Fable II Review
I have decided that I should give my opinion about the game. Why? Because this is the internet and if I don’t, who will? This review will not give out a score and is not going to simply list the pros and cons of the game. Rather I am going to give reasons why the game is good or bad and then argue with myself.
What’s good about Fable II?
- Simplicity
- For: For those that know me, it is no surprise to hear that I am not a huge RPG fan. I never actually completed Fable I and the only other RPG games I have played include Diablo II, KOTOR and Oblivion. Thus I thoroughly enjoy the simplicity of Fable II. The controls were very easy to pick up and the aiming for combat is incredibly easy. Just point, slash, dash and bash! But the simplicity doesn’t stop there: the best part is the quest trail. I hate games that just expect you to know where to go and Fable II fixes that with a dotted trail that shows you the way.
- Against: I am going to have to disagree. Although the simplicity of controls is good, the fighting leaves a lot to be desired. I wish games would employ both simplicity and depth. Allow those who want to spend time learning controls do so by giving them advanced moves via combos. But the lack of depth and complexity doesn’t always have to be about fighting. The lack of any sort of mini map is incredibly frustrating. The lack of a more complex potion setup is also very painful. Because the game picks potions for you, you could end up munching on fatty foods that suprise suprise, make you fat!
- Short But Sweet
- For: The game has a perfect length without having to resort to tons of fetch-it quests. The worst thing about modern RPGs is in the name of providing an open atmosphere they just include tons of extra side quests that turn out to be nothing more than walking across the world to get an item for someone. The best part about the questing in Fable II? Some of the side quests fit in with the story and make sense. The second bad thing about modern RPGs is fetch-it quests that just do not make any sense.
- Against: You couldn’t be more wrong! Fable II is the shortest RPG ever made and it is so short it is actually painful. You know a game is bad when you can spend more time mucking about in town than you do finishing the main story. Furthermore, I do not believe a game has to resort to fetch-it quests at all. Fable II makes good use of interesting quests with side stories that are awkward, funny, and even a bit frightening. They should have spent a litle more time extending it!
What sucks?
- Glitches!
- For: There is no excuse for game ending glitches whether it is joining a coop game of someone who hasn’t made it to the main game or not being able to get out of dialog. I will go as far as saying that anything dealing with the A button is glitchy. It doesn’t matter, even putting away your weapon doesn’t work sometimes!
- Against: Yep, no excuse and no argument here!
- Lack of depth
- For: Why are there so few weapons? So few clothes? So few spots to discover? The world is small, the clothes are boring, there is no armor and there are no weapons to really find except for the legendary ones. Fable II pales in comparison to games like Diablo II where there are almost endless possibilities.
- Against: Why do you need so much depth? It made sense for Diablo II because the game was about farming. It was a hack and slash where you played just to get better items. Fable II is not about that; it is about the story! If there were more weapons, it isn’t as if you would be using them. You would just get the best and that would be it.
- For 2: That is true! Perhaps they should try making multiple types of weapons with different looks that all do the same damage or have the same attributes. That way players can at least customize their looks. A game like Fable II needs to support gamers’ desires for being unique.
Tags: Reviews
General | John Sedlak | 
October 27, 2008 2:25 pm | 
Comments (0)
It was a convertible too!
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