With Fable 3 wrapping up the RPG trilogy with a nice little bow, its creators now seem intent on exploring the wider Xbox 360 base by tapping into two other very distinct styles of play: Gesture-based shooting in Fable: The Journey, and bite-sized, beat-’em-up thrills with Fable Heroes. The Journey may well prove divisive among fans simply for its reliance on Kinect, but Fable Heroes sets its sights on wide appeal via accessible co-op action, a tiny $10 price point, and a bevy of franchise references that are light enough to not alienate newcomers.
As such, the Xbox Live Arcade release seems poised to introduce the world of Albion to a much larger audience; but for all its surface charm and smart ideas, Fable Heroes falls flat in action. Its slow-paced, repetitive combat fails to engage or consistently entertain. All the colorful callbacks in the world can’t make up for what proves to be a frequently dull and unnecessarily repetitive experience.
