Fable II: See the Future Review

By Simon Parkin Published 12 May, 2009

Wossy was onto something.

Version tested: Xbox 360

1,539,100 gold coins. That's the amount of money my Albion property portfolio accrued in rent from the moment I last switched off Fable II, having completed its first DLC release, Knothole Island, to the moment I sat down to play this, its second. It was deposited as a lump sum, having accumulated in even amounts every hour for the past four months while I was away. I mention this fact not as a boast (although you should check the hell out of these kickass solid gold trainers) but rather as evidence that innovative systems designed to draw players back into a game in the short term can present unforeseen problems over the long term. In See the Future, every bag of gold coins in a hidden treasure chest and every ruby gemstone my trusty dog sniffs out is worthless: time and distance already made me a millionaire.

While Knothole Island was pieced together in a matter of weeks by a team weary from the crunch of delivering the main game, the time leading up to this second add-on has evidently been used to regroup, refocus and decide where Fable II's future lies. Unlike the first add-on, See the Future presents three distinct, small mini-adventures as oppose to a single medium-sized one, each one tied to a different mysterious trinket on sale from a newly-installed Bowerstone market trader, Murgo.

The first object Murgo sells you is a cursed snowglobe that whisks you away to a black and white village drained of all colour and inhabited only by ghosts and the ghosts of ghosts. Just as your job was to restore balance and order to Knothole Island by solving its small-town politics-cum-weather problems, so you must restore colour and life to this more esoteric community. However, in contrast to Knothole Island's yarn, the story surrounding the snowglobe village's misfortune is told in whispers of dialogue, and half-clues scrawled in dusty diaries: it is mystery piled upon mystery and the resolution, when it comes, is both fleeting and unsatisfactory.

'Fable II: See the Future' Screenshot 1

Offering players the chance to upgrade those last remaining abilities, See the Future is chock full of battles.

In essence, the mission consists of two small dungeons, one underground, accessed via a well, the other inside a haunted house. Both locations are inhabited by a new kind of enemy, a Tron-like apparition, which comes in three varieties, colour-coded as being susceptible to one of your three types of attack: melee, ranged or magical. There are no bosses to defeat here; you simply follow Fable 2's sparkly breadcrumb trail, and kill everything on sight while keeping a lookout for collectables along the way. Once colour is restored to the village there are a couple of secrets to tie up but, otherwise, there's nothing to stop you leaving the snowglobe forever.

Murgo's second item, a golden skull, transports you to a deserted graveyard, the kind of cemetery found in every one of Albion's nooks and crannies. Here you must aid a spellbound necromancer by fetching him various types of ghosts to free him, and herein lies See the Future's most enjoyable challenge as, to access the graveyard's various areas, you'll need to suit up in a range of different costumes, switching between dressing as a skeleton, a Balverine and, finally, a lumbering, obese Hobbe. Lionhead capitalises on the opportunity the costume changes offer with some gentle puzzling, and while this mission is just as brief as the first it's the more enjoyable.

The final item in Murgo's inventory is given to you gratis (because it gives him the willies, "and not the good kind"). Again, it transports you to another faraway location, this time to meet with an old friend, who offers you the titular glimpse of the future. Two minutes later you're back at Murgo's stall, having borne witness to a barely interactive cut-scene whose window onto the future transpired to be little more than a diluted announcement, a whisper through a crack in the fourth wall confirming what we already guessed: that a sequel is inevitable, although it probably won't appear for years...

'Fable II: See the Future' Screenshot 2

While See the Future's new environments offer little that distinguishes them from the rest of Fable II's gameworld, their quality is consistent and consistently beautiful.

It's a stylish way to make an announcement, for sure, but one that's been sold, at least in part, under false pretences. Nevertheless, the thud of this anti-climax is softened a little by the immediate presentation of the Coliseum, a new high-score combat arena that offers the most enduring component to the package. Here you must fight wave after wave of enemies, pausing only to knock flick-switches and boot chickens for bonus points. It's a compelling race for a high score, rewarding speed over style but, while it does keep a record of your top score, the lack of a wider Xbox Live leaderboard diminishes its power.

The core DLC elements are seasoned with new items and trinkets: a Crayola range of new dyes, face paints and expressions as well as potions to turn your mutt into a pedigree Huskie or Dalmatian. As with Knothole Island's page-collecting mini-game, here you must track down ten golden statuettes, the location of the final object providing no end of trouble.

