GDC: Molyneux's Fable 2 revelation

By Robert Purchese Published 9 March, 2007

One man and his dog.

Peter Molyneux has finally let slip one of his big secrets for Fable 2, revealing at GDC that you will have a canine companion to follow you throughout your adventures in Albion.

The Lionhead boss believes this furry fellow will tug at our heart strings and help the Xbox 360 title imprint itself in our memories.

The four-legged tail-wagger will behave exactly as you'd expect: it hates cats, unconditionally loves its master, fetches balls, does tricks, sniffs other dog's bottoms and even responds to voice commands - something Molyneux wasn't ready to show yet.

It will also have a more practical use, acting as a scout to guide you (in the absence of the mini-map and HUD from the first game), point out previously unexplored areas and pick up an enemy's scent. You'll even be able to turn into the beast in various mini-games.

Get into a fight and good old Rover will steam in, providing a welcome distraction but no real combat prowess. While it will sustain injuries in combat, it won't die - although Molyneux hinted that man and beast might part ways later in the story.

The dog will also grow to visually represent your alignment, which Molyneux promises won't be so clear cut this time around. If you're a nasty sort, your dog will resemble a Doberman, but if you're an angelic type it'll take on an unbearably cute Sheep Dog look.

So, perhaps there's more to this than meets the eye, and early demonstrations point to a robust and non-intrusive companion.

Pet themed downloadable content was also hinted at, as was the opportunity to meet other people's canine creations, which Molyneux promised will never be identical.

He also let slip other bits and bobs for his upcoming sandbox role-playing game. For instance, you'll be able to play as a man or woman this time around, wooing and possibly sleeping with the opposing sex for fun or for family. If you do pop a little rug rat out, it'll mostly stay at home, but will naturally idolise you and follow in your good or evil footsteps.

You'll also be able to buy any land you see in the game, snapping up properties to unlock new quests. Dynamic regions will also be introduced, meaning towns can grow from one hut into a prospering city, devoted to you if you helped form the original foundations.

Meanwhile, money will be much harder to come by this time around - but if you buy absolutely everything, you can even end the game as Emperor, banishing clothes and passing barn dancing laws, or something.

Will Molyneux actually be able to deliver on his promises this time around? Or will hell freeze over?

Picture of Robert.

About Robert Purchese

Bertie is Eurogamer's Senior Staff Writer. When he's not hunting down news stories he's often found playing with his kids or gabbling about fantasy games and strange online worlds.

Read more articles from Robert by visiting the Robert Purchese archive page.

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Comments (58) Latest comment 5 years ago

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

  • MaxiSleep #1 5 years ago

    WoW! Pets in a game!

  • #2 5 years ago

    One man and his glod.

  • Dizzy #3 5 years ago

    Interesting. I hope they have a dynamic streaming world this time. That would have changed the game for good to awesome.

  • mkreku #4 5 years ago

    I actually liked Fable. I replayed it just about a week ago and it was much better than I first thought when I got it. But it wasn't very friendly for someone who enjoys the Gothic series the most, with its corridor resembling maps. If they can make this sequel a bit more open (streaming maps?) it would indeed be worth a lot for an old explorer like me.

    Let's hope it doesn't take so long for it to appear on the PC this time. I like to play my RPG's on my PC.

  • Negotiator #5 5 years ago

    Pete talks the talk, and then runs away when the shit hits the fan. I just wanna be there when he fu#ks this one up as well, just so I can punch his fugly face in.

  • Xerx3s #6 5 years ago

    There is a vid showing it off in the thread in the forum. Looks brilliant.

  • bushwod #7 5 years ago

    Streaming maps would be a very welcome addition to this series. The dog things sounds a bit too reminicent of the creatures from Black & White, but the emotional value sounds good.

    I really despised the implementation of spells on the console version last time, and the arrows were also weak. I Just ended up hacking and slashing instead. Improved combat controls are called for (take a hint from Zelda Peter).

    Still, looking forward to this.

  • Razorus #8 5 years ago

    This is sounding far more ambitious than I thought it would be. Let's hope Ol' Petey Pooh can keep his promises and deliver us a great game from the heavens. If it's like an upgraded Fable, I would be happy with that even, but with all this added stuff, its sounding really exciting indeed.

  • kangarootoo #9 5 years ago

    Underwhelmed.

    Was this the big reveal that we were all speculating about not that long ago? Some said a pirate setting, some said gunpowder weapons, some even said multiplayer over XBLive... we got a dog?

