Fable is out, what do you think?

[Jason McMaster]

I played for a good while last night and so far I think it's pretty keen. The graphics are really nice and the quests are really engrossing. I love the setting. The towns have a sleepy feel to them with great looking architecture and a real feeling of life and the countryside is really attractive with a ton of tree cover and nice ambient sound. The lighting in Fable is pretty cool overall, it adds a glow to the world which makes it look kinda dreamy at certain points and in other places it's just really cool to watch the light filter down through the canopy of leaves above.

The soundtrack is really cool and the game itself works pretty well overall. Supposedly Danny Elfman did the 3 minute opening theme which is pretty easy to tell as it has a definite Elfman feel to it. Otherwise the sound for the different parts of them game is nice. Combat has a certain sense of urgency in sound and the rest of the world, depending on the area, is either rather peaceful or overall threatening. The music really helps get the player into the story.

The only gripes I have are minor. The combat system is pretty confusing and congested up close. It's almost too much to be able to keep track of all the enemies you're fighting. I wish it had some sort of bullet time or something like that. On top of the combat system being hectic the targeting system, while it works, isn't the most intuitive and makes for accidental kills of people you don't want to harm. I know that several times last night I killed a peasant or someone I was guarding just because I couldn't tell if they were an enemy or not. The reason for this is that when you use the target trigger, it automatically turns whatever your pointed at red. Now without the trigger pulled down everything either appears green for interactable, white for friend and red for enemy. So, when you're in combat mode if you're not careful you can accidentally acquire a friendly as your main target. Finally, the last thing I guess I could complain about is that the AI will sometimes charge the person you're supposed to protect while I beat them with my big-assed flaming sword. This very thing happened while I was protecting an eight year old boy. There's me, dressed all in black holding a gigantic flaming sword and an eight year old boy who is screaming and cringing in a corner. I mean, my first choice would be to run directly past the guy who is sticking a gigantic blade coated in fire directly in my ass and beat the fuck out of a child.

All that aside, the game is pretty awesome so far. I'm having a great time with it.

This is much better than Black and White

[asspennies]

I think Fable is going to turn out ok and not be a "the emperor wears no clothes" situation like Black and White was, but when you say

All that aside, the game is pretty awesome so far. I'm having a great time with it.

and then say

This is much better than Black and White

...I mean, wasn't that the big problem with Black and White? It all felt great "so far" - like in the first level or two, then it just fell apart?

[Jason McMaster]

I mean that there's actually a game and you can skip the cut scenes.

[Reed]

...I mean, wasn't that the big problem with Black and White? It all felt great "so far" - like in the first level or two, then it just fell apart?
Heh, yeah. First impressions of B&W were excellent w/ most gamers. So were the reviews (http://www.gametab.com/pc/black.&.white/2895/). Except CGM and FiringSquad, who actually played it more than a few hours before writing the review. Kudos.

But back to Fable... I didn't get in much time w/ it last night, but what I've seen was quite promising indeed. The atmosphere is great and I really dig what the game is trying to do. And you definitely could choose to rush through this OR take your time and enjoy the details.

For example, when you're a kid, you will discover a husband cheating on his wife with another woman (behind a house in the village). You have the option to tell his wife about it. If you do, she thanks you, then runs off to find him. If you run after her, you will see her yelling at him. If you talk to her at that point, she responds in a way you'd expect. So does the husband. That's a huge detail that many will probably never see.

I'm curious to see whether or not they keep this up throughout the entire game.

[stusser]

I've only put in an hour or so. My only real gripe so far is that the voice acting is unbelievably horrible. No, surprisingly not the accents, they're fine, but the actors sounds like english people reading a script rather than, you know, acting. Just painful.

[Thierry Nguyen]

I wish it had some sort of bullet time or something like that.

I haven't used it myself, but I'm pretty sure the Slow Time spell is what you're looking for.

[Jason McMaster]

Oh cool. I really want to avoid magic with my first character. I've made him good with bow and swords, which is cool, but he's crappy with the spells. I may try to get that one though

[olaf]

I picked this up yesterday.

I am not too far in, I have just graduated from the Hero guild and done one quest. So, I havent seen very much of the game.

My biggest beef so far was that I was unable to world save at all until I had graduated from the hero academy. This was ridiculous. I could do a hero save, but reloading that game started me WAY back in time and did not actually save all of my items, as it says it does. In fact from when I started the game, to when I graduated took me 2 hours. Two hours where you cant save, that is gay. Now if I had skipped the cutscenes and not explored anything, I probably could have been done in 30 mins. Still, there is only 1 autosave along the way.

Other complaints would be minor. The outdoor lighting sucks IMO, the sun is too bright and washes out whatever I am focused on. The in game brightness option didnt help this.

I dont like the look of the kids either with their huge ass feet. I look like a hobbit or something.

The way the game decides what is good and evil is kind of arbitrary too and I also dont like getting accosted by the guards for doing something that no one saw me do.

