X10: Fable III didn't really piss me off

Peter Molyneux said before X10 rolled around that what he was showing about Fable III at X10 would get people "super pissed"

Kind of a bold statement to make about your game. If you're making a game that people are going to be pissed off about, then how could it possibly be good? I mean, it was obviously just a marketing ploy for people to check out what he was showing at the event, but instead of getting pissed off I found myself more interested in what he did end up showing.

The first thing he showed was a set of six new screenshots:


The game is set 10 years after Fable II, with you taking the reins as the son of Fable II's main character. Save data from Fable II could be imported to change the game slightly, but Molyneux went on to say it wouldn't be necessary, and the changes wouldn't be incredibly significant.

About halfway through the story, you will become the ruler of Albion, and this will play a much bigger role in your relationship with the town. Followers will become your new form of currency, and you will have to face many tough choices, which will leave you with either many or little followers.

There's also a new "Touch" system that people have been comparing to ICO, and I can definitely see the similarity. As you progressively become more comfortable with a character, you will be able to go from a handshake, to a hug, to a kiss, etc.

Another thing Molyneux talked about was the weapon morphing system. Over time, depending on your actions in-game, your weapon will change over time, becoming more accustomed to your character and it will change, just like your character has changed in the past two games.

All of that seems great, but I think we're missing the part that's supposed to make us super pissed off. Well, Fable III is NOT AN RPG! Apparently there will be no XP, no glowing orbs, no leveling up no health bar, no red edge-of-the-screen effect to show you're about to die, none of that! In fact, Molyneux has stated that there will be no HUD elements in the game. Honestly, I'm not really pissed off about it, and it's hard to imagine many people being super pissed by it. This is quite surprising, and definitely turns the game into something much different, and something much better in this writer's opinion.

Overall, I'm pretty excited by what Fable III has to offer, and I'm looking forward to seeing how it develops in the following months till the game's release in Q4 2010. Until then, I'll watch the new set of Lionhead Developer Diaries. You can find the first one Here, just be sure not to get too pissed off about anything while watching it.

E3 2009: Project Natal, My Thoughts

So, just moments ago at Microsoft's press conference, they unveiled the latest peice of hardware they've been working on. A lot of people were speculating about it being a motion controller, and I suppose you can call it that... Except, there's no controller. Project Natal takes your body movements, tracks them in 3D space, and uses them in-game. There's also voice commands, and various camera tricks used to really make you feel like you're in another world, and immerse yourself in the game.

When they started to show it, I admit, I was VERY skeptical. At first, I thought Natal was just another kind of Eye-toy or Vision Camera. I thought it'd be a gimmicky little add-on that wouldn't provide any sort of substance. At one point during the conference, I even said aloud "oh, this looks sooo gimmicky". It wasn't until they demoed the girl on stage playing Ricochet (a sort of 3D kind of Super Breakout game using your body as a paddle) that I got really excited about Natal.

They demoed more than a pretty cool Breakout clone, they demoed a paint program where you use iPhone-esque gestures to paint a simple picture. They showed how you can navigate menus with motion control, and move your avatar around in real-time. They even got a program with a boy named Milo, created by Peter Molyneux and his team, who actually responded to your emotions and what you were saying to him. I was totally blown away!

The whole thing looks like it actually WORKS. I've tried other camera-controlled games, I've played Totemball with my Vision Camera, I've played You're in the Movies. NONE of that stuff really works, it's completely clunky, and you look like an idiot trying to do something that should be simple.

If Natal delivers on what it's promising (and it looks like it will), then this will be a giant leap in not only the Xbox's increased market, not only Video Game History, but it will be a giant technological advancement, and an achievement in modern technology.