Fable: The Journey is Lionhead Studios’ latest addition to the Fable universe and the first to incorporate KINECT. This time, rather than being an open-world to explore, the Journey is on-rails which is something that hard-core fans of the series have been worried about. Will this experiment prove to be the MAGICAL experience Microsoft promised with KINECT, or is it simply “A Horses Ass”.

The Journey takes place 50 years after Fable III. This time around, the story revolves around a normal young man named Gabriel who is caught up in extraordinary events when he saves a blind woman from a demon attack. This event and those that follow help turn this young man into a hero. That blind woman is Theresa the blind Seer who has been a main stay in all previous Fable games. She is your guide on your Journey to save Albion.

Even though this is not truly Fable 4, the story does fit right into what you would expect from a Fable game. Throughout your quest you will learn more about Albion and even some of Theresa’s backstory which fans of the series will definitely find interesting. As expected you will encounter plenty of creatures along the way.

Missing from this Journey is your dog that many enjoyed from previous installments. This time around you have a horse named Saren. You will spend a good amount of time brushing, feeding, caring for her, talking to her and of course staring at her rear end while you ride from in the carriage (hence the horses ass comment). This is the most tedious aspect of the game. Although entertaining at first, it becomes old very quick.

The core of the Journey experience are the many battle sequences you will encounter on the way to your destiny. Throwing bolts, fireballs and shards at you attackers as well as blocking and tossing a few around for kicks. Combine all of these play mechanics into the puzzles and you have the full game.

Controlling with Kinect
This is one of the few KINECT games that does not involve jumping around like an crazed zumba instructor or a kid spun out on sugar after halloween. Sure you will feel like Harry Potter from time to time using your hands hurling magic at your enemies, but it’s worth those awkward moments. In fact, it’s recommended that you play this game sitting down.

I have to give its creators credit when it comes to the KINECT mechanics. It’s extremely intuitive. As you can guess the battles consist of throwing motions to hurl your magic, but an interesting addition to the on-rails gameplay is the introduction of After-Touch. This allows you to hurl a spell and with one swift swipe of your hand to either side, curve your magic like a super curve ball. You can use this to hit unsuspecting enemies hiding around corners or around other obstacles.

The Journey probably the first Kinect game I have found to successfully utilize in-game voice commands in a good way. There are other methods to switch attacks in the middle of a battle, but nothing says magic more than yelling ‘FIREBALL’ with your arm raised and when use the throwing motion and see a fireball rifling towards your unsuspecting foe.

Fable: The Journey is a worthy addition to the Fable universe even though the game mechanics are completely different previous games. The story line, voice acting, graphics and humour are all very well represented here. Gone is the open ended game play of its predecessors, instead we are introduced to on the rails game play. All in all I think this was a good choice. If the game were left open ended, I would presume you the mechanics would not work as well and you would spend most of your time standing up and waving your hands around like a crazed lunatic.

This game can be enjoyed by Fable fans as well as those who have never played any of its predecessors. The story is well represented and explained in its very detailed cut scenes. Throwing magic projectiles and hurling your enemies around with magic lassos will appeal to those who require a diversion in reality.

Other than the redundant horses ass you will have to endure, the only drawback is KINECT itself. When it works, this game shines. When it doesn’t, it can be aggravating. Ironically enough, the longer you play, the more KINECT needs retuning. Over all you can’t truly blame the game for that since it’s something that’s plagued Kinect since day one. Even though I did encounter this annoyance, it was not enough to stop me from playing.

Good use of Kinect when it works. Amazing visuals as can be expected from the series. Voice commands are a good feature rather than a gimmick. Excellent story line (expect some of your questions regarding Theresa to be answered) Boss levels are fun and full of action. Extremely well done cut scenes. Top notch voice acting. Riding behind your horse gets old very quick. Although the mechanics work well, and it’s entertaining at first, it’s just too much. Calibration seems to be lost the longer you play requiring you to exit your quest and popping into the main menu to recalibrate. When there are multiple attackers and you are using offensive and defensive attacks simultaneously, motion capture accuracy takes a dive. Due to the on-rails game play, you can expect this Journey to take approximately half the time of the other games. Quote: "Fable: The Journey is a worthy addition to the Fable universe even though the game mechanics are completely different previous games." Reviewed by Jim Holiko | 11.01.12

Similar Games: The Gunstringer (8.6) | Fable II (9.0) | Fable III (9.3) | Fable (9.5)