All Articles: Fable Legends

There are big changes happening at Microsoft Games Studios this morning.

After several starts and stops over the years, Microsoft has announced plans to cease development on Fable Legends. This announcement comes just a few months after developer Lionhead Studios delayed the free-to-play title’s launch from Late 2015 to Spring 2016. Sadly, it’s not just the end for Fable Legends, Microsoft is currently in discussions with representatives from Lionhead about the proposed closure of the studio.

Microsoft also confirmed that Press Play Studios, the team behind Max: The Curse of Brotherhood and Kalimba, will also close its doors. The Danish studio was working on a multiplayer survival game known as Project Knoxville, but it too will be canceled.

Microsoft released a statement about the closures through the Xbox Wire:

These have been tough decisions and we have not made them lightly, nor are they a reflection on these development teams – we are incredibly fortunate to have the talent, creativity and commitment of the people at these studios. The Lionhead Studios team has delighted millions of fans with the Fable series over the past decade. Press Play imbued the industry with a unique creative spirit behind games like Max: The Curse of Brotherhood and Kalimba, which both captured passionate fans. These changes are taking effect as Microsoft Studios continues to focus its investment and development on the games and franchises that fans find most exciting and want to play.

We wish everyone at Lionhead and Press Play the best of luck in the future.

Microsoft first announced Fable Legends all the way back in 2013. The 4v1 adventure has been slowly creeping towards completion ever since and the publisher’s current plan was to release an open beta for the game before the end of the year. However, development difficulties have forced a change to that plan as it looks like the Fable Legends open beta will now be released in Spring 2016.

Creative Director David Eckelberry explained some of the challenges his team has faced in a post on the game’s official website:

Fable Legends is coming together well and it’s a lot of fun. But we think that we can make it even better. So we’ve decided to extend our closed beta to continue to listen to feedback from our players and add features and polish that will make a real difference. This means Fable Legends won’t release into open beta this holiday as previously announced. We realise this may be disappointing for those of you not currently playing, so we wanted to tell you why.

To be honest, we didn’t anticipate just how big Fable Legends is becoming. It’s simply the most ambitious game we’ve ever created at Lionhead. We’ve built a unique and innovative multiplayer experience combining RPG and RTS gameplay which allows you to play, and use your gear seamlessly, across Xbox One and Windows 10. On top of this, we’ve built a beautiful new world full of grand stories and adventures. And it’s taking more time than we thought.

Fable fans interested in joining the closed beta on the PC or Xbox One can submit an application at FableLegends.com. According to Eckelberry, more than 100,000 new invitations will be sent out over the next few weeks.

This is a bit of a surprise. Microsoft has announced that Fable Legends will be available as a free-to-play game on the PC and Xbox One.

According to the game’s online FAQ, Microsoft and the development team at Lionhead Studios have decided to make Fable Legends free-to-play to “open the exciting world of Fable to more players.” However, they’ve stressed that this will not make the game pay-to-win as players will be able to “play through it beginning-to-end without having to spend any money.”

So how will Microsoft make money off of Fable Legends? By selling a variety of customization options and permanent access to the game’s Heroes. Like Killer Instinct, a rotating set of characters will be available for free. But players may purchase any of the other offered Heroes at any time. And some Heroes will even be permanently unlockable through regular play. Purely cosmetic items to enhance the look of your Heroes will also be available through the Xbox Games Store or Windows Store.

If you prefer to play as the Villain, Creature characters, Traps, and Gates will also be available as separate purchases. As with Heroes, some Creature characters, Traps, and Gates can be unlocked by playing the game.

Fable Legends will be available for the PC and Xbox One sometime in 2015.