Its hard to quantify what I do like, but so far its a good game. I am sure its going to be way too short for my tastes though, if everything I hear about its length is accurate. This is a game that ought to be 40 hours long, not 15.

olaf

[Sharpe]

How does it actually play? Is it like Diablo or more like an an arcade martial arts game or more in-between?

Dan

[Jason McMaster]

It plays more like a martial arts kind of thing. It actually reminds me of Gothic 2 in the view/control aspect.

[Al]

So, is it true that it won't run in 480p unless you follow this 15 step process? (http://www.gonegold.com/ubb/ultimatebb.cgi?ubb=get_topic;f=12;t=009722)

[Kevin Grey]

So, is it true that it won't run in 480p unless you follow this 15 step process? (http://www.gonegold.com/ubb/ultimatebb.cgi?ubb=get_topic;f=12;t=009722)

I think that's only for select model TVs.

[Reed]

I dont like the look of the kids either with their huge ass feet. I look like a hobbit or something.
I didn't care for that either, and "hobbit" was my very first thought. Their hands are HUGE as well. I guess that's just style they wanted to go for, but I find it distracting.

[Chowhound]

How's the combat? I hope it's nothing like Sudeki's, which I thought was horrid.

[Mike Cathcart]

The combat is fine. It's a bit like a Zelda game. You lock on to a character and then you can do dodges and rolls but keep your focus on the enemy. You've got a basic melee attack and if you swing a few times you get to use a stronger melee attack. Pull in the right trigger (holding both at the same time, this is a little weird) and you switch to the magic system.

I'm a big fan of the Zelda games so it took very little time to get used to this. I do wish you didn't have to hold the L trigger down for the whole fight, though. You should be able to lock on and let go. Or maybe I'm doing something wrong.

Anyway I really like Fable so far. The areas and buildings have a simple but nice style, the music is great, fighting is fun, and the NPC reactions, character customization and levelling system all make me wish I had called out of work today. Damn deadlines.

[Kunikos]

So does it being on Xbox mean you can get a patch with Xbox Live to fix the targeting issues when they realize it would make it a better game? :lol:

[Dirt]

Can you imagine having to download security patches for your X-Box?

[awdougherty]

Anyone heard when stores like Best Buy are going to get this one in? I could buy it at another store, but I was given a Best Buy gift certificate specifically to get this.

[olaf]

I would guess Friday or thereabouts for places like BB.

Another thing I am finding annoying is the way the game thinks fart and laugh are a good use of 2 of my 3 D-pad maps most of the time. Very lame.

olaf

[Jason Cross]

Played a few hours last night, and I'm having great fun with it.

Yeah, about a dozen of the really cool features they talked about didn't make it into the game. But what DID make it in still makes it feel a bit more reactive than most console RPGs.

It certainly has a unique flair to it, a good heap of personality that doesn't wear thin, but rather grows more endearing as you get into it.

Now that the developers have a good handle on what works and what doesn't, what's doable without breaking the game and what has to be left out, I'd love to see a Fable 2.

Here's hoping it doesn't all fall apart after Hour Ten or something. :)

[Jason Cross]

I would guess Friday or thereabouts for places like BB.

Another thing I am finding annoying is the way the game thinks fart and laugh are a good use of 2 of my 3 D-pad maps most of the time. Very lame.

olaf

1. you probably know this, but you can assign four of your own expressions or items to all four buttons, and then access that set of four by pulling the right trigger.

2. Three of the four spots on the D-pad (when not pulling the right trigger) are context sensitive. The reason fart and burp are there almost all the time now is because you haven't played enough to earn more varied and appropriate expressions. As you go on, it'll get to be more... food or potions will appear there as you need them and be replaced when your bars are full, flowers or candy will appear there when you hit on a young lass (or lad), assuming you bought some. Things like that.

I totally agreed with you at first, but as I played on and got more expressions and items, the context sensitivity really started to kick in.

I didn't care for that either, and "hobbit" was my very first thought. Their hands are HUGE as well. I guess that's just style they wanted to go for, but I find it distracting.

I rather like the style. I didn't really think "hobbit" but it reminds me a lot of Joe Madureira's style for Battle Chasers and a few other comics he's worked on. I mean it's no more silly than the typical Japanese conventions, but it gives the game a unique and sort of cartoonish look and feel. It's like, I dunno, the West's answer to traditional Anime style.

Okay I don't know what I'm talking about, I'm babbling. But I like the big hand/feet thing.

[Gordon Cameron]

Here's hoping it doesn't all fall apart after Hour Ten or something.

It might be over by then, from what I've heard. :wink:

[MattKeil]

My first time through as primarily a fighter was fine, but when I started a character I decided to use as a mage, the game's shortcomings became far more apparent.

Put bluntly, the targeting system is broken. I can't believe how many times I've accidentally fried an ally because my lightning decided to autotarget the trader or whatever I'm supposed to be guarding after the enemy I'm fighting is dead. There's no way to lock out friendlies, and there's no way to use magic without using the targeting. Additionally, to use magic while targeting, you have to be holding L trigger (to target), R trigger (to activate magic on the face buttons), and tapping whichever spell button to cast particle effect death at your foe. Plus move around with with the left stick, and to manually switch targets you must hit left/right on the right stick (and no, this won't exclude friendlies, either). If you decide you need to block, you'll have to hit the Y button without R trigger held down. If you hit Y by accident before you release R trigger, you'll toggle to a different spell set, which can royally fuck you. You can't run away with magic active because the B button you use to sprint is a spell when modified with R. Occasionally even taking off R trigger won't help you if your combat multiplier is up enough, in which case hitting B to sprint will merely make you do a flourish move.

