I'm a fan of the light gun genre, and the core idea behind this is actually all pretty cool. The combat is where the rails are really exposed - here it's a light gun style game where Gabriel hops out of his cart to march on a predetermined path, your hands and magic replacing a plastic gun and bullets. Fable: The Journey gives off the impression that it's often pushing less graphical power than it could - presumably due to Kinect needing additional processing power - but as Albion whizzes by it looks fantastic. All of Albion looks great and has survived the switch from an in-house engine to Unreal well. Looking after Seren rewards in gameplay, then, but also just feels like the right thing to do. The third pillar of the game after combat and travelling is camp, and in these sections you tend to Seren and gain experience through it, which can then be spent on more spells. The choice is yours, though as with Fable II's dog the game does a pretty good job of instilling a sense of wanting to care about Seren. It wouldn't be a Fable game without a morality system, and that's true here - your horse is a cipher through which the player can channel their morality - you can look after and tend to it lovingly or treat it as a mere tool for getting across Albion.
One or two moments are incredibly memorable and moving, especially considering how much time Fable spends joking about. There's a constant sense of urgency in this game, but it also has a leisurely pace that allows you to drink in and begin to care about the world and its characters. It's a great story, and one that's made better by the time spent rolling slowly through the countryside scenery. The world of Albion feels more real thanks to these characters, and the apocalyptic threat on display helps to paper over some of Fable III's narrative cracks and set up hooks for a fourth proper Fable game in equal measure.
FABLE 4 THE JOURNEY REVIEW SERIES
In this it's successful - the first Fable game to feature fully fleshed-out cutscenes that appear to have been motion-captured, Fable: The Journey presents the most interesting and real feeling cast the series has managed to date - including a named protagonist with a personality for the first time.
These sequences are less about gameplay and more about relaxing and enjoying some downtime between combat, laying the groundwork for the story with dialogue between hero Gabriel, Fable series regular Theresa and a selection of temporary passengers who hop on your cart for a ride. When the path does branch for optional areas, it's quick to rejoin the default path again.
FABLE 4 THE JOURNEY REVIEW FREE
As with Kinect Joy Ride there's a degree of auto correct on your movement as you drive the horse, so it'll mostly point you down the correct path of its own will, though you're free to break away somewhat. A tilt or a twist will steer the horse and cart through Albion, while flicking the reins will cause your horse, Seren, to increase her trot. This allows the player to sit, both hands raised as if you're holding the reins.
The choice of the horse and cart is an obvious and wise one for Kinect. It's the largest version of Albion Lionhead has ever constructed, but it's easy to see why - it's a set path, winding through a plethora of different environments, the titular journey punctuated with combat. The game sees you riding a horse through Albion, and while you're on a set path there is a sense of scale and drama to the story that betters Fable III. There's a degree of freedom to movement, but the story continues on a linear path that is more akin to an open-ended light gun shooter than the previous Fable adventures. Fable: The Journey essentially is on rails. We may as well start by addressing that particular claim now it's reached internet meme status. It was a bizarre moment, a personal highlight of the show - but what playing the final version of the game has shown me is that the rails don't really matter. "It's not on rails!" How we remember those words, and being ushered to the wall of Microsoft's E3 booth to sign to attest that, according to what we'd been told by Peter Molyneux, we understood Fable: The Journey wasn't.
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