‘Fable Legends’ announced for Xbox One

Fable Legends unites the classic gameplay that players have come to love from the series with all of the next-generation capabilities of Xbox One. For the first time, grab your friends and go on adventures – up to four Heroes can cooperatively discover the quests and stories of Albion. Or, play the villain where you can mastermind the game in real time. “Fable Legends” takes advantage of the graphical processing power of Xbox One, and when coupled with Unreal Engine 4, delivers a rich and beautiful world.

Features

• Rediscover The Magic of Fable – Return to Albion, a picturesque land full of thrilling stories, exciting combat, and high adventure. It’s no surprise that millions of players have visited and adored the welcoming countryside of this once upon a time storyland. “Fable Legends” brings you to a place where history, myth, and folklore are practically the same thing. Of course you’ll also find monsters, villains, and even the occasional disaster, but you shouldn’t take it too seriously. Albion is a unique fantasy land where epic, tragic, and comedic stories all combine for a one of a kind experience.

• New Ways to Play the Hero – In “Fable Legends”, you’re never completely alone. You can play the game single player, with a party of three heroic AI companions that follow your lead through stories and adventures. Or you can play cooperatively with up to three friends and discover the game’s quests and content together. Play whatever style you want, when you want. After all, you’re the Hero. And just what kind of Hero you choose to play is up to you. “Fable Legends” takes you back to a time when Albion is teeming with Heroes, so there’s bound to be one for you. Fearless warriors. Cunning tricksters. Masters of Will. Paragons of virtue. Heartless mercenaries. Intoxicated brawlers. Chicken chasers. They’re all here, and many more besides. You’ll be able to customize your abilities, alter your appearance, and advance your Hero by earning experience and finding new armour, weapons, and treasures.

• Or Is Evil Your Thing? – Fable has always presented opportunities for mischief and villainy, and in “Fable Legends” we’re going to offer a way to play the bad guy as never before. The Villain player takes control of the many creatures, minions, traps, and environmental hazards that Heroes must overcome. Villain play combines elements of strategic decision making and tactical control. When those pitiful Heroes enter an area, you’ll choose which minions are sent into battle and where to place these creatures to maximize their effectiveness. Once the fight begins, you issue the orders for your creatures to execute: telling them where to go, which Hero to attack, and what abilities to use to ensure your evil plans come to fruition.

• Expand Your Controls through SmartGlass – As a Hero, you can use SmartGlass on your tablet or smartphone to track your game progress, get more information on Heroes, quests, and other content. As a Villain, you’ll be able to use a SmartGlass-enabled device to play as the Villain when you’re in the same room with your Xbox One. In this way, you can play right next to a Hero player in couch co-op.

Source: Microsoft PR

Additional Details:

– One hero is a Prince Charming type who possesses a rapier
– He’s also working with a magician, a female warrior with a shield that looks like it weighs as much as she does, and a crossbow-wielding archer
– These three are controlled by other players
– Enemies are controlled by a fifth player
– From a top-down perspective, the villain controls the heroes’ quest, placing enemies, traps, ambushes and more in their path as they play
– Takes place 400 years before the other Fable games
– More heroes can be found in the game
– When the game comes out, the four heroes mentioned won’t be the only ones you can play,
– Compete and co-operate with each other
– Villain controls the quest for the players; where enemies will spawn, how aggressive they are, when the boss will come lumbering out of its lair, when to bring down an impassable portcullis or lay a trap to separate heroes from each other to thwart them
– Game is designed around 5 people playing at once
– If you play alone, AI will take over the other roles
– Prince Charming: camera hangs back above his shoulders
– Archer is viewed through an over-the-should, third-person-shooter perspective
– Warrior woman is the party’s “tank”
– Magician Winter is a support class whose freezing spell stops enemies in their tracks for one of the others to shatter
– Switch between the party members at any time while playing alone
– Uses Unreal Engine 4
– Boss in the demo was an ogre with a club topped with the head of another ogre, which was continually arguing with its owner
– Emotes will be back
– Matchmaking is a big focus for the studio
– Uses Xbox One’s cloud capabilities
– Not playable offline
– Quest-based instead of open-world
– Hub city called Brightlodge, where you can occupy yourself with classic Fable busywork like smithing and pie-making and
– Choose a quest from the map and then you’re sent out into the world
– Villain can choose from pre-built loadouts if they want
– Use SmartGlass to place and direct minions as well as the controller

Source