Downloadable content has many functions, though the main one is to increase a game’s playing time. This is evident through the likes of Grand Theft Auto IV with its The Lost & Damned content. Within such titles, players have clocked up more gaming hours within each game, due to this new content.
When Fable 2 released in October 2008, the need for downloadable content was imminent, as many players found themselves finishing the game within hours of putting the disc into their Xbox 360 consoles. This need was met in January with the release of “Knothole Island”, which despite adding a few more hours to the playing time, it was greeted by a mixed response. A few months on, “See the Future” has arrived on the docks of Bowerstone.
Similarly to “Knothole Island”, access to “See the Future” is made at the dock in Bowerstone Market, where Murgo the Trader – a familiar face witnessed in the childhood sequence – is positioned with his ever-so-familiar caravan. Murgo offers players cursed goods for the very cheap price of 5 gold coins each. When players use these items, they open up mysterious places with new quests to complete and new items to obtain.
The first mission comes from a snowglobe containing a small model village that was once a real town in Albion. The inhabitants of the village are now ghosts, who are destined to an endless ordeal until the curse of the shadowy threat is eliminated. Upon entry to the village, players will be greeted to a lack of colour, and after a quick adjustment of the brightness in-game, and on the television, you will soon come to realise that it is a major role within the mission, as all the colour has been drained by the shadows. The shadows come in three different colours, each of which can only be defeated in a particular way. Blue shadows can only be defeated with melee weapons, yellow shadows with long-ranged weapons and red shadows with magic. The mission itself is fairly varied in terms of locations, enemies and objectives and is undoubtedly one of my favourite missions in Fable 2.
The second mission comes from a cursed skull, which when used, leads players to a land beyond the dead, in which a Cursed Knight has been awaiting a hero to save him from his fate. For something sounding so serious, the mission’s title: “The Costume Party” doesn’t seem to fit the purpose of the task, until you discover what you have to do in order to save the Cursed Knight from his fate. Players have to dress up as and imitate hobbes and balverines in order to open gates and succeed within the mission. Similarly to the first mission, The Costume Party is fairly varied in terms of locations, enemies and objectives, though the more evident hint of repetition lets it down.
The last offering from the downloadable content is the Colosseum, a challenge in which players battle it out in combat against enemies to win prizes. If you have played through the game’s main storyline, you will have encountered a similar feature known as the Crucible, though the Colosseum promises, and indeed proved, to be a lot more of a challenge, something the more advanced Fable 2 players will appreciate and will keep on returning to time after time.
As well as receiving prizes from the Colosseum, “See the Future” also boasts a lot of new items for players to find and collect. Whilst the majority of the items seemed to be the likes of dyes and Murgo models, there were some nice pieces of clothing and a good few condoms from a friendly old man… But by far the best items on offer are new potions, which allow players to change the breed of their dog. In doing so, some of the dog’s abilities improve, as well as giving he/she a nice new coat.
Fable 2 players will also appreciate the price of the downloadable content. At 560 Microsoft Points (which comes to approximately £4.65), the content on offer is fantastic, making “See the Future” worth a few moments thought and definitely one to consider.
Unfortunately, it’s not all high-flying as the main problem with both of the missions in the downloadable content is the length. They will only have gamers playing for a few hours, maximum, which aren’t ideal for those looking for another huge burst of gameplay.
To conclude, Fable 2 “See the Future” is a great piece of downloadable content. It boasts some great new missions and items alike, despite the lack of additional gameplay it brings.
