Fable 4's pre-alpha gameplay signals a new era for the series, but hobbe fights and chicken-kicking prove its old school spirit is still alive

I never thought I'd be so excited to see some good old-fashioned chicken kicking, but the sight of that fowl act in new Fable 4 pre-alpha gameplay proved me wrong. Alongside the news that Fable 4 has been delayed into 2026, the latest episode of the Official Xbox Podcast also gave us another tantalizing glimpse at the upcoming RPG. It may have only been a few combat instances and environment shots spliced together with a short cutscene, but everything looked gorgeously cinematic.

In fact, Xbox Games Studio head Craig Duncan prefaced the footage by saying that this is "the most beautifully realized version of Albion you've ever seen", with "the visuals you expect from Playground Games". While the clips certainly seem to illustrate that with an impressive level of detail, it also matters as a long-time fan that this new updated take on the world also appears to capture what makes Fable… well, Fable. Chicken-kicking and all.

A whole new world

As Duncan highlighted, the Fable reboot will bring us into "Playground Games' version of Albion," which is the team's own take on the world that's inspired by what's come before. As well as reaffirming that Playground is channelling the series' signature British humor, the studio is also bringing its own expertise from the graphically impressive Forza Horizon series to shape the adventure. It all sounds like an intoxicating cocktail of potential, and while we'll have to wait and see just how the wider picture of this new version of Albion shapes up when it arrives next year, the pre-alpha footage has already made quite the impression on me – and I know I'm not alone in that.

What immediately drew my eye was the presence of hobbes, those pesky little goblin creatures I've fought and faced so many times before in Fable games past. The split second shot of the protagonist walloping some of these fiendish foes speaks to what I find so exciting about the footage. The fact that I was instantly able to identify the creatures affirms to me that there's an effort to retain the signature look and feel of Fable, while also bringing it to life in a new, more modern way that's in line with the latest hardware. It's a difficult balance to strike when you're dealing with a fantasy series that has historically been quite stylized and more cartoonish, but I'm already loving the way Fable 4 looks to be distinguishing itself with impressive graphics, while still managing to be distinctly Fable-like. The spirit of the series is right there in the chicken-kicking shot, too, which is a welcome flash of Fable's history with humor.

But when it comes to Playground's own take on Albion, you can also see that on full display not just in how beautifully rendered the environments are, but through the sense of scale the short sequences evoke. From the shot of the protagonist walking through a lively market square, to footage showing traversal on horseback across lush fields, my mind's already reeling at the potential size and scope of the new adventure. We still don't know for certain if Fable 4 will be entirely open-world, or if it will have open-zones a bit like Avowed, but regardless, it looks set to be a bigger, more beautiful take on the series' iconic setting.

Fighting fresh

I can't wait to see how Playground Games' version breathes new life into the world and opens it up in fresh ways. Just knowing we can explore on horseback suggests this is a big step up in terms of scope, given that Fable has for the most part always had us running about on foot. I'd always kind of wanted to be able to ride a horse across the larger regions in the Fable series – like Bowerlake – so I'm already looking forward to seeing how this will change up how I can engage with the world and explore.

The glimpses at combat also suggest Fable 4 will bring back the classic arsenal of weapons, with sword-fighting, a two-handed hammer, and even what appears to be a flash of the Inferno magic spell. But it does also look far more modernized than the button mashing battles of before, with one encounter against a big beast giving off strong boss fight vibes as the protagonists dodges out of its way. There have been claims in the past that it could have The Witcher 3-like combat, and I do get that kind of feel from the footage.

There's still a lot of questions surrounding the direction of Fable 4 and its features. I still wonder if there'll be a character creator, for example, and I'm intrigued to discover if or how it will handle the morality system that was such a key part of the original series – for better or worse. While we'll have to wait until 2026 to get some answers, the pre-alpha gameplay does give me hope that the upcoming adventure will be "worth the wait", as Duncan states. One thing's for sure: no hobbe (or hen) will be safe.

Look ahead to more exciting upcoming releases with our roundup of new games for 2025 (and beyond).