If you're up for swinging an axe or a sword around and hewing your foes into cutlets, Fable is a great time. If you want to use magic or archery...well, I've spent enough time wrestling with the damn controller as a mage to say that it's not nearly as polished in that regard.

[Kitsune]

I didn't care for that either, and "hobbit" was my very first thought. Their hands are HUGE as well. I guess that's just style they wanted to go for, but I find it distracting.

I rather like the style. I didn't really think "hobbit" but it reminds me a lot of Joe Madureira's style for Battle Chasers and a few other comics he's worked on. I mean it's no more silly than the typical Japanese conventions, but it gives the game a unique and sort of cartoonish look and feel. It's like, I dunno, the West's answer to traditional Anime style.

An answer to the answer? :D

That is to say, why is there a need to answer something that was in itself an answer to the original thing?

In any case, if Joe Whatever is primarily a comic book artist, I think that would make sense, as Fable brings that same sense of color-shading to its visuals as you see in more modern American comic books. I thought its style was particularly gotten from saturating natural light sources and focusing on them, as well as having characters that seem to vividly stand out in contrast to their environs (instead of blending, but not in a bad way). It also seems like the game uses an overall tint either slightly or dramatically, but not as obviously as Metal Gear Solid brings on the blue, for instance. This is the impression I've got from the screenshots and it seems to me like, combined with its sense of character modeling (which is far better than Sudeki's and Morrowind's and a little less box-like than KOTOR's and Gothic's) is what gives Fable is look and that's all it really needs.

In most cases, I think all a game needs is an attention to SOME kind of style no matter how realistic it wants to be, similar to the people who are making comments about World of Warcraft vs. Everquest 2. Of course, that's an example of good, obvious stylizing, but in most cases I think all you need is a strong sense of your own visual cues, and in some cases, it hurts the game to be too strongly stylized. If I were to compare it to some place on Earth, I'd say it reminds me of pictures I have in my head for Holland and the Netherlands, whether that's right or wrong and I'd say, if you're going for a cleary more down-to-earth presentation, that's a good indication that you've acheived good enough art direction. So again, I can't see why there'd need to be a response. When there is one, it usually sucks. See Sudeki's visual vomit.

I noticed the whole kids things in earlier screenshots, but I assumed they were earlier models since they looked like goblins wearing construction helmets made out of hair, they kept that in the game?

-Kitsune

[Jason McMaster]

If you're up for swinging an axe or a sword around and hewing your foes into cutlets, Fable is a great time. If you want to use magic or archery...well, I've spent enough time wrestling with the damn controller as a mage to say that it's not nearly as polished in that regard.

I play as an archer primarily and it's not a big deal with it. I have killed some good guys on accident though

[MattKeil]

If you're up for swinging an axe or a sword around and hewing your foes into cutlets, Fable is a great time. If you want to use magic or archery...well, I've spent enough time wrestling with the damn controller as a mage to say that it's not nearly as polished in that regard.

I play as an archer primarily and it's not a big deal with it. I have killed some good guys on accident though

I have found the archery to be more functional than the magic. Missing a shot with a bow is less likely to bite you in the ass later, because bows have unlimited ammo. Miss with a spell, and not only have you hurt/killed an ally, but you've wasted mana that you needed to kill the enemies charging your skinny mystic ass.

It's not a deal-breaker, but the combat makes ranged characters work a hell of a lot harder. Fable suffers from balance issues in that respect.

[Zteven]

My first time through as primarily a fighter was fine, but when I started a character I decided to use as a mage, the game's shortcomings became far more apparent.

Put bluntly, the targeting system is broken.

Didn't you also have problems with Ninja Gaiden? If I remember correctly, you were very negative about the controls of that game. When I played it myself, it turned out to be perfectly allright to control. I know this doesn't sound very friendly, and for that I apologize, but could the problem be you? On the other hand, Fable (contrary to NG) should be accesible to anyone, so your point still stands.

Bye,
Steven

[Warlord of Mars]

Anyone heard when stores like Best Buy are going to get this one in? I could buy it at another store, but I was given a Best Buy gift certificate specifically to get this.

They usually have the big name releases (this certainly qualifies) the day after the usual EB Games/Gamestop pre-order shipments. So I usually just tack on one day to the release date and then head to Best Buy or Fry's. I thought I saw somewhere that Fry's is selling Fable for cheap tomorrow (Thursday), so I'll go check that out, probably.

[MattKeil]

My first time through as primarily a fighter was fine, but when I started a character I decided to use as a mage, the game's shortcomings became far more apparent.

Put bluntly, the targeting system is broken.

