Well, here it is. X-Play’s Adam Sessler, after being challenged on his Game of the Year pick of Fable 2, goes on Attack of the Show to debate the GotY live with Kevin Pereira, the man who called out Sessler and said that Fable 2 was “a terrible, terrible choice”. Video follows.

Wow, that was weak. I expected a little better than this. I mean, they only talked about Fallout 3 versus Fable 2, and Kevin made such ridiculously stupid “points” that it almost wasn’t even a debate. Sessler won by far, but that still doesn’t mean Fable 2 should have been game of the year. What do you all think?

Source: G4

It’s on like fucking Donkey Kong. In case you missed it, Dan Landis originally reported on his “favorite” G4TV personality — Kevin Pereira — who issued a challenge to Adam Sessler over his selection of Fable 2 as game of the year.

Well, it didn’t take long for Sessler to chime in with a response. Hit the jump for a few choice words of wisdom.

Kevin Pereira, co-host of G4’s Attack of the Show, apparently did not agree with the X-Play choice of Fable 2 as the Game of the Year, citing LittleBigPlanet, Fallout 3, and Left 4 Dead as better choices. At the end of this evening’s show, in fact, Pereira called out Adam Sessler specifically and demanded he defend his choice and said X-Play’s choice was “a terrible, terrible mistake”. Video follows.

While I don’t think it was that bad a choice, I personally would have picked Fallout 3 over Fable 2, but Sessler has a good point in that Fable 2 is much more accessible to a wider audience. And I think Kevin Pereira is kind of a tool, so I’m not quick to want to agree with him on anything. Let’s just see what happens when these two clash.

With games like Gears of War 2, Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots, Left 4 Dead, Grand Theft Auto IV, Resistance 2 and Fallout 3 being nominated, Fable 2 came out on top for X-Play’s Game of the Year for 2008.

Yea, I’m not kidding either. I mean don’t get me wrong, I played Fable 2 and thought it was a great game, but I didn’t think it was worthy of Game of the Year with the likes of MGS4 and GoW 2, but I guess X-Play thought differently. X-Play Host, Adam Sessler, had this to say,

“The game’s charming settings, elegant combat and accessibility without compromising depth all worked together to create our favorite gaming experience of the year.”

If it were up to me, I’d go with Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots for Game of the Year (which won four different awards, including Best Action/Adventure Game), but that’s just my opinion. I know there are many of you who would go with Gears of War 2 or Fallout 3, but I don’t think many were picking Fable 2 to land the top spot.

Head over to G4TV.com to see their Game of the Year video and the full list of their award winners.

Source: G4TV.com

The Fable 2 development blog has posted an update stating that there will be a major announcement regarding Lionhead Studios’ recently released Fable 2 next week. The blogger (with a rather handsome name, might I add) had this to say on the matter: “Dare I even say it’s quite a big announcement? Yes of course I dare say it’s a big announcement regarding Fable II, next week!” The blog also revealed an awesome Fable 2 Xbox 360 (as you can see), and in true Lionhead style, also revealed that you’ll never get your hands on it.

With the sheer scope and size of Fable 2 in mind, this could pretty much be anything. New DLC? Merchandise? XBLA minigames akin to “Pub Games”? Free kisses from Peter Molyneux? Let’s just hope it’s that last one. Any ideas of your own? Just what could it be? Let us know in the comments!

Source: Lionhead Blogs via Kotaku.

Fable II is one of those games that some people have been waiting for even before the original was released.  Peter Molyneux tried as hard as he could to keep things low key, but try as he might, the hype machine just could not be stopped.  So, does the game live up to expectations or does it soil itself trying to impress the ladies?  Read on dear reader, and find out….

Fable II takes place 500 years after the first Fable.  The story has relatively little to do with the first game, so if you haven’t played the original (shame on you), you won’t be missing much.  There are little hints and easter eggs thrown in here and there, mostly in the form of books and stories laying around the world.  Even if you don’t get some of the references, it won’t hurt the story or gameplay too much.

It’s 500 years in the future, so of course most of the events from the original have become children’s tales and myths.  It’s actually kind of neat, but you really won’t know one way of another if you haven’t played the original, it will just be one more book of flavored text to help bring the world of Albion to life.

You start off as a orphan kid (boy or girl, your choice) eking out an existence with your older sister on the rough-and-tumble streets of Bowerstone’s Old City district.  It’s a hard-knock place to grow up, and all your sister wants is to be safe and happy in a castle.  Through the course of the child tutorial-type stage, you’ll help her get a chance to make a wish that will change your life forever.

