[360] Fable III

Molyneux has been selling the simulation angle of Fable for a long time, though. If anything, it's something people actually want.
 
If anything my bet would be on full Natal controls. That sounds like it would certainly p.off a lot of the core Fable crowd. Especially if they didn't build in alternate controls for the standard controller.

Either that or maybe requiring a Natal for any character interactions, who knows. But I'm betting on something related to Natal.

Then again, it could just be Molyneux hyping something...

Regards,
SB
 
IGN Preview

This element of Fable III is so essential to Molyneux's vision that it's shunted the series' more traditional role-playing aspects out – there will be no experience points, no health bar no orbs and no augments.
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With no traditional leveling of the character in Fable III, progression comes through the weapons, which will morph throughout the game.

Weapons are crafted in combat, and the way that players wield them in battle will influence the end result. Kill innocents with a blade and it will begin to drip with blood, but use it to slay evil characters and it will start to glow. The more a weapon is used, the bigger it gets – we're shown a hammer that's been used for two hours, and it's almost twice the size of the starter model.

There's smarter ways that weapons will progress as well, and here's where we get to see one of Molyneux's trademark big ideas. A player's gamerscore will be tied into weapons, ensuring that each one is entirely unique.
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Fable III will be a controller based game confirms Molyneux
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Kotaku

The co-op will also allow you to separate in game, he said.

"You could go off earning money, while I go off to kill people," Molyneux said. "It's a true co-op experience."
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Hopefully this ends up being the case, because Fable II co-op was dreadful.
 
I hope this is full-fledged co-op with real characters, and not just the henchman thing. Still, if it is just the henchman, I can deal with it. Being able to split up is a huge improvement.

I have no problem with the idea of the weapons, except I hope the weapons don't get too huge. I absolutely hate the oversized anime style weapons. A slick looking fencing sword would be nice, without being 10 feet long.

The NPC interaction, and the promise of more choice sounds awesome.

This game will takeover my life. At least I'm admitting it.
 
Gamespot

You know what else will be a thing of the past? Having to play co-op as some generic character that is of absolutely no interest to you. That's right, in Fable III, you'll be able to play co-operatively with a friend, and both of you will get to use your own characters, work on improving your own weapons, and even bring along your own dogs.
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Nice :smile:
 
I like this too.

Joystiq Interview

What about the magic system?

The magic system is being completely redesigned. We wanted to give you the ability to craft magical weapons, as well as craft swords and guns. Magic is now based around objects, like rings. So, if you've got on the "Ring of Fire," then when you tap the magic button, you will cast quick fireballs; if you hold down the magic button, you will charge-up a fireball -- we don't cap that. So, if you happen to keep -- and God knows why you'd want to do this -- if you did keep your finger down on the magic button, you will continue to charge up to "thermal-nuclear" levels.

So, that's cool. It's simple. It's accessible. The cool thing is that we allow you ... you fortunately have five fingers. So, if you take off the Ring of Fire and put on the "Ring of Storms," then if you tap and hold the button you cast storm- or vortex-based magic. The cool thing is, you can also put back on the Ring of Fire, and then you cast a combination of storms and fireballs. In other words, we allow you to weave your magic together in any way you like. Depending on the magic objects you have, it's a weave of the magic system you have. Because you have five fingers -- there's a primary finger, secondary finger, and so on -- whatever you have on your prime finger is your primary weave, that is weaved to the second one, the third one and the fourth one...
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Video Diary

[gt]61842[/gt]
 
Malibu said:
I like this too.

Joystiq Interview

Video Diary

[gt]61842[/gt]
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Ummm...

Because you have five fingers -- there's a primary finger, secondary finger, and so on -- whatever you have on your prime finger is your primary weave, that is weaved to the second one, the third one and the fourth one...
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Last I checked, I had 10 fingers. :p Walking around with one hand covered in rings while the other had nothing would be...odd. :D

Regards,
SB
 
Hard to tell, but the environments are looking pretty nice. Hope there's some good improvements. Fable 2 wasn't a terrible performer, but not great either. I'm hoping the frame rate will be a little smoother.
 