    Is it just me? Am I missing something here?

  • richardiox #10 5 years ago

    Think Fable 2 is sounding really good, hopefully Molyneux can realise it all properly in the finished game.

  • kangarootoo #11 5 years ago

    In hindsight, this just can't be the big reveal he was waxing about a few weeks ago. Surely not. I await more info.

  • chub #12 5 years ago

    "Pet themed downloadable content was also hinted at"
    Dog armour?

  • brooza #13 5 years ago

    I've read the interview that this info came from, and there are 3 big things in the game, this is one of them, and the only one he's willing to talk about as it's the only one that's already fully implemented in the game (he's been told off for talking about features that aren't 100% definate)

  • UNSCmasterCHEF #14 5 years ago

    The one thing I hated about Fable was that the good guy was always blonde haired and blue eyed. The bad guy had dark hair and flies. Why can't I be evil and clean?

    There should be more character customisations and the changes should be more subtle.

    I loved Fable. It may not have been all that was promised but it was a hell of game!

  • dirigiblebill #15 5 years ago

    Sounds like he's buying into the whole Ueda Fumito teamwork gameplay thing. I don't expect this dog to tug on the heart strings like Yorda or Agro.

    The dynamic city business sounds interesting, though it's probably far more linear than it sounds. He's probably set up settlements to flourish in a preplanned manner once you trigger certain plot events.

    Make it stream like Oblivion, Pete.

    EDIT- Oh wait, it does.
    Edited by 1 at 09/03/07 @ 11:51

  • insincere_dave #16 5 years ago

    Fable-ous news!!!

  • Dark_Stranger #17 5 years ago

    "The Lionhead boss believes this furry fellow will tug at our heart strings" & "While it will sustain injuries in combat, it won't die"

    Would it not pull more heart strings if you build up a relationship with the dog, only for it to get run over by a passing horse & cart.

  • Xerx3s #18 5 years ago

    In hindsight, this just can't be the big reveal he was waxing about a few weeks ago. Surely not. I await more info.

    Like I said, watch the vid on the forum and you will know that this A) isn't the big thing, B) looks better than it sounds and C) does have guns and potentially pirates.

  • Xerx3s #19 5 years ago

    For the vid:

    http://ww w.eurogamer.net/forum_thread_po...

  • Eldritch #20 5 years ago

    So this is basically like Fate with more bells and whistles then?

    /coat

  • Talha #21 5 years ago

    Awwwwwwwwwwwwwwww[link url=http://www....
    ]http://www....
    [/link]

    Shoooooooooo shweeeeeeeeet!

  • Xerx3s #22 5 years ago

    Yeh because his previous games where utter rubbish. Oh wait... ¬_¬

  • Xerx3s #23 5 years ago

    Talha: Your link is borked.

  • w00t #24 5 years ago

    Nethackesquetastic!

  • retr0gamer #25 5 years ago

    Peter should play shadow of the colossus and realise that it has been done before. Peter late to the party once again

  • kangarootoo #26 5 years ago

    Are there any other vids? I could stick with the one linked out of the forum because PMs droning waffle almost sent me into a coma. I just want to see some footage with maybe a voiceover, I don't want to have to sit through ten mins of him not really saying anything.

  • Xerx3s #27 5 years ago

    It's an interview. All vids will show the same.

  • morriss #28 5 years ago

    PM ftw!!

  • spongebob #29 5 years ago

    I'm loving it. Games need more relationships and more emotions.

  • Lonestar #30 5 years ago

    I can imagine the presentation:

    Molyneux: ... and you get a dog.

    Press: A dog? How does that enhance the experience?

    Molyneux: Well, in this demonstration I'm in the woods fighting this monster. And I pick up a nearby stick. the monster knocks the stick out of my hand and I press twice left and up and massage the button and the dog will 'fetch' the stick for me. Cool eh?

    Press: What else?

    Molyneux: Well, your in a cemetary and a monster attacks you. You scrabble around and pick up a skeleton bone to fight with. The monster knocks the bone out of my hand and I press twice left and up and massage the button and the dog will 'fetch' the bone for me. Cool eh?

    Press: What else?

    Molyneux: Well, your in a village by a toy makers workshop and a monster attacks you. You scrabble around and pick up a squeaky toy to fight with...

  • Les #31 5 years ago

    Wow, they're copying Nintendo: combining an RPG with Nintendogs...

    Like Rare, Lionhead is way past its prime. Someone should put those companies out of their misery.

