When Microsoft announced in March 2016 that it was going to shut down Lionhead Studios, makers of the Fable and Black & White series, it meant the end of an era, and it also meant Fable Legends, which was then undergoing development for Xbox One and PC, was dead.
Though a virtual card game Fable Fortune was launched, it was made by an outside studio completely unrelated to Lionhead, which meant that while it was a decent spinoff and was supported by Microsoft, it wasn't a mainline game, meaning it didn't have the spirit, the atmosphere, and the correct tonality that made Fable games so renowned.
Will There Be A New 'Fable' Game?
Will there be another Fable game ever? While Lionhead is defunct, Microsoft owns the rights to the franchise, so there's a very real possibility that it could be resurrected. If the company decided to resurrect it, that would make Xbox's head of first-party publishing, Shannon Loftis, happy.
Loftis spoke with GameSpot during PAX Aus this week, saying Microsoft loves the Fable franchise. In fact, one of the reasons why Loftis immigrated to England years ago was to lead the development of Fable II.
The series is very dear to her, she told GameSpot, saying she even loves the card game, but the IP as a whole holds a special place in Microsoft's heart.
"Fable Fortune is now out, the card game. We love the IP. I can't talk right now about whether we're doing anything with it or not, but if I ever get the chance to go back to Albion ... "
Microsoft Receives This Many Game Pitches A Year
Loftis being the head of Xbox's Publishing unit for first-party titles means she has direct and crucial influence if Microsoft decided to bring back the franchise. As of yet, however, it remains unknown whether there are internal talks inside the company to do so. Loftis said Microsoft receives around 350 to 400 game pitches each year — and who knows? Rekindling the old Fable flame might be one of hundreds upon hundreds of ideas developers present to the company.
For now, Microsoft seems to be treating the Fable franchise the way EA is treating Mass Effect, wherein it's letting the franchise cool off for a while before injecting new life into it. The most recent Mass Effect title, Andromeda, received lukewarm reviews shortly after launch when it began showing problems, faulty facial animations being one of them. Microsoft is probably avoiding a similar situation, given how rocky development for Andromeda had been, according to reports.
