(Yet another) rant about the decline of Fable

[Shadowfiend]

Casual gamers have completely screwed over the Fable franchise. The developers of Fable are trying too hard to please the majority of their fans. Which is understandable. Logically, the more people they please, the more games they will sell. By doing this, however, they've squandered all of the potential that the original Fable possessed. Fable 2 and 3 are pale shadows of what they could have been. Why, you ask? It's simple. They are grossly unbalanced.


FABLE 2
Why bother to use anything but guns in Fable 2? If you're not using guns, you're wrong, because guns are just better than everything else. They have the highest damage per second, you can use them from the maximum distance from your enemy, and you can easily roll around to avoid enemies in between shots. Guns are in fact SO powerful that Magic and Weapons are more like a meta-game for players who are bored with using guns and want a change of pace. THAT'S NOT GOOD DESIGN. This is a huge balance issue! Make guns use ammo! Make guns have a really long reload time! Put in some enemies that resist damage from guns! Do SOMETHING to dampen the awesome unstoppably busted power of these guns! Jesus!


FABLE 3
This magic system sickens me. The entire list of spells consists of only TWO types of spells. (1) Straight damage and (2) Damage with a whirlwind that completely immobilizes EVERY REGULAR ENEMY IN THE ENITRE GAME EXCEPT ONE! It's boring. It's lazy. Worst of all, it's broken. At least Fable 2 gave its wizards a few tricks besides the ol' throw a fireball. Magic in Fable has become more powerful and much less interesting at the same time. How can anyone think that's a good thing? Anyone can just spam away with a whirlwind spell and win every fight without even having to MOVE. What kind of combat is that? I'll tell you what kind: ****ty.
Where guns are concerned, Fable 3 did make an effort to reign them in. I respect that, I do, and reducing the ridiculous rate of fire guns had was a good start.


FABLE 1
The original Fable had a battle system that catered to all three Hero disciplines and they were all more or less equally effective. Sure, Will abilities were a little overpowered (especially Slow Time) but that's part of the beauty of the system. Using Slow Time meant that combat became easier, but also sluggish and boring. Spamming the area of effect damage spell 'Enflame' was a highly effective (and cheesy) combat strategy, but Will User's had to worry about mana cost on spells and constantly chug mana potions if they wanted to keep doing it. Sure mana recharged, but so slowly that the player usually wasn't willing to wait around for it. Late in the game it's possible to get Mana Augments for weapons so that the player can have super short recharge times, thus making the player super powerful at the END of the game. THAT'S GOOD DESIGN.
Melee combat had the highest damage per second but players also ran the biggest risk of taking damage from enemies, forcing them to learn when to block or get hit a lot. Ranged fighters using bows had unlimited projectiles but had to charge their shots to do decent damage, forcing them to learn how much was enough charge to get the job done. It was a simple system, but it was a solid one.


I'm not saying we need to get rid of Finishers. I'm even saying that I didn't like the Reversals from Fable 2, because I did like them. What I'm saying is this: Bring back the old combat system. It was flat out, undeniably better. It had more variety and it was more balanced. I don't doubt that it could be improved upon and refined, but I'd like to return to it first and foremost.


Here's what I think should be done:
*No more infinite magic bar with 'chargeable' magic. It's stupid and unbalanced. There's a reason every other RPG game ever (action RPG or otherwise) gives its characters MP bars. Because IT WORKS.
*Guns can stay, but they desperately need to be nerfed in a way that doesn't make them bland and unattractive. In Fable 3 it feels like they simply took all the good guns out of the game and left us with the lamest ones. I've already made several suggestions on how to accomplish balanced gun combat. Personally, I like the idea of enemies that are heavily resistant to gunfire. Making guns use up ammo works great too.
*Melee is fine. It was fine in Fable 1. It was fine in Fable 2. It's still fine in Fable 3.

 

[Arseface]

Yeah, Fable's pretty **** now, ey.