Didn't you also have problems with Ninja Gaiden? If I remember correctly, you were very negative about the controls of that game. When I played it myself, it turned out to be perfectly allright to control. I know this doesn't sound very friendly, and for that I apologize, but could the problem be you? On the other hand, Fable (contrary to NG) should be accesible to anyone, so your point still stands.


No, the problem isn't me. 25 years of gaming is enough to, IMO, qualify me to know when a game is the problem and when I am the problem. I still maintain that Ninja Gaiden's targeting and combat is highly unfriendly, and it requires a lot of practice to get a grip on the quirks of it. Another issue is the fact that there is usually only one effective way to attack a particular enemy type, so until you learn it, you're going to get your ass kicked. Some people enjoy that, I consider it fairly shoddy design. However, enough play time on NG has let me adjust to how the game functions, and I am currently about halfway through the Hurricane Pack. So :P

But with Fable, it's not a matter of learning its quirks or getting better at the game. I've already finished the game once, I know what's what in the game. The problem is that the targeting system does not differentiate between friendlies and enemies in any way, to the point that last night I was trying to fight off bandits that were attacking a group of traders, and the targeting would not target a bandit on its own even after five tries of the L trigger. Every time it went to one of the traders, and a different one every time. Because I had a fireball spell charged up, I couldn't reach the right stick to manually change my target (holding R trigger and the X button), so I actually lifted the controller up and switched targets using my nose to push the analog stick to the left. I do not find this reasonable.

Unlike Ninja Gaiden, I don't think any amount of practice is going to fix the issues here. In NG you can work with the combat system's foibles, but in Fable you have to work around them. I've been playing it close to 30 hours total at this point, and the targeting system is still sketchy at best, with no signs of some magic epiphany that will reveal its mysteries to me. And from what I've seen, I'm hardly the only one having trouble with it.

If you play a balanced character or one tilted toward melee, you're not going to notice it as much. But try playing a magic-only character, and some of the quests will make you want to rip heads off. Luckily, when you switch back to the melee combat, you can.

[Kevin Grey]

Anyone heard when stores like Best Buy are going to get this one in? I could buy it at another store, but I was given a Best Buy gift certificate specifically to get this.

My Best Buy had tons of copies of Fable this morning.

[GregB]

No, the problem isn't me. 25 years of gaming is enough to, IMO, qualify me to know when a game is the problem and when I am the problem.

Face it, Matt. You suck :D

[MattKeil]

No, the problem isn't me. 25 years of gaming is enough to, IMO, qualify me to know when a game is the problem and when I am the problem.

Face it, Matt. You suck :D

Now I don't feel bad about dredging up your Engrish segment for this week's show.

GregB knows where all the sailors hang out, if you know what I mean.

[Rod Humble]

No, the problem isn't me. 25 years of gaming is enough to, IMO, qualify me to know when a game is the problem and when I am the problem.

I read this and my immediate reaction was "yeah RIGHT, what computer games were you playing 25 years ago?"

Than I realised I was playing my ZX80 rally racer game I typed in from a mag 25 years ago.

I also realised I am getting old :)

[DanielElliot]

Is it possible to play a thief type character in this game, and solve quests through stealth and backstabbing? I'm just starting, and that was what I had in mind, but I notice the weapons merchant in the first town doesn't have any daggers.

I know you can steal stuff, I'm more talking about combat.

[olaf]

I dont like the targeting either. There are a lot of fights where you have 3+ enemies around you and at least 1 ally or friendly. Target switching is a pain in these situations, for me anyway. Holding down left trigger and moving the right stick left or right cycles targets but that is really hard to do in the middle of a fight especially with block, which is often mandatory, being the Y button. The other option is releasing left trigger, refocusing on a new enemy then holding it down again. This is a crap shoot in a frantic battle.

The control scheme would have been better served by mapping block to a trigger I think and having the magic mode be a toggle, like have the white button cycle through unarmed/fists, melee, ranged and the black button toggle magic mode. I havent looked to see if you can remap the controls, perhaps you can.

You were right in that the fart/laugh thing gets resolved somewhat as you get more emotes. But still the context is not very intelligent most of the time. I have, I think, 9 total emotes now and very often fart or sneer is one of the two default choices. I am not evil so those two dont make much sense to me.

The other thing I really hate is the save logic. The game autosaves when you load a save...even when you load an autosave. It tacks on an unnecessary few seconds to each load and also can render useless your existing autosave if you are loading a normal save. What could possible be the point of doing it this way? Finally, even when you have the world save option (as opposed to the hero save) it doesnt exactly save your game. Time of day gets reset as well as your location, at least in some city maps. This sucks especially since there is no easy way to advance time that I am aware of, aside from sleeping to get the time to either dusk/dawn. Oh and my bed at the hero guild is bugged, I cant sleep in it at all.

Finally I am getting my ass handed to me on the optional kill the hobbe contest mission. The game has been, combat wise, a cake walk up until now. I guess I need to level up or something, or try some new tactics if I can buy some new spells.

olaf

[Miramon]

I just picked up an X-box and Fable yesterday, so I was wondering if the control and targeting scheme was really kind of lame at times, or whether I was just not used to the godawful controller.

