Summary
- Playground Games has created a third studio, likely to help with the upcoming Fable reboot.
- Fable's development has ramped up, with Eidos Montreal also assisting on the ambitious project.
- Fable is scheduled to hit PC and consoles in 2025, with rumors pointing toward a Fall or Winter release window.
Playground Games, the developer behind the Forza Horizon series, has built a third studio, presumably to assist with the highly anticipated Fable reboot scheduled to release next year. Known for its widely celebrated adventure racing franchise, Playground Games has taken on the monumental task of rebooting Xbox's long-shelved fantasy RPG series, Fable, which had its heyday during the original Xbox and 360 generations with three main installments.
News regarding the Fable reboot went very quiet after its initial CGI announcement trailer in 2020, but the third-person fantasy RPG has returned to the limelight in recent months, with new clips showing off its dazzling in-engine footage and whimsical tone. Fable's most recent showing at the Xbox Games Showcase 2024 introduced a new character named Humphry, a down-and-out retired hero constantly dwelling on his former glory. Fans were given a broader sense of the world of Albion this time around, with the trailer showing the main character speaking with NPCs in a town square, exploring lush forests, and fighting bandits and large monsters.
Fable 4 Needs to Move Past One Trend from the Original Trilogy
The original Fable trilogy, as iconic as it is, has one persistent issue that should be addressed when Fable 4 finally releases.
It seems that Playground Games is beefing up its ranks for Fable's final push. The game's developer updated its profile overview on LinkedIn to mention that it now has three studios: its main headquarters that's still working on Forza Horizon, and two other studios working to bring Fable to the finish line. Oddly, Playground Games hasn't divulged the name of this new third studio, though it may simply be a division of Playground Games.
Playground Games Starts Third Studio To Help Work On Fable
With Playground Games' main studio presumably still tasked with the next installment of Forza Horizon, this new studio may only currently be tasked with assisting Playground's original Fable team, as it's almost certainly closer to release than the next Horizon game. Fable is already receiving development support from Eidos Montreal, so the addition of this new team seems to indicate that Fable is in its home stretch, making its 2025 release window likely. On the other hand, some may feel that the creation of an entirely new studio for Fable when it's already receiving help from Eidos could mean that the project is struggling.
As Fable is officially aiming for a release sometime in 2025, Forza fans are wondering when the next Horizon game will hit PC and console. It's been almost three years since the massively successful Forza Horizon 5, and as Fable is being worked on by other studios within Playground, Forza Horizon 6 may not be too far away. As for Fable and its 2025 target, fans shouldn't expect the fantasy RPG to launch until the second half of the year, as rumors have been suggesting an October to December window.
- Released
- 2026
- Developer(s)
- Playground Games
- Publisher(s)
- Xbox Game Studios
- Engine
- unreal engine 4, forza tech
- Franchise
- Fable
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.
- Platform(s)
- Windows, Xbox Series X, Xbox Series S
- Genre(s)
- Action RPG, Adventure