A slew of enjoyable new Achievements reward past accomplishments as much as new ones, awarding gamerpoints for performing 25 groin shots, or making love 25 times (or, er, watching someone else make love 25 times). These meta-challenges draw out the experience a little but, for most players the package offers little more than two hours of new content. Of course, at just 560 MSP (GBP 4.76 / EUR 6.72), that's reasonable value, but buyers should be aware that, while See the Future certainly lengthens the Fable II experience, it does little to expand it.

6 / 10

Read the Eurogamer.net scoring policy
Picture of Simon.

About Simon Parkin

Simon Parkin is an author and journalist on video games. A regular contributor to Eurogamer since 2005, his work has also appeared in Edge, The Telegraph, Gamasutra and Boing Boing.

Read more articles from Simon by visiting the Simon Parkin archive page.

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Comments (55) Latest comment 3 years ago

Comments threads automatically close after 30 days, but please feel free to continue chatting on the forum!

  • uglygamer #1 3 years ago

    First

    Its a joke, so please no one cry about it.
    Edited by 1 at 12/05/09 @ 15:10

  • menage #2 3 years ago

    Seeing as I plan to replay the game anyway because I erased all my save files by accident this should do nicely to add some new experience to it all. I love F2, so more of it is fine by me.

    Oh, and ignored for being first.
    Edited by 1 at 12/05/09 @ 15:10

  • thenastypasty #3 3 years ago

    I love the world of Fable and everything about it so i cant wait to give this a go tonight,but i am hoping that the 3rd piece of dlc is a proper expantion pack.

  • jonsaan #4 3 years ago

    I will be buying this. I really enjoyed Knothole.

  • f1r3storm Verified Redakteur, Eurogamer Deutschland #5 3 years ago

    1,539,100 gold coins.

    Got 4 million. :p

  • ChadSexington #6 3 years ago

    Fable 2 is as good as Fable 1 - i.e. a pile of shit.

  • cyacomini #7 3 years ago

    I refer to your previous comment chapsexington

    "I started playing this recently and it's no better than the first - i.e. shit. The combat - shit. The story - shit. The whole good/evil thing - shit. Getting married etc. - shit. I mean, come on, there's no game in there, it might as well have been a Wii game."

    Oh, and I notice you use a sackboy logo in your profile - I thought Little Big Planet was as good as Daikatana - i.e .s.h.i.t

    See, we all like different stuff!

  • Xerx3s #8 3 years ago

    "Fable 2 is as good as Fable 1 - i.e. a pile of shit."

    The game may not be to your taste but neither F1 nor F2 where a pos. That leads me to suspect that you have played neither and are just spewing random hate in order to be popular.

  • DUFFMAN5 #9 3 years ago

    1,539,100 gold coins.

    Got 4 million. :p


    I see your 4m and raise you my 8m, well I think that is what I had when I completed the first dlc, sold Fable a good while ago now, it was great fun while it lasted.
    Edited by 1 at 12/05/09 @ 15:30

  • Kremlik Verified Co-Founder, Crash To Desktop #10 3 years ago

    Well put it this way - SoF is still cheaper then most bits of DLC and actally adds a lot more then just a new map (or retextured old ones) or a new skin

  • ChadSexington #11 3 years ago

    If you like either Fable 1 or 2 then you like shit games. End of.

  • cyacomini #12 3 years ago

    /\/\

    what a complete arse

  • ChadSexington #13 3 years ago

    Yes, that's where shit comes from - the arse. Or in the case of Fable, the arse of Peter Molyneux.

  • Spekingur #14 3 years ago

    For someone who calls himself Chad Sexington I would gather that you liked that kind of stuff.

  • Grayvern #15 3 years ago

    Im not going to buy it but that's because I found fable 2 enjoyable but not brilliant, and to be frank with dlc this long after like the bring down the sky for Mass effect, there is little relevance for me because I rarely replay and an addon at anything less than 5-10 hours for a game of this sort just feels odd after not having played for so long.

    + ignore chad he clearly like the attention.

  • ChadSexington #16 3 years ago

    Not really, it's just that the Fable games really are shit and it boggles the mind that anyone could enjoy them on any level.

  • cyacomini #17 3 years ago

    Not sure about anyone else but every time I go back to Fable I always get fond memories of Dungeon Keeper, Magic Carpet and Black & White - all of which would go down an absolute storm on XBLA.

    I wonder if Lionhead still hold the licenses to those titles - I seem to recall EA buying out the Bullfrog stuff.

  • JayScott #18 3 years ago

    For someone who hates the games Chad you sure are spending a lot of time hanging around in here...

