can't leave the dungeon either (akin to the 'you must gather your party before venturing forth....'). So you're stuck. Worse, the way the game handles saves is that your only real save is the charcter specific or autosave, which at best, gets overwritten, cept in this case, quitting and restarting dumps you to the start of the dungeon, but doesn't fix the bug. Meaning, say you restart the dungeon, get to the end, boss fight etc, problem is you still can't lead that npc out.
Congrats, you're stuck.
Currently stuck in a main-quest dungeon, supposed to lead an NPC out, however the bug is that the 'interaction' prompt doesn't show up, meaning you can't take the npc by the hand, and you can't lead them out. Can't lead them out means you can't leave the dungeon either (akin to the 'you must gather your party before venturing forth....'). So you're stuck. Worse, the way the game handles saves is that your only real save is the charcter specific or autosave, which at best, gets overwritten, cept in this case, quitting and restarting dumps you to the start of the dungeon, but doesn't fix the bug. Meaning, say you restart the dungeon, get to the end, boss fight etc, problem is you still can't lead that npc out.
Congrats, you're stuck.
QUOTE (Voran @ Nov 7 2010, 08:39 PM) 
-Some positives: I do like the flourishes and 'slow-mo death action' cams that get triggered when you flourish, or apparently as your star rating in particular weapons increases the occasional 'crit-cam', wonderfully hammy in some cases. One flourish has my character turn to the camera as if breaking the fourth wall, with his free hand counting 1 2 3 as his pistol fires off shots to blast away a foe. All in awesome slow mo. My warhammer 'crit' can sometimes show an upwards sweep knocking the opponent into the air followed by a baseball like home run slam.
I liked that. But after I started getting it every couple of blows, whether or not I flourished, it got real old. And the variety is lacking.
Unfortunately the list of negatives is rather large, and the list of positives is rather small. Which is odd, considering Fable 3 is not a bad game.
I'll probably pick up the PC version, if and when it finally comes out.
It sounds like it's not the best in the series but I'm too much of a Fable fan to not give it a try. I had to finish 2 in around 3 days one school holiday when I had access to my son's 360 fo a while so I'm really hoping it actually does make it to PC release.
It sounds like it's not the best in the series but I'm too much of a Fable fan to not give it a try. I had to finish 2 in around 3 days one school holiday when I had access to my son's 360 fo a while so I'm really hoping it actually does make it to PC release.
looks like they finally released a patch, was able to get past my game breaking bug. Only took a month. Wow.
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