Accessibility Issues / Concerns
Quite frankly, I could have simply copied and pasted the accessibility write-up for Fable II here. While Fable III shows some minor changes in gameplay and mechanics, they are nearly identical to Fable II in accessibility concerns, except in precision and color blindness, which are now more problematic than they were in Fable II.

Deaf gamers and gamers who use subtitles will generally find the game acceptable; while subtitles are not letterboxed, players can turn them on before the game starts, they are usually present for quest and mission-related dialogue and they identify the speaker. The font used is a decorative typeface representative of the period, not a sans serif font, and may be difficult for some people to read. Ambient chatter is not subtitled, so once a player receives a quest or mission, subtitles aren’t really a concern.

Gamers with a form of color blindness will likely find the game more difficult than Fable II – while low-level jobs involve mini-games which require the player to press the A or X button (green and blue), higher levels add in the Y button which is yellow, presenting a challenge for those with blue / yellow color blindness. It appears that the B button (red) is now used only to exit a job, but I was unable to fully upgrade all of the jobs before having my play experience cut short, so it is possible that the B button is used in the mini-games as well.

Unlike Fable II, expressions no longer require pressing certain buttons at certain times for better results; the expression system is vastly simplified and consists of holding a button down until the game tells you to release it.

These mini-games now involve pushing more buttons in sequences which increase in speed and the number of buttons involved as players progress. At the first level, only blue and green buttons are used, but as a player completes the button sequences, each succeeding sequence must be entered more quickly, presenting substantial obstacles for players with precision concerns or players with use of only one hand.

Just as in Fable II, these mini-games don’t offer any mitigation for players who may have difficulties with timing. The floating orb puzzles, called flit switches, return – again, due to the bug, I was unable to assess anything beyond their existence in the game. Fable II included a number of complex and problematic puzzles using those flit switches – that complexity may or may not be present in Fable III. However, they are still color sensitive, using red for magic spells, blue for melee weapons and yellow for ranged attacks with firearms.

As in Fable II, all combat is in real-time, although players can purchase potions to slow time down temporarily. When a large number of enemies are attacking, players with precision concerns or with use of only one hand may encounter difficulties.

Gamers with use of only one hand may find this game somewhat accessible using basic attacks in combat; motion is controlled by the left stick, the camera is controlled by the right, and combat is controlled using the X button for melee attacks, the Y button for ranged attacks and the B button for magical attacks. Generally, “Fable II” will automatically target enemies, allowing the player to press the desired button rapidly.

Furthermore, it’s possible to back off from combat a bit to obtain a better strategic position, or to simply turn to face other enemies. Using a magical attack without targeting will trigger an area effect spell, attacking enemies in a radius around the player. However, unlike many games, there is only one controller layout – it cannot be remapped and players cannot deviate from the single defined scheme.

Like Fable II, Fable III comes with significant accessibility concerns – concerns which, in some cases, may prevent players from completing the game, even if they are able to avoid the game breaking bugs present in the game’s current form.



At A Glance

Precision: Mini-games require varying amounts of precision. While most mini-games involve pressing buttons in series, the player has less time to complete the next puzzle, requiring faster finger movements and twitch reflexes. Recommend rating of 0 out of 10.

Deaf Gamers: Subtitles are not letterboxed and are not in a sans serif font, instead using a stylized font seemingly intended to represent the time period which may be difficult to read. Speakers are identified and quest and mission-related narration is subtitled. Ambient chatter is not. Recommend rating of 5 out of 10.

One-handed: Controllers cannot be remapped and the game only provides one controller layout. Combat is less fast-paced than first-person shooters and combat is controlled through the X, Y and B buttons for basic attacks. However, the puzzles that are likely to present challenges for gamers with precision concerns and color blindness are also likely to be frustrating for gamers with use of only one hand and may prevent them from finishing the game since there is no bypass mechanism. Recommend rating of 0 out of 10.

Subtitled: Subtitles are not letterboxed and are not in a sans serif font, instead using a stylized font seemingly intended to represent the time period which may be difficult to read. Speakers are identified and quest and mission-related narration is subtitled. Ambient chatter is not. Recommend rating of 5 out of 10.

Color Blind: Mini-games use blue and yellow for meaning at the same time. Due to a gamebreaking bug, I was unable to determine whether red and green are used for meaning at the same time. Recommend rating of 0 out of 10.

Checkpoint / Save System: The save system in Fable III can become a liability for players, as it can autosave and leave them trapped in bugged quests from which there is no way to escape. Furthermore, the game only uses one save slot and, while players can manually save, there is no practical way to revert to a previous save without using a USB memory device and the Xbox Dashboard to back up a save file outside the game. Recommend rating of 0 out of 10.