I'm not really sure how to explain it, beyond "Much, much more than the original, a bit less than Oblivion"
The world is about 10 times as big as the original one and you can go off the beaten path, whereas in the original you were limited to a series of winding passages through country-side, forests, cimeteries, etc. In this one you can forsake the bread-crumb trail, hop over a fence and rush off with your trusted dog into the wilderness in search of treasures, statues, riddles, demon doors, gargoyles and bandits to kill.
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So far, I'm thoroughly enjoying my time in Albion. I've played a good few hours so far, and I remember beating the original Fable in about that same amount of time, on my first time through. Yet I know for a fact I've not even scratched the surface here when I've only found of 3 heroes I need to embark on a journey against the evil at hand.
In term of character development, its originally very similar to its predecessor's. You have your familiar strength, skill and will attributes that affect your melee power (and health), swiftness (range attacks), and magic attacks respectively. Each affect your appearance and your combat abilities (which I'll write about a little later).
To my gleeful surprise variations of clothing and attires are more plentiful than in the original and I'm pleased to say that you can purchase a ton of dyes to color them to your heart's content. Some clothes, like the Ranger's coat have a hood which you can toggle on and off. Some other coats, like the cuffed longcoat (similar to Captain Jack Sparrow's) can be toggled opened and closed. There are quite a few more hats (serious ones unlike in Lost Chapters). Barbers offer a ton of hairstyles, facial hair and make-up if you are a girl (...or cross-dresser...). Oh and remember those dyes I mentioned? Yea, you can even die your hair and facial hair with them now.
Character morphing is subtle and very interesting again in this game. My character went for a swift, lanky little bloke into quite the bulky warrior by the time I had unlocked rank 2 of my 3 strength abilities. Its fun to see the change. Oh and lay off the fat foods otherwise you'll become the medieval version of Austin Power's Fat *******.
Now, the combat itself is quite thrilling, though to be honest, it takes a while to take off. This game takes the combo twitchiness thats grown all too common in action titles and throws it right out the window. In stead you have 3 combat button, 1 for melee, 1 for ranged, 1 for magic.
WHAT? That sounds so simplistic and lame! How can I ever pull off fun and flashy moves this way?
Well, at first, you simply don't. For the first hour of the game, you'll be simply slashing away at your enemies by mashing the attack button of your choice and side-stepping their blows. Don't get discouraged, the combat is just getting warmed up! Its when you unlock Brutal Styles (Strength) and Swift Styles (Skill) that things start getting fun. Brutal Styles rank 1 allows your to block your enemies' attack by holding the melee attack down. Swift Styles rank 1 allows you to roll away and towards your enemies with the sprint button. Brutal Styles rank 2 finally allows you to complete flourishes, very interesting and acrobatic moves by holding down the melee button, pressing the direction bad in the direction of your chosen enemy and unleashing the attack. Simple? Once you get used to this, and chain them properly, you'll be able to attack one enemy kick off into the air from his falling body and come slashing down at the enemies that were charging behind you.
And of course, there are plenty more ranks to gain in these abilities, though swift style rank 2 and on affect your ranged. In my case, I wont bother going down that tree since I've chosen my first play through to be as a brutesque (and idioticly good) melee warrior.
So far the storyline seems interesting enough, but certainly lacks the epicness of a game like Mass Effect. Its actually somewhat like the original, though you know your enemy very early on. A hero going off against an evil that threatens the land. Its your basic hero story, really. While the story is not the high light in Fable 2, there is so much more to the game than the base plotline. To me the world itself is as much a character as the hero you control.
The humour of the game is very tasteful and fun, somewhat with a little taste of Monty Python to it, though at least so far, there's been one or two quite dramatic moments. Oh, yes, there was also one quite nauseating moment, not because of violence and gore, but rather because, when you hear a sweet, pretty voice, you expect a pretty face, blond hair, inviting blue eyes, big plump breasts and a fair bottom. WELL NOT IN THIS GAME.
You can make money by taking on jobs. They come in the form of a mini-games that is fun and addictive, though extremely simplistic, essentially simply requiring you to hit the x when the meter is in the sweet spot. The more successes in a row, the higher your pay grows until you miss and start over again. I've taken a liking to blacksmithing, myself, mostly because it fits my character extremely well. Other jobs include woodcutting and bartending. Later on, you can also get Bounty Hunter and Assassin missions that act more like side quests and not a mini-game. Of course, much like in the original fable (but enhanced) you can again by houses and shops and rent them out, pocketing money every 5 minute of real-life time (including when your xbox is off and you're off playing something a little more brutal like oh, who knows, Dead Space?). You can also have a spouse, and in this game you can also have children.
Now, how could I forget to talk about the hero's best friend, mister Dog himself? To be honest, this is a love, hate, ignore relationship with our furry companion. Now let me step forth and say so far, I love the dog. He's cute, he's playful, he's useful and how can you not love him when he rolls onto his back begging for a treat after he finds that magnificient treasure for you? Or when he comes back through a locked bar gate carrying the head of an undead creature he's just killed? Still, I can certainly recognize that not everyone will like him. Alas, to these people's dismay, you can't do anything about it. He's there to stay even if you put him through hell.
The dog is present mostly for the cute factor and to server as a living (but not really, yay AI!) metal detector
that entices you to get off that mean old beaten path and into the wilderness in search of treasure. This is a double-edged sword. It can certainly get you exploring and to the less alert among us, he will point out that chest or silver key that is right in our face but we refuse to acknowledge. On the flipside, for those who LOVE to discover everything on their own, their doggy will beat them to the punch more often than not. (I caught myself gloating and happy when I find one before him, at one point).
So far, the dog has never gotten in my way, and generally its quite fun to have him at my side. You can see that the dev's put some extra time and love in animating and designing the mutt.
So hummm, thats my story and I'm sticking to it.
Edit : Oh yea, the graphics are totally awesome, the lighting is breathtaking (if someone a little overwhelming at sunset and sundown). In addition, the game's musical score is marvelous, very reminiscent of the original with a more orchestral feel to it.