  • kinky_mong #19 3 years ago

    The picture on the front page keeps reminding me of the slightly rubbish movie Eagle Vs. Shark.

  • Krelle #20 3 years ago

    Already have Chad on Ignore apparently. Im rather good at ignoring people. (And being ignored..)

  • Darren #21 3 years ago

    Hmmm, 6 out of 10... that's the score I'd give the full game personally. Better than average but not especially good or anything. 'Twas fun-ish for the 10 hours or so I played it... then I got bored. Very bored.

  • Xerx3s #22 3 years ago

    "If you like either Fable 1 or 2 then you like shit games. End of. "
    "Yes, that's where shit comes from - the arse. Or in the case of Fable, the arse of Peter Molyneux. "
    "Not really, it's just that the Fable games really are shit and it boggles the mind that anyone could enjoy them on any level."

    As I suspected, you're an absolute retard. I wish you a happy life but I'm quite glad that I won't have to be confronted by your stupidity ever again.

  • JammyPez #23 3 years ago

    Revolutionary?
    Evolutionary?

    More of the same.

  • JayScott #24 3 years ago

    @ JammyPez

    It's downloadable content to a pre-existing game. WTF did you expect?

  • Ninja_Tino #25 3 years ago

    Wossy was onto something? Does that mean he's in this game?

  • miiiguel #26 3 years ago

    While I don't think Fable 2 is a 10 game, it is still a very good experience, quite polished, good narrative, it's "solid" and never disapoints. It's a Sunday afternoon kinda game, a feel good one. Nice voice-overs, great graphics, amazingly good narrative - it has a poor combar system..., yes it has, that's true.
    Then again whomever say the game is "shit" is etiher a unpleasant individual or just trying to seek for attention - it's a high-profile game, something like the "Halo-thing".
    Anyway, I suspect it'll be a afternoon well spent this week-end, and with an added pleasure to be "boggling someone's mind".

  • penhalion #27 3 years ago

    Played it when it first came out but, never bothered to finish it. I found the stupid spamming actions to interact with people and no matter what I found. The story was also just not that interesting. I finally quit playing when, after a few hours of play, the game informed me that if I went to this island I couldn't come back. I thought "What a frakkin' short game!" and quit and traded it back at full price for something else.

  • miiiguel #28 3 years ago

    ^ That's not true, the story continues for quite a while after going to the Tattered Spire. It only warns you about it because a good chunk of "game years" will be spent there. Id say you quit the game not much more than half of it.

    oh... and you would come back, 11 years after or something like that.
    Edited by 1 at 12/05/09 @ 17:25

  • Retroid #29 3 years ago

    Mr Sexington will be in the isolation room for the next 24h or so, so hopefully everyone else who's interested in this DLC can talk freely now :)

  • goz #30 3 years ago

    Continue from your last save for sure. All the DLC integrates perfectly no matter where you left off.

  • shotgun44 #31 3 years ago

    Why do I not see a Chad Sexington?

  • muscleblade #32 3 years ago

    Short and sweet - just how i want the DLC to be.

  • shotgun44 #33 3 years ago

    I have to say I usually agree with reviews but this game, while enjoyable, didn't provide any where near as much stuff to do as all the hype made out. It reminded me a bit of Spore with all the hype about it being on par with the invention of air travel and then when I played it I was just a little bit underwhelmed. 8/10 I reckon. I can usually see where people are getting their tens from but this time I really can't see it. Please don't hurt me...

  • Sonic_D #34 3 years ago

    Fable .. 2 .. is .. just .. so .. average

  • miiiguel #35 3 years ago

    The combat seriously lacks depth. An Afro Samurai alike combat system would elevate the game to a higher level.

  • IronCladChicken #36 3 years ago

    @cyacomini
    Dungen Keeper would be an amazing XBLA title - Especially if they HD'd the graphics

  • BBIAJ #37 3 years ago

    Erm, EG? It's Murgo the Trader, it's even written in big yellow letters above him, and it says Mystical Murgo on his caravan! Not this Mungo chap you mention, he's in the Fable II pub games.

  • JayKwon #38 3 years ago

    Bought it immediately, I'm looking forward in completing it, Fable II is awesome:D! Good review, a 6 sounds decent enought for me. Not that it really mattered, since I've bought it already. And was going to do anyways.

  • Daikon #39 3 years ago

    Fable 2 DLC?
    I didn't even finish the main quest, couldn't be bothered once I'd maxed out all skills...

  • RedSparrows #40 3 years ago

    Oh God, Fable II, just such an average, dull game, you know. All games are like Fable II, sheesh. Yawn. Like, I just lazily cast some foolish denouncements around and stroll on.