This portion of the game really lets you get a feel for the way the rest of the game runs, and it’s one of the better tutorial-type sections of a game I’ve played.  The advancement of time going from the end of your childhood days to that of a young adult also allows the game to show off how much of an impact your character can have on the world.

Even as a young adult moving out of the big city, the game still takes your hand for a little while yet, but this allows the character progression to really focus on how your actions affect the world around you.  It also gives you a direction while you figure out exactly what you want to do with your character.  It can be a little frustrating playing a game like this and being dragged along a quest with little or no freedom to explore, but it works out for the best once you get through it and finally get to go out and explore the world at your leisure.

The story is very good and quite compelling.  It’s not often that I get into a game’s story as much as this, but I could really relate to the motivations of the main characters, as well as the views of all the secondary characters.  Even Lucien, the villain, was complex enough that you could identify with him.  It wasn’t a matter of being evil for evil’s sake, there was actual depth to the character.

It makes things much more interesting when you have a character that actually has motives behind his actions that are more than just a lust for power. This makes an all the more satisfying story because it’s so much more plausible, in my mind, for someone to turn to evil as a last recourse rather than just wanting to destroy things for the hell of it.

One of my favorite characters (and one that received a lot of attention) was my canine companion in the game.  While I don’t think it went as far as Molyneux had hoped when he talked about it in press conferences, I certainly did like having the dog around.  I didn’t exactly fall in love with him or anything, though.

I enjoyed playing fetch and watching him run in front of me while I was exploring.  I genuinely got upset when he wasn’t around, afraid that he had been injured in a fight and I hadn’t noticed.  This wasn’t only because I liked the cute little guy, but because having him around and healthy has tangible game benefits — he will find treasure chests and buried treasure for you and warn you of enemy threats, even going so far as attacking enemies that you manage to knock to the ground.

Frankly, the benefits of having him around are enough to pay attention to him, but it’s because of that that you’ll start to feel closer to the dog.  He’s pretty much at your side all the time, and the few times we were separated because of the story, I actually missed the little guy.  He does change with your character’s alignment, but not as much as your character will.

Good characters will have a golden blond-colored dog that plays with all the villagers, while evil characters will have a black dog that growls menacingly at the locals.  There is nothing more satisfying than hearing some stupid yokel say “Aww, ain’t you a cute little… oh, nice dog!  Please don’t hurt me!”  Maybe that’s just me, of course. I’m sure there are people out there that will choose to actually be good (bo-ring).

Good and Evil are not the only things that affect your character’s look, unlike the original game.  It’s actually fairly complex and a fun little game in and of itself if you’re going for a certain style.  First of all, not only is your look affected by your actual in-game statistical number for good and evil, which can change quite quickly if you work at it, but also by the quest decisions you make.  If you want to be the ultimate evil-looking badass, you have to stick to your guns, no matter how hard it may be to steal that orphan’s lollipop.

The biggest thing that affects your look is where you put your experience points.  If you want to have a heavy-hitting melee fighter, expect to bulk up, while shooty types who spend points in skill will get taller, and magic users will get Tron-like blue glowy vein things all over their body.  If you don’t like the way an attribute makes your character look, that’s too bad.  You can’t have a waif thin heroine and expect them to be able to deliver awesome damage with each swing of their Master Greataxe of Fiery Vampirism.

Another layer of the character’s look is Purity and Corruption.  It’s similar to good and evil, but it’s different enough that after a few hours of playing you’ll understand what the difference is.  Doing things like eating meat, having pre- or extra-marital unprotected sex, and charging a lot for rent are things that will corrupt your character, making them uglier and more evil looking.  Doing things like charging low rent, eating vegetables, and banging only your wife (or at least using a condom if you bang someone else) will purify your character and clear up their skin.

The last two things that affect your look are scaring and fatness.  You get scars mostly from “falling out” in combat, but there are other things that may cause you to get scars.  Generally, combat doesn’t seem to cause scars like it did in the original, which is good since there is no armor in the game this time around.  Eating fatty foods and drinking alcoholic beverages will get your character to beef up in the gut if you’re not careful.  Throwing in certain veggies and other magical foods will decrease your cellulite levels and make you hotter to the local virgins, but just like real life it’s a lot easier to put it on than it is to get rid of it.

All of this combined can really force you to think about what you are going to do with your character.  I mean, do you really want to eat that apple pie to get some hitpoints back when it’s going to add ten pounds to your butt?  Are you still going to want to play dress-up with your female character after they start to look more and more manly?

