Fable II
Microsoft
Xbox 360
4 stars (out of 5)
Review by Hayden Meikle
In this time of pre-Christmas gaming madness, where a swag of shoot-em-up and alien-blasting and horror titles are released, it is refreshing to enter a world of whimsical fantasy and beauty.
The original Fable came out on Xbox three or four years ago and was a very promising start to what was obviously going to be a franchise.
Now, after months and months of hype, Fable II is out. It's pure high fantasy, telling the story of a young character from a world called Albion who must fight, quest and journey his way through life, love and the difficult choices that arise.
Choice is the concept that dominates Fable II. The developers, led by the noted Peter Molyneux, have worked hard to ensure the game has more than a pretty face.
You get to choose, through the decisions you make, whether to be a pure, good-hearted character, or a corrupt symbol of evil.
Your character's progression is so open-ended it's not funny. Their physical features, their home life, their every direction is shaped by who they befriend, what decisions they make and where they hang out.
You start as a child with some simple quests to get the adventure going. The quests, naturally, get harder as the game progresses, but you'll find a really nice mix of adventure and action.
The world opens up and changes as you explore. New characters emerge and more decisions must be made.
There is a point to it all. Your character is seeking revenge on a horribly evil character, and eventually you build relationships with other characters to help you reach a conclusion.
Apart from the questing, there is a good amount of combat. The fighting is basic at first, with melee, ranged and magic attacks, but gets better as you level up and acquire new abilities.
By now, you're wondering whether it's any good. Well, it is. It's quite a special game, in fact.
You don't need to be a hardcore RPG fan to enjoy Fable II's deep gameplay, absorbing story and silky art direction, but you do need a lot of spare time.
