The recent Xbox Developer Direct showcased some games to be released this year on Xbox consoles and other platforms. That said, one of the most interesting titles shown in the direct was the upcoming reboot of the cult classic Fable franchise. The pressure from old fans is high, and while many fans had a healthy amount of skepticism, a loud vocal minority has railroaded criticism down a dangerous path.
Originally developed by the now-defunct Lionhead Studios, Fable was a fantasy action role-playing game (RPG) that was revolutionary in its emphasis on player choice and morality systems. Unlike modern Western RPG games, where players could customize player avatars extensively, Fable games had a limited amount of customization, instead largely relying on body morphing, where the avatar’s appearance would be shaped by the actions a player would make in gameplay and on moral decisions.
The Fable reboot, developed by Playground Games, will reintroduce the old franchise to a modern audience while trying to retain some elements of the original games. Old fans are entering this upcoming reboot with a certain amount of skepticism, considering how often game companies have lied about their titles in the past ahead of release. However, that skepticism has been hijacked by a reactionary group within the gaming community.
Many within this group claim that Playground Games is ruining the Fable franchise by making the game woke. From including minority non-playable characters (NPCs) and having the main character able to romance whatever NPC they want, no matter the gender. Some have even complained about the male main character’s walk being too feminine.
These anti-woke criticisms are nothing new in the gaming industry. Since the late 2010s, similar groups of people have been up in arms about making video games more inclusive towards a wider audience of players. Fable is just the latest franchise to get this type of treatment, and it is only elevated because this game is nostalgic for so many.
What many players in the crowd don’t realize or are eager not mention is that the original Fable games are no strangers to these types of progressive features. Players could get married to men and women, no matter the gender, and even change their gender with certain types of potions. Minority characters have also existed, and in Fable 2, a minority character was a major character in its main story.
These anti-woke criticisms take away from any actual, genuine critiques players might have about the reboot. What many forget is that in games like Fable, player choice is essential, and in order to be able to choose how each lives their hero life, inclusivity makes the immersion better.
