Fable is harder than the demo made it seem, devs promise: "Other difficulty levels will ensure the guards remember their training and are less... polite"

If you came away from Fable's demo thinking the upcoming trip to Albion looked a tad easy, then Playground Games has some words of reassurance. What you saw was the open-world RPG in Story Mode, and nastier options are available if you so desire.

Following the game's latest showcase, several people have taken to Fable's Twitter mentions to note that the combat in the demo looked a tad easy. Now, Playground Games has started replying to assure fans that what you've seen isn't the game at its hardest.

"We promise the guards haven't all taken up tea drinking mid-shift," the account says in reply to one fan. "Our team was playing on 'Story' difficulty. This is the gentlest way to wander through Albion.

"Should you prefer a sterner welcome, other difficulty levels will ensure the guards remember their training and are less... polite."

At the time of writing, there are several replies to other folk who have said something similar, but each reply more or less gets across what's been said above. While the Fable series isn't greatly known for difficulty – that would be British humor and fairytale vibes, as I'm sure you've noticed – it's nice that you can morph this one into some dark fantasy if that's your jam.

(Image credit: Xbox Game Studios)

Clearly in the mood to set the record straight, the Fable developers have also clarified that Blacksmiths won't be as generous in the game as they appear in the demo. Eagle-eyed fans noticed that you could basically buy a house after one go at blacksmithing. Once again, Playground Games says to rest assured – not everything is as it appears in the demo.

"You're not wrong, that was a very profitable afternoon at the forge," the developer says to one online onlooker. "For this demo, the team tweaked their jobs at the Blacksmith to showcase the system quickly as we were presenting within a time-slot. At launch, you can expect more work to earn similar amounts of gold!"

So there you have it. Once Fable releases, gold will be harder to come by, and the world of Albion can be all the meaner if you want it to be. As ever, you'll just have to see for yourself when Fable releases February 23, 2027.

Fable drops the original games' good and evil binary for a "subjective and multifaceted" reputation system, which is why you don't have horns or halos.