When you cover or follow gaming news closely, you sometimes run into the issue of being unaware a title hasn’t been officially announced. Over the last few days that has been my personal experience with several rumors piling up of an impending Fable announcement. Up ’till this point, I had assumed the game was offhandedly confirmed in development, but simply didn’t have an official showing.
As it turns out, despite it being the worse kept secret in the industry, no Microsoft has not formally announced Playground is developing a new open-world Fable game. News first broke this game was is development back in 2018 from Eurogamer. According to their sources, the game was in development at Playground. Accordingly, the game would be an open-world RPG with a heavy focus on story and characters.
Various rumors and leaks offered further insight into the game’s world, narrative, and features. A light reboot, the game takes place in the distant future after a mad king rebuilt the Tattered Spire and wished for an asteroid to wipe out the world. Not just at present, but to ensure whatever ends he had in mind, he wished a second asteroid would strike the planet in the distant future—leading into the game’s plot.
Mechanically the game is said to have fluid third-person fights and retain and expand upon the series staple of building ownership. During the game, you can explore and build towns that will factor into the main quest line that is hinted to have a potential bad ending. Likely the second asteroid hitting the planet, but this is not specified.
Now new rumors indicate an announcement is imminent with one source claiming it will be announced on the 23rd during the upcoming conference.
RUMOR: Microsoft will announce a new Fable game on July 23 with an in-engine trailer pic.twitter.com/83SAUgUfAZ
— Everything Sports & Gaming (@ESG) July 20, 2020
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At the 31 minute mark of the Kinda Funny Xcast Ep. 01, Alanah Pearce confirms she has heard from five sources inside Microsoft that the game is in development. This response came after she was asked what she expected to be at the conference giving the inference she expects it to be formally announced.
Beyond that, we’re just going to have to wait and see when Fable will be officially unveiled.
Rumor Analysis: Most Likely
Fable is an established IP that Microsoft can reasonably expect to have a built-in audience. Any notion that they wouldn’t try to capitalize on it at least one more time is pure lunacy. The only real question is whether it will be announced on the 23rd.
To that end, all I can say is maybe. There are enough sources confirming the game is in development. An open-world Fable game would also be a show stopper and generate a lot of buzz, but there are a lot of games rumored and confirmed in development that were supposed to be shown, yet for various reasons weren’t.
Largely I do not cover “Game will be announced on day X” rumors because most of them turn out to be false. Devils advocating one is real, plans change so often that lacking a reliable source, you are likely to be caught with your pants down covering these rumors.
All that can be reasonably ascertained is it is happening. Beyond that, everything is up in the air.
(Thanks for the tip, Ennis85)
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