Fans of the Fable franchise are finally getting more information about its next installment, close to 15 years after the last mainline release for the IP. The upcoming release is set to be quite different from past entries for the series, and with such a long time having passed since Fable 3, a huge number of new fans are likely to be introduced to the franchise.
With some time left before the new Fable gets close to its intended release window of 2025, there is still a long wait for fans who are full of anticipation for fresh Fable content. While the Fable and Halo franchises are worlds apart in terms of gameplay, the two Microsoft-backed IPs share a similar history, and Fable can potentially replicate one very successful element of Halo's recent past. Halo smartly made its mainline games accessible and re-popularized through 2014's The Master Chief Collection, and this is something that Fable should consider doing before the release of its upcoming project.
What Would You Like To See From Fable 4?
Fable has always been a popular franchise, so when it was announced that it would be revived for a new Fable game hopefully coming out in 2025, a lot of players were excited. Since a new studio is taking this on, fans are speculating what may change and what stays the same. As someone who grew up playing the Fable games, I want them to stick to the beautiful storytelling that I fell in love with.
Like Halo, Fable Should Give Fans a Refresher Of its Older Games
Halo has such a storied reputation in the gaming industry thanks to its history. The earlier entries to the franchise redefined what could be expected of console gaming and first-person shooters. The roots of the Halo franchise date back to 2001, with a huge range of mainline titles, spin-off games, and other media branching off from the franchise in the two decades since.
With so much content falling under the Halo name and belonging to different console generations, it can be quite difficult for new fans to play through the franchise's offerings without some roadblocks and confusion. This clearly inspired 343 in the development of Halo: The Master Chief Collection, which released in 2014 for Xbox One and 2019 for PC; it allowed players to experience Halo: CE, 2, 3, 4 , and later ODST and Reach in one convenient place.
The visual aging of the franchise's older games also allowed The Master Chief Collection to impress fans with improved graphics that could be optionally toggled in-game at any time, with the iconic multiplayer experiences of these titles also being available through TMCC. Almost a decade on from the release of The Master Chief Collection, it is considered to be a great testament to the history and legacy of the Halo franchise. This is something that Fable could easily lean into.
Fable Has the Legacy and Content to Justify a Collection Release
The Fable franchise is not much younger than Halo, with the first RPG in the series coming in 2004. Fable 2 would launch in 2008, with Fable 3 later releasing in 2010, and with the franchise receiving no mainline content ever since. In the wait for 2025's Fable reboot, a collection project akin to TMCC could be released, allowing new and old fans to experience the original trilogy to better gear themselves up for the upcoming title.
While it might be unrealistic to suggest that these older games should come with remastered graphics, like TMCC, simply having the original Fable games in one easy to access hub would be a brilliant way to increase the accessibility of the franchise while capitalizing on the hype surrounding the reboot. This Fable collection could also include the expanded versions of its earlier releases, like Fable: The Lost Chapters or Fable Anniversary, giving players the complete experience of the IP. The Master Chief Collection stands as a well-received celebration of the franchise, and Fable is in a prime position to repeat this with a collection of its own before the IP is ambitiously rebooted.
Fable
- Released
- 2026
WHERE TO PLAY
Fable is an RPG developed by Playground Games and published by Microsoft. Set in Albion, the game challenges players to define what it means to be a hero.
- Developer(s)
- Playground Games
- Publisher(s)
- Xbox Game Studios
- Franchise
- Fable
- Platform(s)
- Windows, Xbox Series X, Xbox Series S
- Genre(s)
- Action RPG, Adventure