I personally spent a lot of money on fish since they are a corrupting food (you know, they used to be alive and all) but were mostly fat free.  I did spend some time buying up celery after a drunken binge one session, as that is one of the few foods that will actually burn fat.  I’ve never had to think about what my character was eating before.  The best part is that I spent all this time running around looking for healthy food while I was sitting there smoking a cigarette, drinking a Pepsi, and eating junk food in real life.  Sort of made me feel sick and pathetic that I was taking so much better care of my character than I was of myself.

A lot has been made of the one button combat of Fable II, but I have to say that it works surprisingly well.  The X is for melee attacks, Y is ranged (bows and guns) and B is magic attacks.  You get experience based on what attacks you do and bonuses for mixing things up.  It’s also neat to me that the colors of the different experience orbs, and thus the skills, match up to the colors of the buttons on the controller.  It’s a small thing, but it seems to make things easier for non-gamer-types to get what button does what into their heads.

While one-button combat may seem overly simplistic and make the game sound like another Dynasty Warriors slash fest, it’s complicated and deep enough to keep things interesting.  It’s cliché, but it’s one of those things that’s easy to do, hard to master.  Okay, maybe not hard, but complicated enough to be interesting.

Things are definitely a little lame at first, but once you get some of your skills leveled up a bit and get new combat skills and magical powers, and the enemies actually start to put up a fight, the combat can be quite rewarding.  The best thing about it is that even when you’re getting your ass kicked, you still feel like a badass.

Another great innovation to the combat is the complete lack of magic points.  There is no mana or MP or anything to manage at all.  You can throw fireballs or lightning bolts just as easily as you can shoot your gun or swing your axe.  It’s just another small thing that allows the combat to flow without having to worry about trivial things like ammo or other typical RPG-type micro-management malarkey.

It also allows the combat to just look awesome.  There is something to be said for shooting a dude with a lightning bolt, knocking him into the sky with your axe, and then shooting him as he flies through the air.

The world is rich and beautiful and the graphics are top notch.  The world of Albion really seems to be alive, and each area is distinctive and remarkable in its own way.  The separation of the different sections is a bit of a downer, though, as you never really feel like places connect.  There is no overworld map or anything, just a magical exit between different zones, and going from one zone to another requires traveling through some kind of unknown, non-existant wilderness that basically just gives you a load screen and advances the game time a certain amount.

It breaks up the areas a bit too much for my tastes and really damages the feel of it all being part of the same world.  It’s a small thing and a bit nitpicky, but besides that relatively small gripe, the areas are fantastic and world overall is just amazing.

Another problem with the graphics and art style isn’t really a problem exactly, but it is something.  The world is very well done and much more realistic than the first Fable (for the most part).  It’s still got that fantasy vibe going, but it’s much more believable than the first one.  My problem with this is that there is a definite silliness to the game that just sort of clashes with the harsh “realities” of the rest of the world.  I mean, the town of Bowerstone just looks incredible and the characters look great, but your interactions with them are limited to goofy interactions like dancing and belching.  Well, and chopping their heads off, but that’s a different kind of interaction.

It’s just strange to be the most evil and hated person in Albion because I ran around growling like a dog and farting in people’s faces.  It is funny and it works for the game, but it did seem to sort of clash with the rest of the game’s atmosphere. That may be more of a personal thing, though, as there were times where I genuinely enjoyed farting for the sake of a child’s laughter or taking off all my clothes and pelvic thrusting my way to a public disturbance charge.  It’s definitely not a level of character interaction like Mass Effect, but it tends to work for this game even though it clashes with some of the harsh realities of other aspects of the world.

No matter how evil you are, people will still laugh at you.

Lastly, and one of the biggest things for me, is the multiplayer.  I was really looking forward to being about to run rampant around the world with my wife or brother in tow, or being able to go in and help my wife with her game when she asks for it (and only when she asks for it).  There are very few games she’ll play, and Fable II is one of them, which says something about the accessibility of the game right there, especially if you know my wife.  Which you don’t, so this does absolutely nothing to help you.  I guess that whole thought process just wasted a bunch of your time. Sorry!

Unfortunately, as fun as the co-op can be, there are some definite problems with it.  First, you play as a henchman if you join someone else’s game.  In Lionhead’s defense, it’s exactly what they said it would be as far as that goes, but it’s still a little disappointing not being able to be your character in someone else’s game.