  • UncleLou #32 5 years ago

    some said gunpowder weapons

    I just read somewhere that it does indeed have guns.

  • dirigiblebill #33 5 years ago

    'Put them out of their misery' is a bit strong, isn't it? Nothing Pete has done lately can match Black and White I'll agree, but Fable was still pretty damn respectable, and I expect the sequel to be pretty damn respectable too.

    As for your opinion of Rare- Viva Pinata is evidence to the contrary.

  • T4RG4 #34 5 years ago

    PM = No handle of what people want to see in games. A dog? Fine, not exactly great though is it!

  • Vin #35 5 years ago

    "Wow, they're copying Nintendo: combining an RPG with Nintendogs...

    Like Rare, Lionhead is way past its prime. Someone should put those companies out of their misery."

    Jee-zus.

  • dirigiblebill #36 5 years ago

    I reserve the right to kill that dog if it shits in my slippers.

  • Iora #37 5 years ago

    LOL
    This is the big thing he was mercilessly bangin on about a few months ago.
    "I want the player to experience love, real love"

    Everyone speculated. Alot of people laughed at him then. I personally commented on the fact that love is an impossible emotion to realise in a closed game world. Cant tell him that though nope.

    Hope his wife realises that he classify's love as something as piddly as 'ohh look my dog chased a chicken' huh guess thats pretty cool

    hahahaha what a tit.

    Congratulations Mr Molyneux you have used up the last of your Kudos points from your earlier games. You are now a bumbling nobody in my eyes.

    Git yer head out the clouds and start making some bloody games.

  • Pike #38 5 years ago

    some said gunpowder weapons
    ----------------------------------------------
    I just read somewhere that it does indeed have guns.

    I just wonder why a re-skinned bow should be considered more of an innovation than having an animal companion.

  • Keso #39 5 years ago

    Wow, tough crowd.

    Have half you guys even watched the video? The addition of the dog is much more then just a novelty.

    Edit: "Congratulations Mr Molyneux you have used up the last of your Kudos points from your earlier games. You are now a bumbling nobody in my eyes."

    Oh no, I bet he'll be crying himself to sleep tonight.
    Edited by 1 at 09/03/07 @ 13:11

  • Crea #40 5 years ago

    It's the "the dog is your HUD" comments that scare me. I do understand where it's coming from - the idea that the HUD stands between a player and the game world and is therefore an impediment to immersion.

    But they scrapped the HUD in Black and White without, in my view, really replacing it with an equally efficient method of giving feedback to the player. Black and White ended up almost less than the sum of its parts - it was an average RTS with god game and AI pet elements, with no HUD and a great graphics engine.

    What I fear for Fable 2 is that we end up with a half-decent RPG, with great character customisation and AI pet elements, with no HUD and a great graphics engine. You've got to make sure it all gels properly this time Mr Molyneux!

    I do love his enthusiasm though, I find it infectious. I maintain my hopes that Fable 2 turns out well, I did like the first one (even if it didn't quite match expectations).

  • dirigiblebill #41 5 years ago

    @ Pike

    But it goes 'bang'. Surely you see the attraction?

  • the creeper #42 5 years ago

    But will the dog really do all those things or has Molyneux done one of his famous jobs of screwing his dev team over? The man has a history of getting up on stage and making it up as he goes along. Then the coders have to completely rework everything to change things to his latest announced way things work.

    Working for him must be a nightmare...

  • onyxbox #43 5 years ago

    I felt an emotional attachment in Shadow of Colossus to the horse, so I think this sort of thing works and adds a level of attachment to a game.


  • Keso #44 5 years ago

    "It's a novelty.
    Like adding a bicycle to a F1 Racing Game because it adds originality and pacing."

    I wouldn't class it as such. You could choose not to use the bike if you didn’t want.

    If it was something that you went back to in a set location to play with etc, then I would agree. However this seems to be interwoven into many of the core mechanics of the game, replacing the map etc, helping in combat and affecting the way you are perceived by people in the world.

    You may not like this addition, but it’s not a novelty.

