When Peter Molyneux made daring claims that Fable would be the “greatest role-playing game of all time,” he may have bit off more than he could chew.  The original title lacked many of the promises and ideas circulating around the industry concerning Lionhead Studios’ latest project, befitting code-named Project Ego.  A year since the first release, Molyneux has graced us with the development of Fable: The Lost Chapters for Xbox and PC.  After reviewing the PC version, which despite problematic controls and other issues that transferred from the original title delivered an enjoyable experience offering up its own unique style to the RPG genre, I have been handed the Xbox remake.  After several hours of playing, I realized that the differences between the PC and Xbox versions are negligible.  A lot of what you read will be a regurgitation of my sloppy excuse for journalism when I first reviewed The Lost Chapters.

In Fable, you start out as a young lad living the simple life with your family in a quiet but busy town. Right from the get-go, your father sends you on a chore to earn money for good deeds around town. A young girl asks you to find her teddy bear, a young boy (who coincidentally has stolen the teddy bear) asks you to protect him from a bully (who coincidentally is the brother of the young girl who asked you to find her teddy bear). Essentially, you will need to smite the bully to protect the boy who will give the teddy bear to the girl (earning you two good deeds for two gold coins). These are the most basic quests you will engage in, although there are more interesting ones like discovering a cheating husband behind the local pub engaging in “extra-marital activities” then taking his bribe not to tell his wife just to turn around and leak the info to the Misses.

Before enjoying your home town too long, armed robbers raid your village and kill your father while taking your mother and sister (to add vinegar to the wounds, your dog dies). A mysterious warrior saves you and introduces you to the Heroes’ Guild to train you in the arts of swordsmanship, archery, and magic (the tutorial is long and unfortunately mandatory). Once you graduate from the Heroes’ Guild, you will work to perform some truly heroic quests (all the while gaining more magic abilities and weapons) like rescuing civilians from giant wasps, destroying thief clans, and cutting down armed castle guards…yeah, you heard me right. In Fable, you have the opportunity to be a good hero or a bad hero. Oxymoronic yes, but giving the player a choice opens up new opportunities and paths you never thought possible. This is what makes Fable such a unique title, where the way you behave through the quests affect how your character looks and how people act around you. Good guys can easily woo damsels in any city (the ability to have multiple wives in multiple villages isn’t a dream, but a reality in The Lost Chapters) and young children will imitate and look up to you as you grace them with your presence. Conversely, bad guys can strike fear in peasants walking by and children jeer you from far distances (apparently having a black soul is a major turnoff for woman because I remained an eligible bachelor through my game experience).

Now it’s time to get to the meat of what makes Fable: The Lost Chapters so different from the original. Lionhead Studios’ designers boast that the new missions and quests that have been integrated to the original storyline as well as the special ending that delivers a level of heroism they had wished had been there in the first place. Having played the original Xbox version, I can say that although the new missions don’t cause the main story to fumble, they don’t necessarily propel the storyline to new levels of greatness. It’s essentially the same stuff re-loaded with a sprinkling of side quests that will add an additional couple of hours of gameplay to the mix.   Besides the addition of new levels, little features like the availability of new types of clothing (what’s a hero without a good hat: Indiana Jones…Ashton Kutcher...Gilligan…Woody…um…), the option to ink up your body with customized tattoos, and a more diverse menu screen to keep track of your character’s statistics have been added for more gameplay value. The option of modifications soon to be released is quite exciting, especially the thought of bringing the world of Fable online.

As an Xbox title alone, I have to approach this game two ways: those who have played the original title and those who haven’t.  Simply put, Fable is a must-own experience for Xbox owners.  That said, I feel compelled to recommend passing on this title if you have played its predecessor.  The new additions are primarily side quests which don’t add much to the storyline and don’t bring a new element to the gameplay.  Also, the extra features like new clothing and tattoos don’t do anything to persuade fans of the original game to lay down the dollars for purchase, even if its only $19.99 as a platinum hit (we console gamers need all the money we can get with the pending release of the Xbox 360).

Now, if this is your first visit to the world of Albion, pick up Fable: The Lost Chapters immediately.  For the price (who can beat $19.99; a price tageusually attached to the discount bins at your local GameStop with such “hits” as Jeopardy, The Guy Game, and Cat Woman), experiencing the best of Fable on the system it was meant to be played on is a necessity for any gamer.  The real question is “who are you?”  This isn’t some complicated “Choose Your Own Adventure” book where you look ahead in the book to find the ending you want.

Needless to say, we all will be looking forward to what Peter Molyneux has in store for Fable next.

Gameplay: 8.8
Fable’s innovative gameplay mechanics are back in The Lost Chapters and don’t loose focus, adding additional side quests to the mix.

Graphics: 8.5
There has been no change to the graphics from the first title, although the world of Albion still looks great.

Sound: 9.5
I’m a big fan of Danny Elfman and his main theme is awesome. The ambiance of Fable comes alive through the voice acting, sound effects, and soundtrack.

Difficulty: Medium

Concept: 8.0
I don’t know why Lionhead Studios decided to bring an almost identical version of the previous Fable back.  It may have been a better idea to focus more attention on a REAL sequel to Fable.

Overall: 8.9
I was once obsessed with the idea of Fable. Now that a new version of it has been released and still hasn’t delivered on the promises of Peter Molyneux, it’s a tad disappointing.  But if you haven’t played before, you must pick this game up right now!  The choice is yours, what path will you take?