The henchmen does have your character’s stats if you choose it to, but otherwise they’re just generic NPC-looking types.  Even their weapons are not based on what your character has, but you can select whatever types of weapons you want and the generic weapons will have stats based on the level of that character.   You will still have your spells and experience and the like, so it’ll still be your character as far as the stats go (sorta), but it just won’t look like it.

The only other issue with the multiplayer, and also the biggest for me, is the camera.  Whether you’re playing on the same system or over Xbox Live, the camera goes from being controlled by the right analog stick to being static.  That’s right, you can’t just move the camera around wherever you want.  Instead, you have to tap the left bumper to center the camera behind your character.  Either player can do this which just leads to other problems if the two of you keep fighting over the camera.  It’s especially problematic in the more hectic fights with large groups of very agile enemies.

I just don’t understand that design decision at all.  I mean, I can see it making sense if you’re playing on the same system, but it just seems silly to do this over XBL.  Camera problems aside, though, co-op is a ton of fun if you’re in later stages of the game.  Mostly the game is too easy to make co-op really enjoyable, but there are parts where it is an absolute blast…  as long as you don’t have a partner that likes to shop or look at menus all the time.

While the other person is shopping or browsing around the menus, the game just pauses for the other player.  More could have definitely been done to make multiplayer more enjoyable, but as it is, it’s good for short stints into a dungeon or helping someone else out against a tough boss, but mostly it will fall to the wayside because of these small but annoying problems.

Overall, I’d say that Fable II is a fantastic game and does what the original set out to do and then some.  While there are certainly aspects of it that could have been better, or just strange design choices in some areas, overall the game is superb and one of the best games I’ve played this year.  If things seemed a little picky, that’s because I was being picky.

Fable II is a wonderful, wonderful game where the sum of it’s parts far exceeded my expectations.  That being said, it’s a strange juxtaposition of silly and serious, where you can fart in people’s faces then take them back to your place and have sex, complete with pregnancy and STD concerns.  It’s a strange combination of mature and immature that somehow manages to come together and work, and it helps solidify the world of Albion as a strange yet wonderful home away from reality that forever lives on in my Xbox 360.

Call me sick, but in my time with Fable 2, I’ve tried to kill kids. Multiple times. You see, my character’s evil. He’d do that. He seduces men and women and takes them under the bridge and puts a flintlock rifle in their faces and pulls the trigger without remorse. He soaks up the upgrades to evil and corruption stats like they’re candy.

But kids, no matter what you do, seem to have an invisible forcefield around them. Just like GTA IV, just like in Fallout 3. Games that are about moral choices, that seem to say – we won’t go this far.

In the case of Fallout 3, lead designer Emil Pagliarulo had this to say on the topic:

We began to think, really what benefit would there be in killing the kids in the game? It just seems gratuitous, unnecessary and cruel.

Some people would say it is necessary, though.

Simon Parkin over at GameSetWatch specifically. For him, the moral depth of making the decision to kill or not kill a child is something from which games shouldn’t shy away or bar themselves from. In putting up a big “we’re not going there” sign, developers who would make a game that, on the one hand, lets you blow up an entire suburb (and probably kill some kids in the process) but doesn’t let you kill a child face to face, are failing the potential of their artistic medium:

In removing the opportunity to kill children in their anarchic game, Bethesda has admitted videogames’ ineffectiveness in providing meaningful disincentives and negative repercussions for in-game atrocities. That the team chose to carve the issue out of their game rather than attempt to engage it head on, speaks volumes.

I side with Parkin on this. Though I understand the pressure on Bethesda to avoid as much potential controversy with their game as possible, I do wish more games (like the first two Fallouts) would allow these kinds of moral choices – and if they do deliver them, to be mature, realistic and brave about it.

What do you guys think?

Glitch? Ability you gain as a good character? Shout out to the world’s greatest real wizard besides Dumbledore? I don’t really know, but my buddy’s morally good monk character in Fable 2 started inexplicably hovering inches above the ground with his arms up, much like Criss Angel does every day with just the strength of his will.

And our fat monk didn’t lower his arms or stop levitating when we went to a new area or aimed the crossbow. Click that link to see the weirdness.

The latest edition of Sessler’s Soapbox courtesy of our friends over at G4TV features a visibly in pain Adam Sessler juggling everything but the kitchen sink as he shares his impressions and overall score for the just released Fable II. Here what Adam has to say after the jump.

Mere days after Gears of War 2 began popping up on various torrent sites there has been an arrest made in the case.

Rodney Gray, 43, is a security guard employed by Technicolor, the Memphis Tennessee company that packages and distributes games and DVD’s in the U.S.

