New Fable screens and EXCLUSIVE: Fable Interview

Fable is coming out beautiful. It\'s worth the wait.  


http://www.totalvideogames.com/?section=Read%20Features&id=181&gameid=2799&format=000005

An update from the man himself and new screens as we find out the latest on Fable...

Fable is one of the games we are eagerly looking forward to playing in 2004. We have kept track of this title since its early conception and with Peter Molyneux, a gaming guru in many eyes, orchestrating and inputting his own ideas, it should be, as we have seen from running code, exceptional and different. We must not take away from the fact that developer Big Blue Box, founded in 1999 and one of Lionhead Studios first satellite developers, is a very talented bunch. They are an entirely autonomous company but have the full access to Lionhead resources, including the games design talents of Molyneux.

Fable is a groundbreaking role-playing adventure game in which your every action determines your skills, appearance, and reputation. The premise is to create your life story from childhood to death. Grow from an inexperienced adolescent into the most powerful being in the world and choose the path of righteousness or dedicate your life to evil. Muscles expand with each feat of strength; force of will increases with each work of wit. Obesity follows gluttony, skin tans with exposure to sunlight and bleaches bone-white by moonlight. Earn scars in battle and lines of experience with age. Each person you aid, each flower you crush, each creature you slay, will change this world forever. Fable: Who will you be?


[Interview with Peter Molyneux]



Q: Will Fable’s innovative game design be apparent in other areas of the game; for example, will the combat offer something new or rely on old methods?

We have worked very hard on the combat system with a team working on this for the last three years our ambition was to create combat which didn’t rely on button bashing, adds a new angle through multiplayer and use AI to intelligently challenge the player. With these aims in mind you can mix range combat, sword combat and magic combat so each player can create their unique style and we are also aiming for something as polished as anything you have seen in any other game with elements which have never been seen before.

Q: We’ve heard talk of allowing players ‘heroes’ to fight off in a multiplayer mode; is there any truth to these rumours?

In Fable there is multiplayer mode which allows up to 4 players to cooperatively take part in combat - three player characters appear on screen as alter egos which have limited ability but these alter egos have the right to play as the main character and so can swap into the main hero role.

Q: How significant is having your own children; will these add extra longevity and replay to the game? For example, can you go off as your child after you’ve completed the main game, possibly on Xbox Live! content or as a result of the simulated environment?

Great idea!!!!!! The children you have are significant and play a part in the story but you cannot play them when they are grown up or swap into their characters.

Q: Can you tell us about the magic system; how it’s used, what can the player do, and are there any restrictions on what can happen?

The magic system compromises 21 different magic disciplines, each class has multiple levels, which can be powered up. It is alignment based so if you’re evil the evil spells you cast will be more powerful and conversely if you’re good your good spells will be more powerful. Certain spells can be combined so if you wanted to go over the top you could for example mix slow down time with assassin march with lightening bolt with battle charge, which would be quite some spell!

Q: Will the hero’s mother and sister still be alive after he’s gone on a quest, got married, had children, sold the kitchen sink and finally decided that he’d better get around to what he was originally doing?

The quests in the game are there to be taken at the player’s convenience so if you so wish you can settle down, buy a few shops and homes, rent them out and live the life of Riley but eventually you will be ‘encouraged’ to return to questing and without spoiling any surprises your family seems to get themselves into terrible trouble.

Q: How does the present interaction between Peter and the team work and has it changed much since the conception of the game?

At the moment I spend every waking second thinking about Fable, I sit in amongst the team, I tend to play and look at the game for a minimum of 10 hours every day and this has been the case since just before E3 last May prior to that my involvement in Fable was probably a half to one day a week.

Q: Have you purposely tried to develop your own RPG system that is different from what gamers would be accustomed too and what do you feel is the most inventive/interesting facet of character evolution as you progress through the game?

Yes, we have and hope we are making something that is new, fresh and different. The real revolution is that you can be the hero you are destined to be (depending on how you play the game) within a simulated world that you can experiment with.

Q: What has been the hardest aspect of the game to get right and do you sometimes feel that your efforts are not fully appreciated?

Probably the combat has been toughest to get right as there is a lot of subtlety needed - as for feeling unappreciated, quite the reverse as people have been incredibly supportive to me and Lionhead and I appreciate all the patience and understanding we have been shown.

I seriously doubt it gets down to the level of every flower you crush effecting gameplay. If it does. Then we may see this game around x-box 26.

Other than that. Seriously. When is this game coming out? X-box 2 will be out in a couple of years. Are they waiting for that since the processor will be upped for it?

this game isnt out yet?

as usual, too little...too late


:snore:

The game still sounds amazing and something to look out for... the graphics however are starting to show their age.

Didn\'t know pstwo still posted here...good to see ya!

Wow. He lopped that guy\'s head right off.

I didn\'t expect to see that, heh...

This game intrigues me.  Hopefully it will come out one day.

-Eik

A  release sometime in 2004 lets hope for Big BLue Box\'s sake that its not delayed & over shadowed by say a console release.

[Living-In-Clip]

Graphics are showing their age, but I\'m hyped. After playing KOTR recently, I\'m all for an open ended RPG that actually evoles with the character and so on.

Originally posted by Ginko


Didn\'t know pstwo still posted here...good to see ya!

Hey thanks!  

Way off topic for just a sec (didnt think it was necissary for a new thread). Pstwo, i know you have a 944. Is it turbo and/or worth getting? I was debating on whether or not to get one.

Oh yeah nice game. I remember when these shots used to blow us away. I never thought we would get to such a point where the grafx this gen would evolve so much. Anyway... Its never coming out.

[Living-In-Clip]

Originally posted by Lord Nicon
[B
Oh yeah nice game. I remember when these shots used to blow us away. I never thought we would get to such a point where the grafx this gen would evolve so much. Anyway... Its never coming out. [/B]

Open ended games like this take timel.
Give it time.

Originally posted by Lord Nicon
Way off topic for just a sec (didnt think it was necissary for a new thread). Pstwo, i know you have a 944. Is it turbo and/or worth getting? I was debating on whether or not to get one.

I have a 944 n/a.  What year was the one you wanted?  I did all types of repair on my 944.  I also had a 83 944 n/a back in 95\'.  The timing belt broke on me and some valves got bent so I took off the engine head off and took it to the machine shop to replace it with new valves.  

My 88\' 944 I also did an engine head and bottom half job.  I had to change the con-rods and main bearings. Did all the front crank seal, Back main seal, Cam seal and balance shaft seals.   At the same time I replace the the clutch disc, pressure plate and throw out bearing with a resurface flywheel. This was one of my biggest job I ever did.

Now my recent mod is adding a air intake kit which will only add about 7% more HP.