Fable: The Journey for Xbox 360 Kinect isn't on-rails, but its E3 2011 demo sure was

Written by Brian Lelas on June 17, 2011

E3 2011 News: From the E3 2011 Microsoft Press Conference, the gameplay demo looked to be on-rails. But this Fable: Journey game isn't as journyless as it looks.

Fable: The Journey E3 2011 trailer video is below

Fable: The Journey was confirmed for Xbox 360 Kinect at last week's Microsoft E3 2011 Press Conference, but the question that's still hitting our inbox is: "is Fable Journey on-rails?" When Peter Molyneux introduced the new game, its demo certainly gave that impression, with the gameplay automatically moving the first-person perspective from one position to the next. But Molyneux, following the press conference, stated that the demo was a "horrendous mistake" and that the game "is definitely not on-rails" That being said, his enthusiasm is infamous among gamers as he often gets carried away with promises of innovative gameplay and groundbreaking gameplay ideas. Often his promises fall flat, and in the of this hobbled demo, it seems he is set to continue the trend (read: our recent Fable III PC review).

We see a player control a horse and carriage with Kinect before getting into a combat scenario where very vague movements of his hands control magical impulses on screen. The movement of the player's character seems to be pre-determined, as he remains seated for the majority of the demo. The player appears to direct magical attacks at characters with very little to indicate that this demo was representative of the true experience.

People who have been looking for Kinect to live up to its potential may have a game franchise that they want to play, but the lack of movement in his demo proves that limited controls could derail the experience everyone is dreaming about. Until a playable demo is made available, we cannot help but be highly skeptical of this game.

Fable: The Journey's appearance at the show also seems to confirm the end of production on Project Milo, the game now destined to remain unfinished. This Xbox 360 Kinect-powered game, which Molyneux ambiguously promises to be a experience that's not on-rails, also has a just-as-vague 2012 release date.