There's a big fantasy RPG revival on the horizon. A lot of different studios -- a lot of them affiliated with Microsoft -- seem to be planning some really intriguing AAA fantasy titles. Obsidian Entertainment is working on the mysterious Avowed as a new way to return to the Pillars of Eternity universe. Bethesda, newly acquired by Microsoft, has the coveted Elder Scrolls 6 on the way, finally confirmed after many years of leaning on Skyrim. On top of all that, Playground Games is working on the first core game in the Fable franchise since 2010. It seems a lot of studios aren't just interested in fantasy, but in exploring old worlds in new ways.
Fable is a particularly interesting part of this sequence of games. Fable isn't quite as new an experience as Avowed, nor has the Fable franchise had the staying power of The Elder Scrolls in the last decade. That means that the new Fable game will be drawing in a community that's a mixture of seasoned Fable fans and total newcomers. These newcomers will probably be wondering if they should play the games from before Playground Games' time rather than jumping into the new Fable right away. For now, that question is actually pretty hard to answer, because it's unclear if Fable 4 is a hard or soft reboot.
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A lot of fans are expecting Fable 4 to be a hard reboot of the franchise. The game's sole trailer suggests that the world is leaning much more heavily into the traditional medieval fantasy that the first Fable game used, rather than the more industrial elements of the later games. Rumors about Fable 4 also suggest that Playground Games is starting the series fresh. It'd make sense if Playground wants to make Fable its own, now that the IP has been handed off from its old developer, Lionhead Studios. If Playground confirms that Fable 4 is a complete reboot, then new potential fans don't need to worry about playing any game before it.
However, it's still possible that Playground believes that preserving Fable tradition is more important than putting its own stamp on it. It's been very quiet about the game, so it's hard to say if the rumors about Fable 4 being a reboot are accurate. In fact, Playground's idea of making Fable its own might just be finding a surprising way to follow up on Fable's previous narratives. If that's the case, it might help new fans to play through the old games, or to at least look into what they were all about.
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Playground Games has said before that it has a unique vision for Fable 4. In order to do bring that vision to life, it seems a little more likely that Playground will give Fable a major reboot. By starting Albion over, it'll have much more room to make Fable 4 truly unique. That'll be for the best for all of Fable's fans, but especially those who are only now developing an interest in the series. Rather than making fans play the previous installments first, it could be that Fable 4 turns out to be a great reason for fans to go back and play the old games after playing this new one. In other words, the reboot will become a new vehicle for the original games.
Ultimately, it remains to be seen whether Playground Games intends to encourage new fans to play the other Fable games. Nothing is certain, but for now, it seems a little more likely that Fable 4 will open its arms to all players without demanding fans to have knowledge of the previous games. It also has to be said that, at the end of the day, it's okay for new fans to play Fable 4 without playing the previous games, whether it's connected to its predecessors or not. Even if previous knowledge turns out to be helpful in understanding the game's story, players shouldn't stress themselves out about knowing everything Fable ahead of Fable 4. Ideally, Playground Games will make Fable 4 approachable for everyone, reboot or no reboot.
Fable is in development for PC and Xbox Series X/S.
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