New Fable is an MMO-lite? Leak From a Reliable Source [Updated]
There have been rumors that the next installment of the Fable series is not the much awaited fourth major installment, but an MMO game. The reports are confirmed by Daniel Ahmad from Niko Partners, among others.
Update
Jez Corden, a journalist for Windows Central, decided to put an end to the rumors. On Twitter, he denied that the new Fable is an MMO game. He did not comment on the potential presence of network functions as suggested by Daniel Ahmad. However, fans of the series, who wouldn't like the repetition of Fable Legends, can rest easy.
Original message
- There were new rumors about the newly revealed installment of Fable,
- According to them, the title is supposed to be an MMO game;
- Daniel Ahmad and user Transistor from ResetEra forum specified that the game will not be a typical World of Warcraft-like MMORPG, but just a game with a light touch of MMO;
Yesterday's reveal of the new installment of the Fable series as part of the Microsoft show confirmed numerous rumors about "the industry's worst-kept secret". However, the teaser did not reveal much about the game itself outside the developer (Playground Games) and the target platforms (PC and Xbox Series X). Unofficial rumors remain. One of them suggests that the new Fable is an MMO game. Or at least that is what user CronoCK from Twitter says. Even before the conference of the Redmond giant he claimed based on its own sources that the show would satisfy rather than disappoint the audience. Already after the broadcast he provided a list of games he was supposed to find out about before the event. Among them was "Fable MMO", which is not - as he mentioned in the next entry - Fable 4.
You may have reservations about the credibility of these reports, since CronoTK considered it appropriate to provide a list of games only after Microsoft's conference. However, there are two things to note. First, although the entry itself appeared after the Xbox Games Showcase, the list contained therein was presented in the form of a screenshot. CronoCK took care to immortalize his taskbar with a visible date on the shot, which is to prove that the screenshot was taken before the show started.
Of course this is not a strong proof - the user could simply change the date on his PC. However, here comes to the second issue. Not only Transistor - a long-time ResetEra moderator - but also Daniel Ahmad, an analyst from Niko Partners, referred to the matter. Both were supposed to have heard the rumors of MMO set in the Fable universe from their sources, but not of a thoroughbred World of Warcraft-like MMORPG. Transistor claims that before Microsoft's conference there was supposed to be information from an insider about this game. The game is supposed to be a rather "light" version of MMO, which may mean a title that focuses on single-player content, but with a lot of emphasis on playing with other players. This is not a very precise term, but it would put the new Fable alongside games like Warframe, Destiny, Path of Exile etc. Ahmad's entry adds credibility to this information, which, even before Xbox Games Showcase, de facto confirmed on Twitter the announcement of Fable and - although it escaped the attention of Internet users at the time - the new game by Obsidian Entertainment.
We would like to point out that any unconfirmed reports - even from the most reliable sources - should be treated only as rumors until official information is available. Even if they are true, apparently the new Fable will not have much in common with typical MMOs. This would be all the more understandable because the latest project in the series - Fable Legends - was just a classic MMORPG and definitely did not gain the recognition of players. The title indirectly contributed to the closure of Lionhead studios, and lack of focus on story was one of the reasons why fans don't remember Fable Legends very fondly.
However, it's no secret that live-service games can be very profitable for publishers. Fable, with a strong narrative, but with network options, could prove to be the golden mean between a perfect fan favorite version and a profitable title for the Redmond giant. Anyway, for now we recommend that you treat these and other "leaks" with a grain of salt and wait for additional information from Playground and Microsoft.
