Fable II had "huge design flaws", says Molyneux

[Azer249]

Fable II had "huge design flaws", says Molyneux

Who was there: Peter Molyneux is the founder of Lionhead Studios and the man behind the Fable games, and classics such as Dungeon Keeper, Populous, and Theme Park. His studio is currently working on Fable III, and Kinect-powered game Mylo.

What he Talked About: Molyneux started his talk by discussing many of the issues he had with Fable II, saying, “it had some terribly messy things about it.” He continued, "There were huge design flaws--at one point Fable II had 67,000 bugs." This actually pushed Fable II to a “super-black” rating, making it completely unsuitable for release. He also criticised many of the features that were implemented, saying many were used just once or twice, such as the marriage feature which was an “excuse to have sex.” Molyneux had other annoyances to share about the title, including the menu-driven levelling system, which he referred to as “DOS-like,” a lack of drama, and the graphical look of women, whom he said, “looked like Russian shot putters.”

Of course, these are flaws which Molyneux says are fixed in sequel Fable III. “The first thing we did in Fable III was create a great cast,” he boasted, referring to the likes of comedian John Cleese who has a part as the butler in the game. The co-op system has been overhauled, allowing gamers to have the same interaction with their co-op buddy as they do with the non-player characters in the world. This includes getting married and experiencing “intimate” moments, which are “not quite as realistic as the real thing, but less messy.” Other improvements he mentioned included an overhauled menu system called The Sanctuary, which now takes place entirely in the 3D world, and maps which are four times bigger than those seen in Fable II.

Molyneux then showed off sections from a current build of the game, including combat, The Sanctuary, and a new way of levelling up a character. While combat remains similar to the previous games, the levelling system has seen a huge overhaul. In keeping with the ethos of having every menu item in the 3D game world, levelling is now represented by the visual metaphor of gates. Each gate represents levels, which are unlocked by accumulating the single experience point in the game, called Guild Seals. Players can choose how to spend the seals as they see fit, using them to unlock gates, or chests containing magic spells and other rewards. Weapons will level up separately from the character, and are represented by the “Fist of Power.” It is levelled up the more weapons are used, and will reflect the type of fighting that players indulge in. This results in unique weapons, which can be traded or gifted to friends and enemies.

The final feature revealed was promises, which is the game’s way of reflecting a player’s good and bad actions in the game world. Molyneux gave the example of a librarian, who agrees to back a player’s pledge to become king, but only if they promise to save the library from closure. They can be ignored, but this will cause many characters to distrust the player, or become rebellious, affecting the look of the game world.

Takeaway: Molyneux was very negative when speaking about Fable II, referring to it as “boring and tedious.” Of course, he praised the forthcoming sequel, referring to the huge drama and depth of characters. It’s “clear and simple” he said, “we have to get people to care.” Fable III is looking to be a huge overhaul from its predecessor, and Molyneux promised that more about the game would be revealed before its release later this year.

 

[Dark Drakan]

Re: Fable II had "huge design flaws", says Molyneux

So long as this isnt just a speech to gain hype for Fable III and he has indeed improved on every aspect hes criticising Fable II for.

 

[Azer249]

Re: Fable II had "huge design flaws", says Molyneux

Yeh as some people said in the comment he is first to critisze his own games when there is a new one comming out

 

[Dark Drakan]

Re: Fable II had "huge design flaws", says Molyneux

Yeh as some people said in the comment he is first to critisze his own games when there is a new one comming out

He heavily ripped into flawed ideas and design problems that were 'to ambitious' in Fable and then repeated mistakes and added even more flaws with Fable II. At the same time introducing systems that added very little to the game and not improving key systems enough to warrant a mention. Really hope he doesnt do it all over again with Fable III otherwise people will start to really lose faith if after 3 games he cant create the game he envisions and talks about before release, or at least something close.

Really hope hes not repeating all this when hes creating Fable IV if it happens.

 

[Azer249]

Re: Fable II had "huge design flaws", says Molyneux

He heavily ripped into flawed ideas and design problems that were 'to ambitious' in Fable and then repeated mistakes and added even more flaws with Fable II. At the same time introducing systems that added very little to the game and not improving key systems enough to warrant a mention. Really hope he doesnt do it all over again with Fable III otherwise people will start to really lose faith if after 3 games he cant create the game he envisions and talks about before release, or at least something close.