I still haven't figured out the expression/item-use quickmenu thing yet. I try to select assign-to-+ or whatever the option is, but the menu doesn't seem to change. No doubt I have to hold down some other button while rapidly clicking another while banging my head against a wall or something.....

So far (helping traders through darkwood) I'm liking the game, though.

[MattKeil]

No, the problem isn't me. 25 years of gaming is enough to, IMO, qualify me to know when a game is the problem and when I am the problem.

I read this and my immediate reaction was "yeah RIGHT, what computer games were you playing 25 years ago?"

Than I realised I was playing my ZX80 rally racer game I typed in from a mag 25 years ago.

I also realised I am getting old :)

Heh. The game I had in mind was actually Asteroids, which was the first game I ever played back in 1979. I was only 3, but it counts.

[MattKeil]

Is it possible to play a thief type character in this game, and solve quests through stealth and backstabbing? I'm just starting, and that was what I had in mind, but I notice the weapons merchant in the first town doesn't have any daggers.

I know you can steal stuff, I'm more talking about combat.

It's real tough to be a thief. There is no backstabbing of the D&D variety, and as far as I know there are no daggers. In fact, a longsword is about as small as the weaponry gets. If you upgrade Guile enough, you get the ability to steal and you become "more stealthy," which seems to just mean that people don't notice you as readily, particularly if you're walking around holding the L trigger to sneak.

Trouble here is that you can't turn left or right while walking with L, so you have to let go of L to turn and see what's around you. Let go of L and, that's right, you're no longer sneaking, so anyone nearby will probably notice you.

My evil archer has developed some thieving ability, and it's relatively simple to snatch the occasional resurrection vial or free weapon from a store. As for actually playing the traditional thief role in combat, I don't see how it's possible. There's one part where I was forced to sneak, but since I was able to do it with my big dopey fighter who had no Guile training at all, I can't imagine being a thief-style character would have much of an effect.

[olaf]

I just picked up an X-box and Fable yesterday, so I was wondering if the control and targeting scheme was really kind of lame at times, or whether I was just not used to the godawful controller.

I still haven't figured out the expression/item-use quickmenu thing yet. I try to select assign-to-+ or whatever the option is, but the menu doesn't seem to change. No doubt I have to hold down some other button while rapidly clicking another while banging my head against a wall or something.....

So far (helping traders through darkwood) I'm liking the game, though.
You cant change the 'default' quickmenu choices. The game decides for you what those are. They change depending on your circumstance, inventory, alignment, etc. Its a nice try, but they really should let you override the game. You can, however, change the quickpad options that are presented when you are in magic mode (hold down right trigger). These are what you have been changing, so if you hold down right trigger you should see your custom ones and be able to use them with the D pad.

olaf

[Rod Humble]

No, the problem isn't me. 25 years of gaming is enough to, IMO, qualify me to know when a game is the problem and when I am the problem.

I read this and my immediate reaction was "yeah RIGHT, what computer games were you playing 25 years ago?"

Than I realised I was playing my ZX80 rally racer game I typed in from a mag 25 years ago.

I also realised I am getting old :)

Heh. The game I had in mind was actually Asteroids, which was the first game I ever played back in 1979. I was only 3, but it counts.

Oooh thanks a bunch, now I feel even fekkin* older :)



*and just like my parents I have started useing alternatives to curse words. Nooooo the prophecy..........

[Jason Cross]

That is to say, why is there a need to answer something that was in itself an answer to the original thing?


Why does there have to be a question for someone to chime in? It's just a conversation. I put the quote in there because I was switching gears, responding to a different part of the thread. :)

[Zteven]

I couldn't reach the right stick to manually change my target (holding R trigger and the X button), so I actually lifted the controller up and switched targets using my nose to push the analog stick to the left. I do not find this reasonable.

All right, you convinced me. :-) I can't play the game yet, so I just hope control issues won't bother me when I can play it. I usually take ranged characters.

Bye,
Steven

[Kitsune]

That is to say, why is there a need to answer something that was in itself an answer to the original thing?


Why does there have to be a question for someone to chime in? It's just a conversation. I put the quote in there because I was switching gears, responding to a different part of the thread. :)

Err, same here, I wasn't being literal either, so all's good! ^_^

I just got called to my friend's house because according to tracking Fable is going to arrive today (I didn't know he wanted it that badly, shipping seems fast to me). I can't wait! I don't own an Xbox, but he doesn't speak the best English in the world so guess what _I_ get to do all weekend? *grimace* According to him, Microsoft's games tend to sound like they were translated by an idiot savant (see? It goes both ways!) Fable is going to have a translated release here, but it'll be good to see what the English version is like so I can decide on crappy, rushed translation to make it easier or a little harder to understand to make it better if I decide to get an Xbox. (And no one gets an Xbox without modding it, right?)

I hear the voice-acting is in an accent, I was taught English by a guy with a British accent, so I think I'll be okay.

