Expected to ship in just less than a month, Lionhead's Fable: The Lost Chapters is the PC adaptation of its million-selling Xbox role-playing adventure that shipped last September. According to the material we've seen so far, the list of enhancements and additions is quite impressive, including expanded content, more customization possibilities, new story lines, further side quests and improved graphics. In addition, the underlying game design is unusual in that it follows your hero through an uncommonly long span, from the innocence of childhood to old age and immense power. During this time, it allows you to define your character through your actions within the world of Albion. Focusing on close combat will result in larger muscles. Concentrating on speed and stealth will make you quicker and more accurate, and magic users will gain visible indications of their arcane powers.

Another decision you'll face is whether to take the path of righteousness or give yourself to a life to evil. In either case, your avatar will reflect the consequences in a visible physical manner. To go along with this, the gameworld is said to react accordingly. For instance, NPCs will become aware of your successes and failures, enabling them to comment on them as well as your appearance and behavior. Their feeling may be expressed in many ways, ranging from praise to mockery, apprehension, outright fear, and possibly even flirtation. The console version had a lengthy gestation period, finally emerging amidst high expectations and achieving considerable retail success. Since learning about the PC version, especially since it's more than a port, we've been watching it closely, culminating in a session with Studio Head Louise Copley and Lead Scripter Mike West.