    Come off it. Fable II is utterly charming and fun, despite being a tad clunky here and there and too short for my tastes.

  • lmephisto #41 3 years ago

    Well its a beautyfull game but its indeed to shot they gave emphasis to pub games instead of the main campaign so no i think there is no need to get this dlc since i finished it. Maybe ill just get some more achievements and that's it :p

  • muscleblade #42 3 years ago

    Fable 2 is good imo. Its very relaxing and has a good vibe. This DLC was incredible short, but getting all the new achieves will take a little more time. I completed the DLC assignments in about one hour. It was even shorter than Knothole Island.

  • Tonka #43 3 years ago

    First!

  • curtlikesmeat #44 3 years ago

    Just finished Fable 2 (couldn't say no for £18 new from Play) - I enjoyed some of the choices you have to make as they did actually stop and make me think but I thought the ending was poor. Throughout the build-up I really enjoyed the story but at the end it just stops with no real conclusiion or happening. Admitedly it was pretty funny when Reaver just shoots Lucien halfway through his evil monologue but it just seemed an anticlimax. It's disappointing to see that the DLC hasn't advanced the main storyline, or been anyway near the standard of the GTA DLC.

    Fable 2 was an 8/10 for me. As a side note, whilst I was away in the tower my wife (who is white, like the main character) somehow managed to have a black child - I haven't found out whether this is a hilarious bug or she's been cheating on me whilst I was away!
    Edited by 1 at 13/05/09 @ 09:12

  • cyacomini #45 3 years ago

    Well I sat down last night and really enjoyed this DLC - but....

    I was pretty annoyed that despite it being advertised as a 3 quest package, only the first 2 quests actually involve you doing anything. The 3rd (see the future) is pretty much just a cut-scene with no interactivity at all.

    Still, it was well worth the MSP's - I got about 3 hours play out of it.

    word of warning to everyone though - some of the path finding & collision detection is WAY off. I managed to get stuck between a bookcase and a desk and couldn't move anywhere. I had to re-do the first quest all over again...

  • cyacomini #46 3 years ago

    @curtlikesmeat

    Yup - black kid here too with both parents being white.

    Maybe the wife has been down the docks....

  • muscleblade #47 3 years ago

    "The 3rd (see the future) is pretty much just a cut-scene with no interactivity at all. "

    The Colisseum is the third quest then. The second quest with the skull lasted about 15 minutes. LOL. Not much longer than the cutscene actually. Love the new achievements though.



  • geeza2020 #48 3 years ago

    Fable 2 for me just wasnt as good as the original. While the first was too short, that was its only problem. Whereas Fable 2 just never seemed to get going. I was constantly thinking "Right, the story will probably kick off properly after this quest!" but it never did, and before i knew it i was watching the EXTREMELY poor ending. 7/10 at best, and after reading the review of this DLC i wont be going back into the Fable world anytime soon.

  • metalangel #49 3 years ago

    So much time was spent trying to make Fable 2 "charming" they forgot to put the game in. As a "My First RPG" it would suffice but as anything else there is a superior alternative. Not that it'll matter, millions of idiots will buy this so their useless dog will look different now.

  • Kikizosan #50 3 years ago

    If you chose the option at the end of the main game that made you lose your faithful mutt, do either of these DLCs give you a replacement one?

    Not that anything could replace my little treasure-finding hound.

  • Retroid #51 3 years ago

    Knothole Island does.

    ANYWAY

    I just really, really enjoyed Fable 2, I found it charming and compelling. Mrs Retroid loves it so I had no choice but to buy any DLC which comes out for it and after playing through Knothole myself as part of the marger game it works quite well, just not so much as *the only thing to do*, if you see what I mean.

  • IronCladChicken #52 3 years ago

    I like Fable2 - Enjoyed it more than Fallout3. 9/10 game for me.

  • geeza2020 #53 3 years ago

    "I like Fable2 - Enjoyed it more than Fallout3" - how is Fallout 3 relevant to this???

  • murphy1978 #54 3 years ago

    "how is Fallout 3 relevant to this??? "

    Perhaps he is mentioning it because for many, Fallout 3 was GOTY. I also enjoyed this more that Fallout 3.

    "Well, I now have absolutely no need to play this as the reviewer just told me exactly what happens. Thanks a lot. "

    You came into a review of some very short DLC and expected no spoilers? In fact, you came into a review and expected no spoilers?

  • migasUK #55 3 years ago

    there will be anymore DLC for fable II? or this was the last?