On a somewhat different note, its not just my friend, I've noticed a lot of Japanese gamers seem more interested in Fable than most of what's been out for the Xbox so far. You go, Microsoft, flex what won't work and hide what will, that's the spirit!

Tanoshimi! (What you say when something looks like fun.)

-Kitsune

[tglennow]

That is to say, why is there a need to answer something that was in itself an answer to the original thing?


Why does there have to be a question for someone to chime in? It's just a conversation. I put the quote in there because I was switching gears, responding to a different part of the thread. :)

I think what Kitsune meant was that if this is the answer to anime, then they are answering what in itself is an answer to western world comic art and cartoons. It's coming full circle, see? :wink:

[Jason McMaster]

I beat the game last night. Shockingly so because I didn't see it coming.

I don't know if this is a spoiler or not so consider this a spoiler warning































Once you get to a point where you have to go to the Hook Coast or Point or whatever to go to this Abbey for a key do not plan on playing the regular game anymore. If you want to continue exploring and everything, just don't do that quest yet.

[Kevin Grey]

I beat the game last night. Shockingly so because I didn't see it coming.


I know you can continue playing after you've "completed" it in a sort of sandbox mode. Are any sidequests you might have missed still available in that mode?

[Jason McMaster]

I'm actually not sure how you continue playing. As soon as I finished the main quest the game dropped me to the menu screen. I tried to figure out how to continue, but who knows. I'll look at it more tonight. There was still tons of stuff I wanted to do.

[Warlord of Mars]

I didn't get to Fry's til evening yesterday, but it was indeed being sold cheaper ($36.99). It was a one day-only deal, though. Just a heads up to anyone who wanted to go to Fry's thinking that would still be in effect.

[Reed]

The targeting does suck, compared to something like Zelda, that's a fact.

I'm trying to play a 100% good character, and it's often hard not to hit the people you're not supposed to, even with melee sometimes. Unless you're really paying attention.

This might make sense though, is it intentional from a design perspective?

It adds some difficulty to playing a good character and is another lure to the dark side, if you will. You can't just go crazy and rain destruction upon your enemies. You have to play carefully and pay close attention to what you're doing and who you're targetting.

[il_matto]

You never need to use the target lock in Fable.

Melee fighting is a *LOT* easier without target lock. Just move in the direction you want to swing. With practice you can get much better at hitting multipler targets with a swing. With lightning, it will hit the nearest enemy (ies).

When you are not using target lock, you will never hit an ally. Lighting will not hit them, neither will swings. Multiple target lightning will only hit enemies. Bows are harder to use without locking, but still possible. In snipe mode there is no target lock.

Fireball is tricky, but possible to use without locking. If you really want to be a straight mage, look into enflame. No targeting, no hitting allies.

[EFlannum]

I disagree about bows not necessarily needing target lock... it is absolutely essential to target lock with the bow. I have found that I can't hit the broadside of a barn without locking on when I am not in "sniper" mode. I am playing the game through now using just bow+ magic and have found target lock to be completely necessary and completely frustrating for all the aforementioned reasons. Still... having fun with the game despite lots of annoyances.

[DanielElliot]

I dunno if I really like this game. I think I'll start over as a big fat dumb evil fighter and see if I have any more fun. It just feels really shallow, and a lot of the freeform stuff is just cosmetic.

Or maybe a monk. Are there any, I dunno, brass knuckles or anything that would give a fistfighter/martial artist some equipment to play with?

For a game hyped so heavily on being able to be anyting you want, it sure feels limited. I would rather have just picked a class like a normal RPG than have what this seems to be.


Fighter-------------------------------------------------------------Mage

You can be anything you want as long as it's somewhere along this line!

[Tart]

I dunno if I really like this game. I think I'll start over as a big fat dumb evil fighter and see if I have any more fun. It just feels really shallow, and a lot of the freeform stuff is just cosmetic.

Or maybe a monk. Are there any, I dunno, brass knuckles or anything that would give a fistfighter/martial artist some equipment to play with?

For a game hyped so heavily on being able to be anyting you want, it sure feels limited. I would rather have just picked a class like a normal RPG than have what this seems to be.


Fighter-------------------------------------------------------------Mage

Pretty much agree.

This is one of my main gripes with this game (besides having to hold L and R at the same time when casting). For example, I wanted to be an assassin type character: Kill for money, slink back into the shadows, and sneak around into places I shouldn't be. Instead I'm forced to bone up on toughness/health instead of physique/guile, if I want to get anywhere. Hell, there's even an assassain title.

I suppose I could try to do this on my own, enforcing my own little rules. However, it's practically impossible to hide from guards, and there's little to no sneaking.

But somehow it's still very endearing.

[olaf]

I keep going back and forth on it. I like the game until I get one of those goddamn escort quests which are pretty much every other mission. How very tedious.