GDC 10: Designing Fable III

The most interesting part of the talk came when Molyneux spoke about how Lionhead planned to simplify the user interface for more accessibility. You'd be hard pressed to find anybody that enjoyed the item management system in Fable II, and Molyneux agrees that it needed fixing. During the talk we got our first look at how Fable III is taking the majority of the 2D interface and placing it in the 3D world.
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We also got a look at the new map interface. There's a war room of sorts where you can walk up to a map table and peer down on it. This allows you to scroll around the top of a map and look at all of the areas. Using a magnifying glass, you can peer down into each area and town. The kicker is that the simulation of the town is still going on, so you can see all of the people walking around going about their business in a simplified 3D world. I even saw Molyneux zoom further in to a single house where he could see his in-game wife and kids, and interact with them. Molyneux teased that, though it wouldn't be similar to an RTS, this map could be used for sending troops around the world once you are king or queen.
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Well, that'll be a plus. The map has been such a huge pain in the butt in the entire Fable series, just making it difficult to go to where you want to go.

This looks like it would be a lot better. The 'King or Queen' sending troops RTS style also seems really interesting. More promises though, let's see if he can live up to them.

The 'henchmen' thing really was a disappointment in Fable II. I understand the reasoning, but so what? Don't let people into your game if you don't trust them.
 
Gamasutra interviews Peter Molyneux:
http://www.gamasutra.com/view/news/..._From_Fable_III_Actually_Adds_A_Lot_To_It.php

This I agree, especially for casual games (easy to pick up, fun to master):

"Taking a lot away from Fable III actually adds a lot to it," Molyneux tells us. "We unified that combat system and actually made it much more accessible for the more casual side of Fable III players, and made it much more interesting for the core players because they could start combining magic together and switching between guns and swords, because they were the same. That meant that, even though it was simpler, it was actually more complex and sophisticated."
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This I'm not so sure. Sometimes, the game has special tricks for fine-tuning (adds depth). They need to be made known via some sort of in-game tutorial when you first play it (e.g., in WiiSports Resort bowling, you can flip your hand at the last minute to boost speed). Otherwise, people may think something is missing from the game.

Molyneux points to the death of the tutorial -- and by extension, the death of the need for a tutorial -- as a good thing for the game industry. To play a game with an extensive tutorial, says Molyneux, is painful. "They just seem arduous and tedious and, oh God, I just want to know the game; I just don't want to be taught to play the game."
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Also, for actions that has long term effects (e.g. MAG's cause-and-effects), it may be easier/necessary to explain the relationships clearly up front.
 
patsu said:
Gamasutra interviews Peter Molyneux:
http://www.gamasutra.com/view/news/..._From_Fable_III_Actually_Adds_A_Lot_To_It.php

This I agree, especially for casual games (easy to pick up, fun to master):
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Seriously though, the only way to make Fable II any easier would be by implementing a "game plays itself-mode" akin to the latest Mario sidescroller on the Wii. What the hell are you going to take away from a combat system that makes Dynasty Warriors look like Ninja Gaiden? Also, if you want to appeal to the casual player you can certainly implement some depth, but you can never make it mandatory. If I can win fights without much trouble by mashing A like an idiot then that's usually what I will do (and then I quickly grow bored like with Fable II). I use the more advanced stuff only if I need to.

I thought the first Fable actually had a fun combat system. The problem was that some spells (like physical shield) were ridiculously overpowered, which in turn negated any need for skill or strategy
 
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Over powered items, weapons, or spells are the same thing as a simplified combat system. They remove choice, thereby removing strategy. Choosing to cast physical shield first thing in every battle so you win easily is no different than simply removing the options and having the player hit A a few times to win.

Then again, I never once imagined even in the original Fable that there was any chance of me dying and it negatively impacting my ability to continue, so what purpose did combat serve anyway other than just to screw around and try new things if you were bored, or to just win as quickly as possible if you merely wanted to advance the story?
 
Hm, although I admit that Fable II was not a difficult game...I did not distract me from having great fun.
That is why I am surely looking forward to Fable III!
 
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