  • alpha-0ne #45 5 years ago

    @""kangarootoo
    09-Mar-07 11:21:00 Underwhelmed.
    Was this the big reveal that we were all speculating about not that long ago? Some said a pirate setting, some said gunpowder weapons, some even said multiplayer over XBLive... we got a dog?
    Is it just me? Am I missing something here? ""

    You missed a lot actually, but to be fair its more down to eurogamers lazy coverage.. for a much more detailed and thought out report see igns coverage
    http://uk .xbox360.ign.com/articles/771/7...
    Edited by 1 at 09/03/07 @ 14:07

  • teabagger #46 5 years ago

    I really liked Fable and I'm looking forward to the next one.
    Whatever your view on Molyneux, it's pretty hard to deny that he's one of the few guys around who still believes in genuine creativity, quality and originality and tries to build games that live up to that. I'm pretty sure he'd be the first to admit that sometimes the actual product falls short, or doesn't quite work in this way or that, but compare that to most of the identi-kit dross that comes out, and I personally think that we'd be lost without him.

  • Salvia #47 5 years ago

    And people rip Sony/PhilH a new one for 'lies and overpromising"...?

  • Mr_Brown #48 5 years ago

    Bit of a let down but could work. Fable one was too black and white (no pun intended) you were ether good or bad and was too linear. If they add more options and a huge free roaming world to explore, with a long single player game, I'll be happy. But pets it a change I suppose.

  • zozart #49 5 years ago

    Please live up to the hype! All that stuff sounds amazing.

  • kangarootoo #50 5 years ago

    @alpha-0ne

    Ta for the link.

  • Les #51 5 years ago

    "Peter Molyneux is innovative, thought-provoking and a master craftsman."

    I'd rather say he was. He just lost it.

    "As for your opinion of Rare- Viva Pinata is evidence to the contrary."

    I've always thought these guys were way overrated, but Pinata is return to form: grab a Nintendo game concept and add some gloss.

  • fawe3 #52 5 years ago

    A dog? I hate dogs, put a cat in fable I would be maybe little interested, but Dog?? Well It may be fun if we can do what Ron Artest did to his dog.

  • Galvanizer #53 5 years ago

    What is so innovative about this?

    This is just a rip off Nintendogs!

    Sheesh...

  • dirigiblebill #54 5 years ago

    "grab a Nintendo game concept and add some gloss"

    Sounds good to me. Certainly works for Nintendo ;)

  • T4RG4 #55 5 years ago

    Peter is one of the few devs (if you can call him a dev anymore) that at least tries to do something different, give him that. But hell, isnt it pretty sad when we have to turn a cheek from the 'dross' that fills shelves only to look at Peters games, which lets face it, really only ever offer hope during development.

    I firmly believe that the good elements from his (at least recent games) collection come from other people in the studio, some of which still work at Lionhead and have been with Peter since day one. Those are the guys who save Peter IMHO. I guess this Peter-Marmite conversation will go on and on until a) He retires to a loopy home or b) someone comes along and gives us great games :)

  • fawe3 #56 5 years ago

    for b) just give money to Tim Schafer. ;)

  • dolphan #57 5 years ago

    Fable should have been crap. It was this weird little cartoony game with fairly basic combat, a really simplistic plot and good/evil alignment thing, no significant incentive for doing side quests, and a bunch of odd customisation features. And I loved it. It was a ridiculous amount of fun for no discernible reason. If I had the money for another console, this would be a major 360 selling point.

    EDIT - Oh, and about the dog - someone has clearly been playing nethack.
    Edited by 1 at 10/03/07 @ 20:33

  • EmiliasHorse #58 5 years ago

    Damn you Peter I lapped up your crap last time and did you deliver? No..Well not what you promised, Fable however was so good it only annoyed me after the game came to a premature end. I swore I would not be taken in again......

    So here I am reading Pete's ramblings and saying "wow! Can’t wait, that sounds really special, bring it on...etc"....you smooth talking get.

  • dirigiblebill #59 5 years ago

    From another site-

    '...he insisted that the dog sidekick would open up all-new avenues of game design because it would make players forge an emotional bond with a fictional character. Molyneux described the dog's love as "infectious" in nature: "Once you start caring about [the dog]," Molyeux explained, "I've got you."'

    Funnily enough, Pete, people have been 'forging emotional bonds' with games characters since pretty much the first time somebody managed to get something vaguely humanoid onto a screen. Forget Yorda or Aeris- I know gamers whose lower lips trembled every time Sonic drowned in toxic goop. I don't doubt you'll add something new to the mix, but let's stop pretending you're venturing into uncharted territory.

    Molyneux has done some sterling work and he has a lot of interesting ideas, but it pisses me off that he feels he has to adopt this visionary persona while other, better developers get on with things in silence. But then he is a bit of an industry posterchild, so I suppose it can't be helped.