That not locking on in melee combat tip has helped me a ton though, thanks for that. I still wish block was a trigger instead of the Y button.

olaf

[olaf]

Ok so I was trying out my guile steal thing and it sucks, I got caught. So I decided to vent. And so I began killing guards. Many guards. Later, I killed some more. Then I killed some citizens, then more guards, this time in different costumes. Like a medievil swat team or something. So, 20 minutes into this bloodbath there is no end in sight to these guards. My fine is at like 200K, this annoying alarm bell is going off somewhere in town, and guards are spawning all over the place. Does this ever stop? It doesnt seem like it.

olaf

[Gary Whitta]

I'm only just starting out (just graduated from hero academy) but I'm really enjoying it so far. I suspect I'll end up liking it for much the same reasons I liked KOTOR, but whether or not I'll like it as much is a whole other question.

[HRose]

Uhm... 25 years ago I was 1 years old. But I still feel old.

My early experiences are all about the C64.

[beecubed]

beat it tonight. fable was good, but i think that i preferred kotor.

[Ignatius P. Reilly]

Rented it, returned it, I give it a C+. It's the kind of game that makes you glad they still make games for the PC.

[Warlord of Mars]

Ok so I was trying out my guile steal thing and it sucks, I got caught. So I decided to vent. And so I began killing guards. Many guards. Later, I killed some more. Then I killed some citizens, then more guards, this time in different costumes. Like a medievil swat team or something. So, 20 minutes into this bloodbath there is no end in sight to these guards. My fine is at like 200K, this annoying alarm bell is going off somewhere in town, and guards are spawning all over the place. Does this ever stop? It doesnt seem like it.

olaf

Leave the town. If you teleport to the Hero Guild, it'll show you how long it will take before the guards calm down at the sight of you.

[Zteven]

I'm stuck.

SPOILERS

I'm at the quest where you have to find the name of a demon door. I found out it is 'hits' and tried it, but nothing happens. I also tried the easter egg (entering 'shit') to see if that would produce the effect I read on the cheat site, but that doesn't do anything either. I push each stone in turn (it displays a dialog with the letter) and then walk to the demon door. It always says I have to find its name and have to press the stones if I do. Can somebody help me here? Exactly what are the steps I'm supposed to take? I read on one site that each letter is called out when its stone is pushed, is this true (since I don't hear it)? What happens if you have the right name? Do you see anything where the stones are or do you have to walk to the door again?

Thanks,
Steven

[Talisker]

You have to literally hit the stones -- as in punch 'em.

[Zteven]

You have to literally hit the stones -- as in punch 'em.

Yes, that's it! Thank you, Andrew! I was about to give up on the game. I already had spent two hours trying to figure it out, but somehow I never thought of hittng them.

I tried it this morning and got through. However, with all the (hero) saving and reloading, my wife has gone missing. My statistics still say I'm married, but I can't find her and my house is up for sale again (lost my trophies too :-( ) .

Thanks again.

Bye,
Steven

[Jason McMaster]

Yeah, my oakvale wife just completely dropped off the face of the earth. Weird.

[balut]

Yeah, my oakvale wife just completely dropped off the face of the earth. Weird.

Guess you're hero can't quite satisfy his lady, is that it? No prob, my hero is always willing to pick up another wife or three - he'll take care of her. :twisted:

It's actually a decent bonus to have multiple wives and keep them all happy - I've gotten almost a complete set of Plate Armor over time from a couple of my wives, and my third wife in the game gave me an Ebony Bow once.

Once I marry Lady Grey, I'm hoping she'll come through and buy me that Solus Sword I've been eyeing at the shop.

[Jason McMaster]

I want that sword

[Jafisob]

Yeah, my oakvale wife just completely dropped off the face of the earth. Weird.

Guess you're hero can't quite satisfy his lady, is that it? No prob, my hero is always willing to pick up another wife or three - he'll take care of her. :twisted:

It's actually a decent bonus to have multiple wives and keep them all happy - I've gotten almost a complete set of Plate Armor over time from a couple of my wives, and my third wife in the game gave me an Ebony Bow once.

Once I marry Lady Grey, I'm hoping she'll come through and buy me that Solus Sword I've been eyeing at the shop.

Whaaa? You can really marry multiple women in game and they give you equipment or was this a joke and I am slow on the uptake?

How does that work?

[balut]

You can have one wife per town - you have to own a "marital home" in that town for the woman to marry you, and she gives you a nice dowry as well. The happier your wife is - you visit regularly, give her gifts, give her some lovin', upgrade your house, etc. the better the chance that when you visit her in that town, she'll give you a piece of equipment (weapon or armor) that she bought for you at the armorer in that town.

Therefore, I make sure to get married in every town I can - that way I have a good chance to pick up some decent free equipment every time I visit my wives.

In the case of Lady Grey, the armorer at North Bowerstone sells the Solus Sword for a metric assload of money, but if you treat her right and she's sufficiently happy, she's definitely wealthy enough to buy the sword for you.

[Andrew Mayer]

Well, I finally put in a few hours yesterday.

I really thought I was going to dislike this game. But it's surprisingly fun.
Thanks to the posts here I've ditched any thought of using the (broken) lock-on and have been well rewarded for it. Why in god's name don't they have a mode where you can set it so that it doesn't target friendlies when you're in combat?

Lots to do, lots of mini games. Many prizes, decent combat.

My one sentence review:
A fresh take on the RPG-Lite genre that doesn't rely on Zelda to solve all its problems.