According to a Memphis Police Department affidavit, Gray stole hundreds of copies of Gears of War 2, as well as Fable II, and was selling them on the black market. He and another unidentified person of interest are currently under investigation for stealing and selling the games from the plant, but neither have been formally charged as of yet.

Detectives followed Gray from a Memphis apartment and pulled him over for driving related offenses. After doing so, they performed a cursory search of the vehicle and discovered 31 games in a red bag.

Memphis P.D. estimates the net worth of the theft to be more than $60,000.

Source: commercialappeal.com

After lauding Fable II’s cooperative gameplay as the best thing since whatever was previously the best thing (witty, right?), developer Lionhead went and pissed everyone off when they announced that it would not be available when the game released.  Instead, people were expected to wait another week and download a patch that would implement the online co-op mode.

Earlier today, however, Lionhead announced on their community blog that co-op would be available on day one, but it will still be in patch form.  Huh?  Isn’t there enough room on the disc for that extra 983KB of code?  Anyway, this is good news for me since I’m planning on killing my brother’s family ASAP– err, I mean I’m looking forward to conquering evil with him.

A new Fable II TV commercial is also available, so you can click through if you’re interested in watching it. Kinda neat.

Fall is fast approaching, and your bank balance will soon be dropping faster than the leaves on the tree outside your window. Naturally, you may not be able to decide for yourself which of the plethora of games to splurge your life’s savings on, and that’s where I come in.

Think of me as your personal assistant — ready to passively (and aggressively) project my thoughts and opinions onto you. Thank me later.

Dead Space (Microsoft Windows, Playstation 3, Xbox 360) 10/14 – It’s the future. We’ve made significant progressions in the space program. You’re Isaac Clarke, a space engineer, who’s answered a distress call from a ship that is, as far as he knows, only suffering from minor mechanical issue. Since we need antagonists to kill, the ship has been overrun by Necromorphs, a hostile polymorphic alien species dependant on necrotic flesh.

As lame as that sounds, all it does is confirm my suspicions that it is execution rather than conception that makes something intriguing.

EA Redwood has taken what I perceive and now know as the “Resident Evil 4 effect”: over-the-shoulder camera, controls that don’t make you want to burn a puppy, and something freak you out when you turn the corner. Comparisons to other great games continue; much like BioShock’s Rapture, a large portion, if not all, of Dead Space will be taking place in a self-contained location. What BioShock did right was make locations distinct enough to create a feeling of progression and keep things fresh with distinct differentiations in aesthetics.

Gameplay mechanics appear solid enough, and rightfully so, since they’re borrowing from the best. And let me be clear, that’s not a knock against it, I like that it borrows from games that I already know I love. Provided that they nail the gameplay, atmosphere has to be top notch, especially since they’re in the survival-horror genre, a genre that lives and dies by its ability to give you the screaming heebie-jeebies.

LittleBigPlanet (Playstation 3) 10/21 – “Play. Create. Share.” is the mantra that Media Molecule, developers of LittleBigPlanet, has lived by since they announced the title two years ago.

LBP is a 2D side-scrolling platformer that combines the Super Mario Bros paradigm of simply getting from one end of the screen to another and takes it to the next level with real-to-life physics calculations. Thow in an endearing star like Sackboy, and a pre-bundled level creator expansive enough to recreate just about anything your mind can think up, and you may begin to understand why people are clammering to reserve their copy.

If creating isn’t really your thing, you can expect a fully featured online catalog of levels created by others. Assuming that its release is met by a highly motivated and creative community focused on providing a constant stream of mind-blowing content, LBP will be surefire success.

Fable 2 (Xbox 360) 10/21 - Over promising and under delivering has very much been the theme of Peter Molyneux, the design mastermind behind Fable. I haven’t followed his hyperbolic propagand much throughout Fable II’s development, but I’m sure he’s spewed his fair share of it. The one thing I did hear is about the Han Solo factor.

The factor that has a player not being equally generous and forthcoming to everyone met, but a greedy, look-out-for-self, inward thinker that’s not exactly pure evil:

“With Han Solo, how good is good? Can you get as good as Luke Skywalker? Even he wasn’t truly good.” Molyneux said. Speaking with MTV Multiplayer blog.

He then went on t o hypothesize a potential situation in Fable II:

“If you saw a family there and had to kill these bandits to save the family, you’d kill the bandits to save the family. If I said to you, ‘okay, to save this family, you give up half your gold.’ Would you give up half your gold to save the family? Maybe you would, don’t know. The most interesting one is if I said ‘to save that family, you must be horribly, grotesquely scarred and there’s no way of ever removing the scar or the aging.’ What we found is that far, far fewer people were willing to sacrifice that.”

