Eager fans awaiting news on the upcoming Fable were offered a pretty in-depth look at the new game during the Xbox Developer Direct 2026.
Following a pretty packed showcase, with one unique surprise, Playground Studios gave viewers a deep look into Fable, which is being positioned as a kind of reboot of the original game from Lionhead Studios. What was most impressive to see in this new game was how, unlike its predecessors, which used big, open spaces separated by loading screens, this new Fable will be completely open-world.
“Venturing out into the world is a huge moment, because this is Albion like you’ve never seen it before, said GM & Game Director at Playground Studios, Ralph Fulton. He continued, “And because our Albion is a truly open world, for the first time, you’ll be able to explore this rich and detailed world seamlessly, with the freedom to go where you want from early in the game.”
The Developer Direct showcased a wide variety of unique locations, making this version of Albion feel much more lively and expansive than its predecessors. Rolling hills, sweeping vistas contrasted against fantasy forests overgrown with giant mushrooms, spooky swamps overcome with dense fog, and cragged mountaintops scattered with ancient statues.
But it wasn’t just the world that Playground Games was eager to show off. Much like its predecessors, combat will play an essential role in Fable, and players are able to utilize a range of melee and ranged weapons, as well as devastating magic, mostly turning enemies into chickens. “Melee is at the heart of our Close Quarters combat,” said Associate Game Director at Playground Games, Will Kennedy. “You’ll use light and heavy combos, often knocking enemies off balance and executing stylish finishers. Swap to your ranged weapon to bypass enemy guards and deal with troublesome flying enemies.”
Players will be fighting familiar enemies from previous Fable games, as well as some new ones. Since Fable is built on the foundation of chickens, the trailer showed off a boss fight with a fearsome Cockatrice, a mythical fire-breathing chicken. But of course, this game wouldn’t be Fable if players couldn’t interact with the myriad NPCs and make choices that shaped the world around them.
In what the developers call the game’s “living population,” each NPC has a unique personality, schedule and behaviour that can influence how they react to the player based on the decisions they make. “You could follow any one of them for a day, and just watch them live their life,” said Associate Game Director at Playground Games Craig Littler. “They’ll get up, go to work, spend some leisure time on hobbies, then go home to bed.” But what’s even cooler is that you can talk to every single one of them in fully voiced conversations and interact with them in loads of different ways.”
While players can make small decisions that can influence how they’re perceived, big decisions can shape the world around them. Early in the game, players meet a character named Dave (played by Richard Ayoade), who is an egotistical gardener in a rural village who discovers a magical growth formula. When he accidentally turns himself into a giant, players can choose to kill him or spare him.
If players do decide to slay the giant, his gargantuan body will be left on a hillside for the rest of the game. While this not only influences the physical world, it will also have ripple effects on other characters. It’s just one of the ways Fable will tell a story that truly reacts to player decisions.
Of course, players will still be able to take on odd jobs, purchase property (and even businesses), romance NPCs and have as many families as they choose—however, according to Kennedy, they’ll probably be getting divorced along the way for good measure.
While no official release date has been set, Fable is scheduled to come to Xbox, PC and PlayStation in Autumn 2026. The game will be available day one on Xbox Game Pass and Xbox Play Anywhere.
