Develop 2010: Visionary game creator, Peter Molyneux, gave an exclusive demonstration of Fable III and shared new details on the game’s features.
Peter Molyneux is late. On stage at the Develop conference in Brighton, he fumbles to get a development unit set up in order to show the eagerly awaiting audience a live demonstration of Fable III. The founder of Lionhead is well known for his eccentric persona and promising an altogether different experience from his games. Never one to rest on his laurels, he’s making some big changes in this swashbuckling sequel.
Drama is an area he feels wasn’t taken seriously enough in the past – all the voices in Black & White were done by a single person. “In Fable I and Fable II’s case, although we took the writing reasonable seriously, we actually didn’t think about it as a real drama, where you really were able to understand what they’re doing now and what they’re doing next,” said Molyneux. So Lionhead have enlisted some terrific British talent for Fable III, such as John Cleese, Bernard Hill and Zoë Wanamaker.
This cast will also be performing a story with a clear mission for the player to connect with. Molyneux said none of the press he spoke to at E3 were able to recall Fable II’s story, so the premise this time is simple: The kingdom of Alboin is under the tyrannical rule of the hero’s brother, Logan, the hero gathers followers and leads a revolution against Logan, overthrows him and becomes king them self. “Within the first 15 minutes of game [Logan] has down some unforgiveable thing, and we remind the player by what they see around them the consequences of his tyrannical rule.”
The reason for this is so players remember their purpose, as he said players got hugely distracted in Fable II, buying houses and earning gold. He also criticised the “appalling” voiceover that was used to direct players back to the story, and is instead opting for a subtler approach in Fable III. The breadcrumb trail is now used to point players to their non-playable allies to progress the story, and fades in and out automatically so players are free to ignore it and explore if they choose.
Lionhead had some bold ambitions for Fable II, so bold, in fact, that Molyneux said the game had 67,000 bugs at one point. He admitted that there were a number of design flaws in the game, and went on to quote a piece of research that revealed 40 percent of the game features went unused by over 50 percent of its players.
“As a designer it matters that more people play your game,” said Molyneux. “So, with Fable III, we said what are the things that people use, what are the things they like, what are the things that we should focus on?”
Molyneux aims to make Fable III easier to understand and more enjoyable because of it. Instead of using a traditional RPG levelling system, Fable III invites players to progress through tiered challenges, known as the ‘Road to Rule’. “I love that visual metaphor, this is the journey to rule, the road to power” said Molyneux, “It also introduces our one and only currency for the player to think about, that’s ‘guild seals’ or followers. For doing anything in the game you can get this currency.” You spend this currency on new abilities which appear as chests between each level gate.
“I love giving people the ability to choose their game features,” said Molyneux. This practice has been extended to the combat system as well: “All weapons, the gauntlet that you wear on your hand, the sword that you hold, or the hammer, or the gun, or the rifle, will level up… and they will all morph to reflect what sort of fighter you are and how good you are.”
What has changed the most about combat is magic. Magic uses gauntlets that level up according to your play style. By wearing different gauntlets on each hand you can combine spells, giving you even more ways to silent your foes. They have also removed the charging cap for combat, enabling you to hold down an attack and increase its power for as long as you wish.
“It’s very tough to balance the freedom and accessibility of this one-button stuff with the difficulty curve which core gamers require versus casual games,” said Molyneux, and exhibited the new mechanics by eliminating a pack of wolfs. Most of the levels are almost four times larger than Fable II’s and navigable areas can be seen out on the horizon. Lionhead have removed the HUD entirely to make it easier to immerse yourself in the game’s beautiful environments.
Promises are now a central part of you interactions with the inhabitants of Alboin. As you travel the land, recruiting followers to rise up against your brother, you make promises to them. When you become kind yourself, it is then your choice to follow through on those promises or disregard them. “Some of your promises will change the entirely of the world, some of them will change individuals,” said Molyneux.
Another issue with the second game that Molyneux wishes to correct is the user interface (UI). He said some of the sub-menus in Fable II could have up to 300 items to scroll through, so told the Fable III team: “we’re not going to have a single list in whole the game.” Molyneux admitted that was too outlandish, but the team have created an engaging alternative to the linear lists of the previous game. Pressing the start button at any time takes you to the Sanctuary, an interactive UI that allows you to explore your inventory in a physical space. Crucially, it can be faster to move to your desired items from the circular hub than it is to scroll through a 2D menu.
Though he used a male character in the demo, it is possible to play as female and the story will be adjusted accordingly. Molyneux said: “In Fable II, all our women did look like Russian shot-putters,” and promised more curvaceous, feminine characters for the sequel. He also noted that the series’ humour will continue, and the natural comedy talents have been given “the freedom to do what they want.”
Co-op too is being addressed. It’s now possible to separate yourself from the host player’s screen, and nearly all of the game’s features will be available in co-op play. Including, the ability to chat up another player: “Well, now that’s an excuse to say to your partner ‘why don’t we have an intimate moment while we play Fable III?’ Obviously not quite as realistic as the real thing, but not as messy,” Molyneux joked.
From its accessible mechanics and UI replacement to its dramatic story and charming characters, Fable III looks like the game Lionhead have been longing to make ever since they began experimenting with choice and consequence. He may have arrived late to the conference, but just from this glimpse it’s clear that Molyneux remains as punctual as ever when it comes to innovation.
Aaron Lee
Photos: Bastion (body #1)
Tags: develop, fable, lionhead, microsoft, peter molyneux
