A Series of Lionhead games
http://www.lionhead.com/
The series of Fable games is made up of six games. Beginning from the first ever game, purely named 'Fable' the series begun to tell the story of Albions heroes. 'Create your life story from childhood to death, grow from an inexperienced adolescent into the most powerful being in the world. Choose the path of righteousness or dedicate your life to evil. Muscles expand with each feat of strength; force of will increases with each work of wit. Obesity follows gluttony, skin tans with exposure to sunlight and bleaches bone-white by moonlight. Earn scars in battle and lines of experience with age. Each person you aid, each flower you crush, each creature you slay, will change this world forever.'(http://www.lionhead.com/games/fable/) Each game follows the same structured narrative, as you begin your journey as young and inexperienced, and work to become a hero. Each game has its own unique traits, with Fable II introducing a canine companion who aids you on your quest, and Fable III giving the player the opportunity to rule a kingdom. It is the unusual and medieval look to the games where I draw my influence, as well as its comedic nature and narrative.
Gameplay
The gameplay of each Fable game is a mixture of a variety of different aspects, all following one key structure. Each game contains one main goal, which consists of many quests. However, it is the other parts of the gameplay that make Fable unique. You can also communicate with villagers, making them love you or hate you, you can marry, have children, and purchase houses. Fable III also creates a point in the game where you must rule a kingdom and make judgements to better the kingdom or to not. Fable gives the player the opportunity to create their heroes life, give them a family, a reputation and customise their look. The combat system is also unique, as it consists of three different parts, Will, Skill, and Strength. Will is the magic used in the game, which ranges from fire balls to summoning goblins. Skill is your long range weapon, pistol or rifle. Strength is your sword and hand to hand combat skills. Each part of every Fable game is unique and innovative. The aspects of the Fable series which are key inspirations are the use of quests and a main goal, but also the use of interactions with others and the choices that make you either good or evil.
Character Design
The character design in the Fable games has always been an inspiration to my work, each characters design is completely unique and gives them personality and presence. The designs in the Fable games are very unique, however they have taken strong influence from Medieval England. The female characters in the game bare resemblance to women of this era, with long dresses and skirts, and corsets. The puffed sleeves and unusual colours create unique clothes for the characters, fitting into the setting of the games nicely. The male characters are dressed in large boots, shirts and trousers with large belt buckles. They also wear large hats and top hats, depending on their status in the kingdom. As the main character is customisable, the player can choose their own outfit and look for their own character. Therefore, for my character study I decided to look at some of the main NPC’s in the game. First of all, I looked at the players sister, Rose, in Fable II. Being a peasant, and also a young girl, I can draw inspiration from her design. Rose’s design of clothing is very simple and ragged, with a waistcoat and long sleeved top and a long skirt with boots. All the clothes are old and dirty, conveying she is poor and living in the slums. Her hair is messy and unkempt, with a dirty hair band over it. Her design is strongly contrasted to the character of Reaver in Fable III, whose design reinforces his status and wealth. Dressed in a white suit, with a fur trim and a tall black hat and goggles, Reavers design has a steam punk feel to it. His status is conveyed through his clean and smart clothes, with a cane also having connotations of wealth. The final character I looked closely at is the players canine companion. The use of a dog began in Fable II, with a generic brown dog for every player, however in Fable III, the player began with a collie, but could change the breed of their dog to suit their tastes. The use of real breeds of dogs gives a realistic and personal touch to the game, with players knowing these dogs and relating to them.
Environment Design
The environments in the Fable series are extremely inspirational in my work, as they feature a fantasy world, but with strong influences from medieval England. In my study of the environments, I closely looked at Bowerstone, the capital city in Fable III. The bricked bridges and tall brick clock tower create a strong medieval look, with the structures themselves having a fantasy theme. The main part of the environments in Fable I am interested in is the houses. The houses are small throughout the world of Albion, with each house containing one main room, with a small upstairs, sometimes accessible by stairs on the outside of the house. It is however, the design of the exterior of the house that is most influential to my designs, as it features strong resemblances to medieval and Victorian houses. The use of a flat coloured house containing wooden beams, and a tiled roof is a design used in the era we are looking at, with the fantasy element to the Fable houses creating a unique, skewed look to the structure. The large wooden door, and tall pointed roofs are a key inspiration in my designs, with the extra details such as lanterns and decorations also having an influence on my work.
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