Fable II

The creator of Fable is famous for enthusiastically overhyping his games to the point that they cannot possibly live up to players' expectations. So imagine my surprise, when I meet Peter Molyneux for a Fable III demo during E3 last week, and the first thing he says to me is: "Fable II's story was rubbish." He wasn't done. Before the end of our half-hour together, the legendary designer had used that same word to trash the maps, menus, visuals, weapons and co-op in his last game as well.  Whether you agree or disagree, Molyneux wants us to know that these things will be vastly improved for Fable III. Here are five of the things he promises to do better… » Read Full Fable II preview

After three hours with Lionhead's sequel, we tell you why Peter Molyneux might really, finally have cracked it this time.  » Read Full Fable II preview

1) Partaking in sexual intercourse outside of wedlock can get you an STD, and condoms are available for purchase in the game (however rare). No, seriously.2) The game tracks the in-game location of every single player who is playing. This information is then filtered down to your XBL friends, who appear as glowing orbs (Molyneux hinted at the potential for filtering by geographical location and other conditions, but this is not » Read Full Fable II preview

Peter Molyneux is full of apologies. First, he apologises for kicking off our day's events slightly tardily, and for having put on a few pounds since we last met. "I've just given up smoking," he says, shovelling a mint into his mouth.The third thing the Lionhead boss was sorry for was the current state of the Fable 2 code he was about to show us. Clearly, the game's still a little way from being retail ready, even though the white » Read Full Fable II preview

Not everything in Fable 2 is fantasy. On the contrary, some of the emotions and relationships you develop in the action RPG could end up feeling very real. Shockingly real. Heartbreakingly real.We witnessed this potential in our recent demo with the game's creator, Peter Molyneux. He was showing off the sequel's new two-player cooperative multiplayer, which enables a friend's hero to battle, adventure and gain experience in your world, or vice » Read Full Fable II preview

Fable 2 has got some funny ideas when it comes to innovation. A few months ago, when creator Peter Molyneux introduced the concept of love and attachment in a videogame, we were disappointed to discover he was only referring to a dog. But then he explained how the player's personal attachment to a pet could be manipulated in order to create genuine emotion... and we started to believe. The newest gameplay revelation also left us scratching our heads at first. In an effort to make Fable 2's » Read Full Fable II preview

"Fable 2 will be a landmark game... We have the most beautiful environments... 10 to 20 times larger than the original's... Huge weapons... A spectacular magic system... It will make you feel things you've never felt before in a videogame." Peter Molyneux is at it again. The last time he hyped a game this much, we all got pretty excited...only to be pretty disappointed when the final product didn't blow our minds. The original Fable is a perfectly good action-RPG, no mistake, but it's not the » Read Full Fable II preview

The Second Coming and Godot are two things wed happily bet big money on arriving before Peter Molyneux manages to push his second generation action/adventure/RPG hybrid Fable 2 out of the doors of his Lionhead Studios HQ and onto a shiny, shiny disc or two. But for once the potato-headed software philosopher and part-time propagandist seems to be aware of his previous problems with ‘shipping product and so has decided to share some of the burdens of development. And that means using » Read Full Fable II preview

Tuesday 13 June 2006 A trailer is all anyone has seen of Fable 2 outside of Lionhead's studios - a tease, a hint, a sample clip devoid of the in-game footage or solid info we hoped for. But at least the game can finally be taken off the 'highly probable' pile and slapped into 'coming soon'. The details are still scarce but, set 300 years after the original, this sequel again promises a changed and growing world where moral choices once again decide your path. And guns. Yes, guns. But that » Read Full Fable II preview