Would you sacrifice superficial features in a game to accomplish your good deed for the day? What about in the meatspace; fight or flight? Could an in-game situation make you stop for a second to contemplate the repercussions of your actions? Would you second guess your decision making? That seems to be the goal they are striving for here.

Fallout 3 (Microsoft Windows, Playstation 3, Xbox 360) 10/28 – Post-apocalyptic wastelands haven’t been done right since 1998, or so they say. Having only become a PC gamer recently, I missed out on both Fallout’s, and I’ve neglected to watch any of the Mad Max movies. As such, I’ve never been set in a Mad Max-esque setting – and I’m not quite sure what to expect. In other words, I have little insight into this cultural phenomenon.

I know about the barren stretches of land, the different factions, your dog, the vaults, the open-ended consequence-filled nature of the world, the VAT combat system and the Pip-Boy. All that knowledge taking up real-estate in my head, but even so, I can’t begin to understand the hype machine surrounding this games pending release. Despite my not having any comprehension as to how the game will actually “work”, it’s piqued enough of my interest that I will definitely be playing it on day one.

Gears of War 2 (Xbox 360) 11/4 - “Bigger, better, and more badass.” Was the phrase Lead Designer Cliff Bleszenski chose to introduce the world to Gears of War 2, although it was scrapped shortly thereafter. Setting aside the idiotic catch phrase, my initial fears were that little to no advancement had happened in the two year gap between the first and the second Gears of War’s.

Epic could’ve released what would ostensibly be the original Gears with a new single-player campaign and, by and large, be met with success, both critically and commercially. Marginally upgraded graphics, new enemy types, and new weapons would have likely been sold as more than enough reason to come back for round two.

Thankfully though, they didn’t phone Gears of War 2 in. A new campaign, 5 player co-op, and what seems like a vastly improved multiplayer mode have me at attention and ready for battle. The 5 player co-op has a bit of a twist, as it pits you and your friends in something more analogous to Geometry Wars: Waves. You fight through waves of Locusts with each subsequent wave being more difficult than the previous. It’s chances of being Game of the Forever are slim to none, but what it does have is a great foundation to work from, if taken in the right directions it will prove to be a success in most aspects.

Resistance 2 (Playstation 3) 11/7 – Ever since its announcement, you’ve heard about Resistance 2 and it’s scale. In fact, Insomniac Games made sure that one was never mentioned without the other. A prime example being the skyscraping 300 ft. tall Leviathan shown off at the Sony E3 Press Conference months ago. It ravaged through a 1950’s war-torn Chicago and smashed buildings with little remorse.

For those that missed the original, it’s an alternate historical take on World War II, where instead of the war progressing as it should with the Allies vs. Axis, it’s become Humans on Chimeras, a mysterious alien species life form that’s decided to invade Earth.

The first takes places through European cities. With the second, the war comes stateside and it’s up to hero of the European invasion, Nathan Hale, to play his part. Apart from repeating the word “scale” until it ceases to have meaning, they’ve also been playing the numbers game like it’s nobody’s business, unleashing an 8 player class-based co-op campaign, and 64 player squad-based competitive multiplayer.

In addition to the numbers game, they’ve also been building a new website behind-the-scenes. One that’s meant to foster a community. MyResistance.net is slated to be to Resistance 2, as Bungie.net is to Halo 3. Those are big shoes to fill, but Insomniac readily boasts the “scale” to do it.

Mirror’s Edge (Microsoft Windows, Playstation 3, Xbox 360) 11/11 - We got our first taste of the evolved paradigm of platforming courtesy of last year’s release of Assassin’s Creed. The craze is called Parkour, which is a French developed sport involving running, jumping, and otherwise traversing urban areas with complete grace and shocking fluidity. When directly translated from French to English it means “The art of movement”. The definition and translation of Parkour is easily transferable and a perfectly acceptable for Mirror’s Edge, as it takes Parkour, and translates it into a first-person action game.

Mirror’s Edge takes place in a not-so-distant dystopian future, run by a totalitarian government. I don’t know how much you know about totalitarian governments with Orwellian traits, but they like to control things, and one of their favorite things to control is information. That’s where the “Runners” come in. They take information in various forms and get it from point A to point B.

