S.T.A.G.E. said:
I understand your point on Geoff, I have no real issues with him, but he did promise the guy time and in that time he couldn't handle the pressure. He's not a professional trained to interview under pressure, so Geoff caught him in a half assed interrogation. Anyone can get a green interviewer who has a bit of fire to screw up. In the end I think it was Geoffs thick skin being in the industry for years overpowering the younger less experienced interviewer and he couldn't make his point when the pressure was truly on causing him to lose professional points. Thats just the thing, I was never talking about him as an interviewer, but rather a reviewer. Calling something damage control and doing a retrospective on a report gone wrong is a two way street and he never corrected Geoff about the MMO RPG category if that was his argument. He should've just asked him general questions instead of being the rogue interviewer. Anyway, as for Fable it has a lot more to do than Zelda, but that has more to do with time burning tasks rather than anything concrete. Zelda doesn't screw around with random items, but rather you adventure and over time gain the equipment you need to progress through the game in a non-linear fashion. As for you not expecting much from Fable that means one of two things: 1) You never listened to Molyneux's bullshit. 2) You don't take Molyneux seriously. The game doesn't need to be as much of an Action/RPG as Zelda and quite frankly the game is far form a masterpiece, again an entry level action/RPG with takes little no thinking at all. Zelda takes a higher level of thinking compared, but really I want to get off of conversation about Zelda since it has absolutely nothing to do with Fable. This game was compared to Kingdoms of Amalur and of course Fable is more beautiful, has better cinematics and has better character models, but as far as core combat action RPG is concerned a lot of reviewers will agree that this is what Fable should've been (as far as gameplay goes). I am glad you think Zelda in most cases is a masterpiece, but really I fail to see how it should be compared. Dragon Age two was one my least favorite western RPG's and it was far better than Fable. It gave you more freedom and was a truer Action RPG and has true choice based on rollover decisions made from the previous game. A appreciate that you realize the game for what it is, but thats also a very deceptive thing. The game is not billed as an entry level Action/RPG nor is it marketed from first party as one either. The games budget is huge and yet while having an infinite wallet, the team clashed to figure out a proper direction for to a franchise that was more bark than bite. |
Wall of text time.
Everything you said about Angry Joe is the reason I don't click on his videos. Geoff promised him an interview even though he is a nobody. Instead of making an appointment he ambushed him on the red carpet at insulted him with pointed questions. The red carpet is for fluff questions as people walk by. It's not for full interviews and certainly not gotcha questions, even if they failed. Geoff turned the table and proved to the world that Angry Joe is an ego maniac. I don't want to support him with my views. I don't hate the guy, I don't think he's a bad person, I just don't want to contribute to his ego.
As for Fable. I have never been the victim of overhype. I get excited about new games that interest me, but I never believe they will be anything more than what I see in the trailers and previews. Peter M. can talk a game up all he wants and I take it with a grain of salt just like I do when politicians talk. Anyone promoting their own product should never be taken as seriously as an impartial video game journalist, as so long as their name isn't Angry Joe ;)
I remember all the promises about Fable. I actually didn't pick up the first game because I didn't want to play a hardcore RPG about growing a tree over 40 years and the world twisting as you turn evil or good. It wasn't until I read some reviews and found out that it was a simple adventure game with RPG aspects. The second one was even more so an adventure game with less RPG features. I wasn't looking for an RPG, I wasn't expecting an RPG, and I didn't want an RPG from Fable. I got exactly what I was looking for. Peter M. talks big because he's an idea man who sets the bar high and then has to compromise when it turns out his ideas reached too high. He's a dreamer. I don't fault him for reaching for the stars, especially when his games fall short without crashing and burning.
You expected something more, you wanted something more, and you were disappointed about getting something else. That's a valid beef, but you need to step back and look at the games for what they are instead of what you thought they were going to be. If I tell you my apple is the best tasting apple in the world and let you take a bit, but it turns out that it is a delicious orange, you may complain that it wasn't an apple, but it was still a delicious orange.
Some people complain about Fable as if it's as bad as the Iron Man games. That's what bothers me. Fable isn't broken and it isn't "RPG for babies". It's an action adventure game that attempts to connect the player to the world through the character on a personal level. It does that well.
KoA was good too and so was Dragon Age 2. I honestly don't understand the criticism that Dragon Age 2 gets, but that's another topic for another time. They may even be better than Fable. I just don't see what that has to do with whether or not Fable is worth playing.
Your complaints remind me of the Splinter Cell fans that bashed Conviction. They wanted a hardcore stealth game, but got an action stealth game. I tried and hated the original Splinter Cell, but loved Conviction for the exact reason they hated it. They say it's a bad game and I say it's fun. They say the old Splinter Cell is better and I say it's boring and too strict. They say SC: Blacklist looks terrible and I think it looks great.
It's a matter of taste.
I think we have both said our peace on this. If you reply I will read it, but unless you ask me a direct question I think we are at an impasse. You don't like Fable and I do. Nothing either of us says is going to change that.
