While the “plot” is severely lacking, the game world is at least as enchanting as ever. I’d be quite surprised if anyone went with him, even for the sake of maintaining an evil persona. At the end of the add-on’s quest, players are given the choice to back the annoying leader or support the townspeople. It’s poor judgment on Lionhead’s part to employ such a boring character as the gatekeeper for the sole plot thread. Relying on the switches turned them into a crippling gimmick, and served no other purpose than to prolong the main quest.Īdditionally, the chieftain of Knothole Island, and the man who gives heroes their one quest, is incredibly demanding and unlikeable. It honestly felt like the only way to open anything throughout the two-hour quest was first melee it, then shoot it and finally blast it with magic. There’s just something faulty with travelling to a secluded island to help some cold villagers after you’ve saved the world from Lucien’s evil.Įven more bothersome are the dungeons’ dependence upon the color-coded strength, skill and will switches from Fable II.
The most excitement found in Knothole’s quest is in backtracking the same path, three different times, to activate three different weather-controlling statues. It’s a rather strange situation Lionhead put itself in: having a boring DLC quest primarily targeted at higher-level characters who’ve accomplished things of note during their playtime. To be fair, there’s nothing wrong with a singular objective however, it’s what you’re tasked with doing that proves tedious. After taking a - for some reason - submarine to the island because of some sub driver’s pleas, players begin the one and only quest chain in the DLC. Still, the expansion has something to offer to the obsessive-compulsive Fable fans who’ve been wanting an out for their previous mistakes, as well as a few new duds along the way.Īccess to the mysterious island is available to all manner of characters at any time in their careers, which is admittedly a good thing. Let me put it like this: If the core content of the original release was a satisfying four-star dinner, then Knothole Island is an insufficient sno cone dessert - bright and colorful, but not much more than dressed-up frozen water sold at a premium. It’s especially disconcerting considering the impact that Fable II’s introductory form left on me. Knothole Island, the first DLC released for last year’s acclaimed Fable II, isn’t exactly what I was expecting.