You play Faith, an extremely agile and graceful runner. As such, she can move through her environment with relative ease and fluidity. Much of Mirror’s Edge involves forward movement, you can expect to, more often than not, be in situations where you’re being shot at, chased, or otherwise incentivized to — you guessed it, move forward.

The only downfall I can think of is the game’s lack of interaction with civilians in the dystopian city. There’s just a picture perfect scene in my mind’s eye, where Faith is going from a rooftop, through a door, down a stairwell, and finally arriving in an office, ultimately interrupting a regular work-day, turning workers into obstacles that become part of the stage.

Those are the games that will keep your wallet (or purse, if you’re into that sort of thing) lighter than it has been all year.

Make sure you come back within the next few days, as I’ll be pushing the games of Fall that may slip under your radar, but shouldn’t. Save your pocket change — you’re going to need it.

Fable 2 is done. No, really, it’s for real this time. As we speak, it’s already being pressed to discs, manufactured, and otherwise tarted up for it’s release on October 21, 2008 for North America and Asia, and October 24, 2008 for Europe. But that’s not the story, the real story is you see that package of awesome above?

Do you have any irrational impulse to own it? Have you even already gone as far as pre-ordering it? Tough. Because you see all that? Almost all of it’s gone. But not all is lost, the price has been dropped from a $79.99 to a more conventional $69.99 (both figures are in USD, so convert accordingly).

This looks like a glass half-empty or half-full situation. On one hand, you’re losing some arguably rad content, but on the other, you’re saving some arguably sweet $10.00 — just think how many dollar menu burgers you’ll be able to get with those!

The original Fable 2 Collectors Edition was originally set to include:

Bonus DVD – Includes new ‘Making-of Feature’ with Peter Molyneux and the team at Lionhead Studios and concept art viewer

Bonus In-Game Content (Requires LIVE account) – Includes “The Hall of the Dead” Dungeon, “The Wreckager” Legendary Cutlass Weapon and Otherworldly Bonus

Collectible Hobbe figure with accessories – From the Qee Collection comes this one-of-a-kind Hobbe figure. Nasty, brutish, and short, he roams the countryside, preying on travelers and spiriting away the children of the unwary.

48-hour Xbox LIVE Gold Trial Card – With Xbox LIVE Gold, players can show off their individual hero by inviting friends into their unique version of Albion or they can visit their friends’ Albion, and earn additional gold, experience and renown to take back into their own.

Five printed Fate Cards – These five beautiful cards foretell the Hero’s great destiny to journey across all of Albion, encountering deadly enemies and enigmatic allies. The path leads to a choice that will change the world forever.

But for paying less, you’ll also get less. This is the revised, price-reduced Fable II Collectors Edition:

Fable II game disc

Bonus DVD with new ‘Making-of’ Feature

Bonus in-game content (requires Xbox LIVE®)

• ‘The Hall of the Dead’ Dungeon
• ‘The Wreckager’ Legendary Cutlass Weapon
• Spartan armor and energy sword

Basically, you’re losing the premium box, printed cards, and statue. Although, Sam, Lionhead’s Community Manager, has mentioned that the box art will be the same as the one seen above, and that they’re going to release the cards in PDF format for fans to print and enjoy.

Source: Lionhead Studios

The Xbox 360’s big hitters this Fall, namely Fable 2, Fallout 3, and Gears of War 2, are actually set to release in India a full week prior to the official worldwide release dates.  Apparently, this is Microsoft’s way of saying “thanks” to its customer service department.

According to gaming site Split-Screen (who attended a recent Microsoft event held in India), the 360 Fall lineup of greatness would be getting the Halo 3 treatment and releasing first in the land of a billion people that isn’t called China.

Interestingly enough, Microsoft India’s Retail Services Manager, Rahul Datta, apparently let slip that the oft-rumored Xbox 360 Slim was, in fact, a reality and that an announcement would be made soon. This, of course, led the Microsoft hired goons to stab him in the throat and claim his words were minced, with the official stance being:

“We would not like to comment on any market speculation or rumor. In India we have the Xbox 360 Core and the Xbox 360 Pro console currently available in the market. There are exciting new game titles like Gears of War 2, Fable 2, and Fallout 3 in the pipeline for the holiday season along with special promotions and festival offers.”

Sly bastards. This official statement actually doesn’t deny the existence of an Xbox Slim at all! What do you think? Is the 360 Slim on its way, or is this all still just speculation?

After perusing the recently revealed Fable II achievement list, one of the many that really jumped out at me was The Swinger — 5 points if you “take part in a orgy, responsibly”. I’m assuming this means group sex while wearing a condom and remembering to feed your dog.