Really hope hes not repeating all this when hes creating Fable IV if it happens.

Indeed even at one point there was was it? 63000 bugs he isnt the best game maker he has visions but dosent have the software to carry them out forcing him to downgrade quality.

 

[Gikoku]

Re: Fable II had "huge design flaws", says Molyneux

I do think this should be in the Fable III discussion... might have to sticky my bard thread.

He heavily ripped into flawed ideas and design problems that were 'to ambitious' in Fable and then repeated mistakes and added even more flaws with Fable II. At the same time introducing systems that added very little to the game and not improving key systems enough to warrant a mention. Really hope he doesnt do it all over again with Fable III otherwise people will start to really lose faith if after 3 games he cant create the game he envisions and talks about before release, or at least something close.

Really hope hes not repeating all this when hes creating Fable IV if it happens.

Ditto. He's already taken things out of Fable 3 again, and is driving for a "less is more" concept.

 

[Dark Drakan]

Re: Fable II had "huge design flaws", says Molyneux

I do think this should be in the Fable III discussion... might have to sticky my bard thread.

Feel free to move it to appropriate location (i hadnt noticed the section). :lol:

 

[Gikoku]

Re: Fable II had "huge design flaws", says Molyneux

Feel free to move it to appropriate location (i hadnt noticed the section). :lol:

Gladly..

*pulls lever*

 

[Bluedrake]

Re: Fable II had "huge design flaws", says Molyneux

PM has the bad habit of noticing how flawed his games are after they released. One can hope that he will notice it before for Fable 3.

So far the interviews have focused a lot on gimmicks, which worries me as far as the story is concerned.

 

[Sephiroxas]

Re: Fable II had "huge design flaws", says Molyneux

Fable II was in short a bunch of crap slapped together. He has that part right, the amount of bugs it has/had baffles me, yet I'm not suprised because I've experienced quite a bit of them. I like the new concepts he has going for Fable III, like the marraige, and being able to interact with said partner :wub: I'm cheesy like that.

But I still think Fable TLC was the best one out of all of them in my opinion. It has it's own..mystical feel that Fable II fails to capture for me.

PM has the bad habit of noticing how flawed his games are after they released. One can hope that he will notice it before for Fable 3.

So far the interviews have focused a lot on gimmicks, which worries me as far as the story is concerned.

That's because the man can't concentrate on more than one thing at a time. He's all like "Ooh we're ganna make a great game" then gets distracted by one aspect of it, and then by the time he's done worrying about that, the games finished. He tries to stretch himself too thin and it all collapses under his weight..>.> Mainly his big airy head.

 

[Bluedrake]

Re: Fable II had "huge design flaws", says Molyneux

Tut I still think Fable TLC was the best one out of all of them in my opinion. It has it's own..mystical feel that Fable II fails to capture for me.

Well, maybe Fable 3 will change that. Although I agree that the atmosphere has changed radically between the first and second game.

 

[OpenWorldExplorer]

Re: Fable II had "huge design flaws", says Molyneux

PM has the bad habit of noticing how flawed his games are after they released.

It's always struck me that PM is a dreamer (not a bad thing in itself) who has all these grandiose and wonderful ideas while developing a game that end up being a bit much for the budget and technological capabilites that the developers have to work with. As a result, the games end up incorporating some of the aspects he envisioned but usually in flawed, buggy, or imcomplete form. I think he then looks back at the previous game and realizes how short it fell of the ideal he had in mind for it. I agree, though, it would certainly be nice if he could rein in his more manic tendancies a bit and focus on more realistic goals in future games. ^_^

 

[Benjamin510]

Re: Fable II had "huge design flaws", says Molyneux

Their biggest flaw was the Fat Man at the top.

 

[Vicious Dice]

Re: Fable II had "huge design flaws", says Molyneux

I think with Fable 3, he will focus more on a few keys things and really refine and polish them, instead of mashing a bunch of things half-done or glitchy together, like Fable 2 was. Now don't get me wrong, I love Fable 2 as much as I love 1 but I think that he reached far too high, far too fast and was overwelmed by it, focusing on added things that weren"t really needed and glossing over other things(the map.). I want a long, emotional, morally choice ridden game that pulls me in and keeps me for a time. I want to loose myself and just let go...

 

[Lithary]

Re: Fable II had "huge design flaws", says Molyneux

Their biggest flaw was the Fat Man at the top.

What's wrong with Fat Man?