Xbox's New Fable Hones the Classic Series' Combat to Near-Perfection
Overview & Key Takeaways
The Fable demo previewed at Gamescom showcases the game's fluid combat, blending many fighting styles in one.
At Gamescom, Polygon had the opportunity to play a 30-minute Fable demo behind closed doors. It was focused solely on combat: An early game quest took me, alongside a dry-witted character named Humphry, through an abandoned mine full of undead skeletons and wraiths, followed by a misty bog that culminated in a boss fight.
It’s no wonder Playground Games has been so keen to showcase its role-playing game’s combat, because it is unbelievably fluid. Before I went hands-on, one of the devs explained that the team’s goal was to make combat as seamless as possible across melee, ranged, and magic, so the three blend together as one. Playground nailed it.
Melee weapons, as you’d expect, have the usual light or heavy options, with combos available for repeated swings. Your bow can be used to take out foes from afar, but you can also equip a repeater crossbow, which is much better for crowd control. And then there are the spells: from an antigravity suspension spell that lifts enemies into the air, to the offense-focused targeted lightning bolt or fireball, you can switch between them on the fly.
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Image: Playground Games/Xbox
Image: Playground Games/Xbox
Image: Playground Games/Xbox
Fable isn’t about creating a character build that specializes in one type of combat or another, because you’re the hero, and that means you can do anything. When in combat, melee attacks are on the face buttons, aiming and firing the bow are on the triggers, and if you want to switch to magic, just hold the right trigger when not aiming and press the face buttons to cast a spell.
While you’re not quite a god (if you increase the difficulty to “master”, you will die fairly often), the game’s default difficulty leans slightly toward the easier side, making it feel like a proper power fantasy. It was impressively satisfying to charge my heavy attack to spin a hammer around before switching to my bow to finish off an enemy in the distance, then casting a spell to push nearby skeletons off a ledge.
I can’t speak about the open-world exploration, nor the non-linear quest design, or any of the life sim aspects of Fable. What I can confirm is that the team has absolutely nailed combat, and the game feels like an experience worthy of the series.
Fable will be released on Windows PC and Xbox Series X on Feb. 23, 2027.