[Zteven]

Yeah, my oakvale wife just completely dropped off the face of the earth. Weird.

Guess you're hero can't quite satisfy his lady, is that it? No prob, my hero is always willing to pick up another wife or three - he'll take care of her.

I'm having lots of problems getting them to have sex with me, it's true. And I'm rather attractive, if I may say so myself. I shower them with gifts (proper ones, like jewelry), I flex my muscles, flirt and do my manly arm pump. But they can't seem to get in the mood. Any tips?

Once I marry Lady Grey, I'm hoping she'll come through and buy me that Solus Sword I've been eyeing at the shop.

Well, technically what I'm about to say is a spoiler, but I think you want to hear it anyway.

I married her yesterday. Fortunately, you don't have to buy her a wedding ring, killing someone is the trick that wins her heart. Anyway, you start your courtship by giving her a black rose. You know, the rose that everybody despises but she, and only she, _loves_. So once we're married, I start dumping all my presents on her and she's like 'oh, we're perfect for each other'. I had saved a special treat for last, however: a black rose. And she starts to turn all sour on me! Apparantly marriage has normalised her taste in flowers. That was a nasty surprise.

Bye,
Steven

[balut]

The price of the gift you give doesn't matter to your wife. Alternate between flirt, arm pump, sexy hero pose, and regular talk, and occasionally throw in a rose, or chocolates. Do this a few times and your wife's aura will turn green and if you talk to her she'll ask you if you want to go to bed with her.

[asspennies]

You also have to be in the bedroom of your house for her to turn green. Which isn't a problem for most wives, as you can tell them to follow you there.

[Mike Cathcart]

Nah, you can be in a any room of the house. I think having the focus on the wife helps, too. A few times I left the room to check email and when I came back the wife was glowing green. I guess paying attention to them works as well as that other stuff.

That Solus sword looked cool, but I'm more of a Greataxe person, so I went and found 15 keys last night and picked up the Murren Greataxe. Awesome weapon, I was slicing through a lot of enemies in one or two hits. Unfortunately the legendary weapons only have one modifier slot and it's filled when you buy it, but this axe is amazing and the modifier it came with (piercing) worked out really well.

Here's the short version of the Fable strategy guide: put all of your experience points into strength, speed, physical shield, and magic power. Get a nice big weapon, turn that shield on and hack away. Got my experience modifier up to 162 this way. I had a few other spells and abilities but I really could have done the entire game with just those four. Physical shield is ridiculously good, especially if you carry a few mana potions. I used one resurrection phial early in the game and that was it.

I bought the mana and experience stones in Hook Coast and put them on my bow that I never use. Turns out the weapon just needs to be equipped. So towards the end I had constant mana regeneration and shield (normally it doesn't regenerate while physical shield is on). I was pretty much unstoppable.

Minor endgame spoiler:





Has anyone finished the game and found any kind of fighting challenge left? Are there any caves with tough enemies or is it just a third-rate Sims game at this point?

[Union Carbide]

The price of the gift you give doesn't matter to your wife. Alternate between flirt, arm pump, sexy hero pose, and regular talk, and occasionally throw in a rose, or chocolates. Do this a few times and your wife's aura will turn green and if you talk to her she'll ask you if you want to go to bed with her.

I thought you were talking about Sims2 here for a sec :)

I finally got my copy today (long story involving gamestop's complete lack of clue) and have sunk about an hour and a half into it so far. It seems like a perfect game for the "I've got an hour to kill and I want to get a couple of quests in" folks. If you're on a tight schedule or have no attention span, this seems to be a good game.

Does this change at all as you get deeper into the game?

[Captain Tenneal]

Hey, can you get rid of scars? Or do they just fade away?

[Jason McMaster]

they fade

[Captain Tenneal]

Also, my guy is... uh... well... let's just say he's a little "quick in the sack". It's kinda embarrassing actually. My wives all say "short and sweet" after every time they go to bed, and it's really killing my self esteem. Is there like a "Potion of Greater Male Enhancment" somewhere that I missed?"

[Mike Cathcart]

It's probably based on your physical stats. Are you concentrating on will stuff when you level up? My dude had high physical strength and health so he got a lot of "You're a hero in more ways than one" and "I'm glad I didn't marry Captain 'Quicky' Tenneal" :D

[Captain Tenneal]

I'm not quick! :oops: I'm just to the point, that's all... :lol:

Edit: I'm at level 6 for each of my physical stats, and level 3 for will, with a maxed out force push. I use an obsidian greatsword a lot - Am I over compensating?

[0racle]

This game is lots of fun. I beat it and I love how it lets you continue on afterwards. I've been picking up stuff I missed along the way. It has a great story and its all around fun. It was the only thing I had to do after Hurricane Ivan hit us. Luckily we had a house generator so after a long day of hauling limbs and trees, I could hook up my box and play Fable. Finally got the internet back today so I'm feeling even better now. But good old college classes start up again on Nov. 4. Well, just thought i'd throw in my tidbit of info on the game and also the good old hurricane crap. Later