This evening’s Xbox Games Showcase (June 11) flaunted the comical world of Fable for fans, featuring The IT Crowd star Richard Ayoade as one of its disgruntled denizens dealing with bothersome heroes.
Of course, we had an inkling the RPG would be appearing in the presentation, based on a sparkly social media post from the official Xbox social media channels. If there’s one thing that Fable is fondly remembered for, it’s the wry sense of humour about the Hollywood solemnity of other fantasy fiction — something that appears to have returned in the upcoming game.
Richard Ayoade, who you’ll recognise from The IT Crowd, set the scene for the narrative of the new Fable, starring as Dave the vegetable enthusiast. He decried heroes as “wafters,” disruptive hedonists who tread the same ground as every main character before them.
Though it’s been awhile since we heard anything from the Fable team, last year Xbox Game Studios claimed it felt the game was ready for a reveal — though Playground Games gave its publisher the thumbs down.
Given the poor reception to Redfall, that may have been a smart move. The first we saw of Fable was a cinematic trailer in 2020 which, while effective at stirring up those rosy memories of the series, offered fans very little on what the game would look like.
The tone, though, is spot on. Late last year, Xbox Game Studios head Matt Booty affirmed that Playground Games “gets it,” in spite of its pedigree. “Let’s be honest, giving Fable to the racing team could be a little bit of a head-scratcher, but they have proven that they get it, and I’m excited for when the time comes to be able to show more.”
Fable is landing on Xbox Game Pass on day one, though that is to be expected as an Xbox first-party game.