So is this better or worse than the casual sex you can partake in while playing GTA4, or does the fantasy setting make this more acceptable to watchgroups and legislative douchebags? Will we see any of the action or will it go all black-screeny like the original Fable?  It’s situations like this that make me wonder what exactly it is that people find offensive and where the arbitrary line they draw on the moral spectrum is located.  I’m sure we will find out shortly after a few parents catch their kids stealing condoms in Fable II when it releases this October.

You can check out the full list of Fable II Achievements at Xbox360Achievements.org.

There is an interview over at GameTrailers with Peter Molyneux that has some pretty interesting stuff about Fable 2… and beyond. The highlights include more discussion about the co-op and how that all works, as well as what I like to call “wuss mode” where you can’t kill any “friendly” townies and the like.

The most intriguing part is toward the end when Peter Molyneux states that Lionhead Studios is planning on releasing three more Fable games, even though the sequel (aptly titled Fable 2) is still two months away from release.

“We’ve got plans for Fable 3, 4 and 5 actually. It’s a big story arc and if you play Fable II you’ll recognize things from Fable 1.”

He also revealed that Lionhead has another game in the works that apparently came about while they were experimenting with things for Fable 2.  He wouldn’t get down to specifics, but being that it’s Peter Molyneux, I’m sure he wanted to talk a big game but some lawyer had his hands on the restraining-bolt controls off camera somewhere.

He did say, however, that he’s always looking for a challenge, stating:

“I’ve always been fascinated by challenges and I’ve always said to myself ‘One day I really should do a sports game’, simply because it’s such a genre that’s locked in stone – we [developers] know how we do sports games and we don’t do them any other way, and that is a real challenge to me.  Same with things like, you know, driving games.”

He goes on to say that what he wants to do for his next project is “a really big challenge.”  I don’t know about you, but a Lionhead Studios-developed Rock & Roll Racing sounds like sweet, sweet candy.

In an attempt to get you more excited about Fable 2’s release, Peter Molyneux and the studly geniuses at Lionhead are giving you an early taste in the form of an Xbox Live Arcade game.

Keystone is a downloadable XBLA game that will release prior to Fable 2. It’s just one of the many mini-games found in Fable 2, but Keystone will let you gamble and win gold that you can then transfer into your Fable 2 saved game. You can be a rich bitch before you even enter the world of Albion!

No release date has been given for either Fable 2 or Keystone, but the stars are aligning for a Summer delivery. Keystone already looks ready to go, so it can up and surprise us at any time. Be on the lookout for that crafty bastard on the marketplace, or just stay tuned to Ripten and we’ll let you know when it’s coming out.

A few minutes ago at the Microsoft keynote, Peter Molyneux officially showed off the online co-op of the upcoming Fable 2.

Unfortunately for him, however, his in-game friend happened to murder Peter’s wife right in front of him. Oh yeah, Peter Molyneux is a red-headed chick with some nice boobs, which came as quite a shock to me. He looks much different on camera.

So his in-game character is female, which looked pretty nice. He apparently got pregnant at some point, but said that there is no childbirth minigame. Damn…

Peter comes home from a six-month stint away from his family and is instantly assaulted with love from his 5-year-old son. His husband appears slightly angry at Peter for being away so long, so Peter’s co-op partner decides to shoot him in the face.

Choose your friends wisely because this event is permanent. Peter’s husband is dead. No respawns, no second life. He is gone forever, and Peter is one sad girl.

The co-op itself is drop-in/drop-out, so no need to set up a game beforehand. The host player remains the same character while the joining player becomes a henchman based off of a character from their own game.

Fable 2 will be demoed again on Friday, all by itself. Check back for more coverage and info on what looks to be another sure-fire hit for the Molynator.

With GDC just around the corner, the rumour mill is running at full speed. Normally most of these rumours turn out to be nothing more than falsities or let downs, but this one seems to be carrying some weight.

Fable 2 Multiplayer has been long rumoured, but will we finally be seeing some solid information and end to the speculation? Tips from key industry insiders are all indicating that Peter Molyneux will be announcing at next week’s GDC that Fable 2 multiplayer will be coming, and giving us all some juicy information on the matter.

To add further confusion to the rumour soup surrounding the game, a few days ago the Wikipedia article for Fable 2 was updated with some intriguing information, stating that XBOX Live will allow “a host to invite up to 3 other Fable 2 players into their Albion to train, finish quests and so forth.”

Ripten will be reporting from GDC all next week, so keep your eyes here for all the latest news as it breaks.