 

[Dark Drakan]

Think thats Peters problem, hes been trying way to hard to please casual gamers, newbies to games and people who generally dont game very much. Means Lionhead have made some things overly simplistic, some things are so easy they become dull quickly, element of risk and challenge has been removed and overall the game has been so watered down its no longer classed as an RPG.

 

[Angel]

I still think that it is perfectly possible to tailor games for both sides - as a casual gamer myself/n00b/cack-handed loser I really NEED a game to have the option of being a breeze just so I stand a chance of actually being able to play it. Doesn't matter how many games I play, I just suck. But they also need to have a harder option for those who want the challenge to make it worth all that money they've spent on the game. The Witcher 2 manages this - I don't see why other games can't give it a go too.

 

[Gheb]

The great thing about Fable 1 is that all three disciplines are OP as ****, so it balances itself out.

 

[Shadowfiend]

The great thing about Fable 1 is that all three disciplines are OP as f***, so it balances itself out.

I agree with you. For the most part. Melee and Ranged fighting are broken-- but only if you pump them up with spells like Multi-Arrow and Berserk. Even when they're busted it's a great thing though. Magic abilities actually tie in to the other fighting styles, making them better while magic still maintains its own independent methods of dealing damage. Ultimately, every player will eventually max themselves out and be a musclebound god-Jedi who rolls over anything they come across... and that's fine! What's more important is to give the player variety. I'd rather not just use my gun ALL THE TIME because it's the hands down the best way to kill any and all enemies. Fable 1 wasn't perfectly balanced, but it was a heck of a lot closer to the mark then its successors. They could easily have improved the system. Instead they dumbed it down and turned it into a crappy button mashing mess.

Fable 1: Choose from a wide variety of ways to kill your opponent. Smite them with one huge powered up strike, use a combination of abilities that work well together (like melee attacks and a spell such as Battle Charge), or challenge yourself by specializing in one particular discipline. Summon a White Balverine to tear your enemies to shreds. Hire some mercenaries to fight for you and keep them healthy with the heal spell.
Fable 2: Just keep mashin' that 'shoot' button.
Fable 3: Just keep mashin' that 'magic' button.

The sequels are so tedious and boring I can't BELIEVE anyone could possibly prefer their lame ass combat to what we had in the original.

 

[DarkONI]

The sequels are so tedious and boring I can't BELIEVE anyone could possibly prefer their lame ass combat to what we had in the original.

I can't believe how much someone is persistant to rant about Fable's sequels and how much they
suck for their changes because they've moved away from the RPG genera and are approaching an
action genera, which consists on a different kind of challenges than combat.

I find Fable 2 and Fable 3 as improvements since Fable: The Lost Chapters. I'm glad the franchise
keeps evolving towards the action genera keeping the original idea of free will in the original Fable
for the Xbox.

 

[Shadowfiend]

I can't believe how much someone is persistant to rant about Fable's sequels and how much they
suck for their changes because they've moved away from the RPG genera and are approaching an
action genera, which consists on a different kind of challenges than combat.

I find Fable 2 and Fable 3 as improvements since Fable: The Lost Chapters. I'm glad the franchise
keeps evolving towards the action genera keeping the original idea of free will in the original Fable
for the Xbox.

I feel really strongly about this and I needed to rage about my disappointment. It's nothing personal towards other fans who don't agree with me. My opinion isn't the only one that matters. Perhaps I'm being unfair to the new games because they don't embody what *I* think the Fable series should be. It might be unfair, but I won't apologize for it. I like what I like and I hate what I hate. It's never been my intention to come off as an elitist. Maybe I am one. I don't know. It can't be helped, I guess.

Fable has always been an action RPG. I liked the stories and the characters from the sequels, but I just don't see the new combat systems as 'progress.' It's simpler. Which makes it less interesting. Which makes it worse. I'm honestly not trying to insult you or your opinion when I say: I do not understand how you can take enjoyment out of it. The possibility is so alien to me, so impossible, that I don't know how to properly respond. It's like a bear attempting to explain to a shark that its legs hurt. I'm the shark and you're the bear. I am incapable to relating to your point of view. I don't understand you. I can't understand you.