The Xbox Developer_Direct showcase ended with a big look at Fable, the reboot that Playground Games has been working on for quite some time alongside its racing games. Outside of showing off new gameplay and explaining various interactive systems that will be in place, the studio even attached a firm release window to the RPG today.
The reboot is said to be taking all the elements that made the original Lionhead games special, like the whimsical quests and British humor, while adding in modernized gameplay elements and larger scopes. One of these advancements is a fully realized open world, a first for the series.
The title has players beginning their hero adventures as children, just like the original games. Following a tragedy in their village, players jump into their mature versions to continue the game in the open world, where no areas are blocked off from levels or progression. The studio confirmed that a character creator will be available with various heads to choose from as well.
Playground went on to describe the game’s genre as fairytale, not fantasy.
“I think we all know what fantasy is – it’s The Witcher, it’s Skyrim, it’s Lord of the Rings, it’s Game of Thrones. And I think tonally it’s quite grand, it’s sweeping, it’s geopolitical, it’s serious. You know, you can almost picture the color palette of fantasy,” says game director Ralph Fulton. “Fairytales are intimate, they’re small stories about regular people; they’re not grand and sweeping, they’re very personal and whimsical and ultimately, they deal with what happens when magic touches the lives of ordinary folks.”
The combat can be seen being shown off in the teaser video above, where players can switch between melee, ranged, and magic for various combos and effects. There was even a point where an enemy was turned into a chicken before being kicked away, as is tradition.
There will be over 1,000 unique NPCs present in the game’s various landscapes and cities, all with their own routines. Player actions will affect these citizens of Albion, with their perception of the hero shaping the morality system instead of simply being good or evil. A large number of side activities have also been confirmed, like having jobs, romancing NPCs, having children, buying up property for businesses, and more.
Fable is coming out in Autumn 2026 across PC, Xbox Series X|S, and PlayStation 5. It is also confirmed as a day-one release on the Xbox Game Pass subscription service.
