Fable Is Missing A Beloved Series Feature, & It Could Be a Deal-Breaker

Fable is unique as it’s the first of its kind for a seasoned developer. It can be easy to see ‘Fable’ and only think of the storied history the established franchise has, without considering the fact that this will be Playground’s first Fable game. Therefore, expectations of what 2026’s Fable game will be like, or how faithful it will be to previous games in the series, have the potential to be dashed quite quickly, depending on the divisive choices the developer is making.

Unfortunately, it was recently confirmed that Fable’s dog companion wouldn’t be returning from Fable 2 and Fable 3, with Playground’s founder and general manager Ralph Fulton reportedly stating that there are “a substantial number of people on the team who have yet to forgive [him] for that decision.” Regardless of the reason for not including it, this is a choice that could have as big an impact on the new Fable game as any player choice.

Fable Is Abandoning The Franchise’s Dog Companion

Fable 2 and Fable 3 feature a dog companion that accompanies them, aids them in combat, and unearths hidden treasure. The dog’s appearance also mirrors the player’s as their moral alignment changes; however, because this new Fable has no moral alignment system, it wouldn’t have had any effect on the dog, either.

Fable’s dog is easy to adore as it is a genuine companion and stays with players for essentially the whole game in the sequel and threequel. Plus, customization for the dog is available, with players able to change its breed via DLC potions. Players have a horse they can ride around Albion on in Fable, yet it’s doubtful that it’ll be a ‘companion’ in moment-to-moment gameplay as the dog was.

NPCs Are Man’s Best Friend In Playground’s Fable

There are many valid reasons the dog companion may have been dropped from Playground’s game, but one possibility is that it is already feature-rich. Indeed, the Xbox Developer Direct 2026 chose to center Fable’s showcase almost fully on the fact that players’ choices have consequences in the world of Albion, and a dog companion probably didn’t make the cut with a plethora of other features to consider instead.

Players will be incessantly earning new reputations and having 1,000 NPCs react individually to how they behave, and this alone would presumably be all-encompassing for Playground as it develops its first-ever title that isn’t a Forza Horizon game—literally. For that game to be an open-world action-RPG whose world belongs to an iconic legacy IP, then, is an unfathomably tall and unenviable order.

Fable is scheduled to be released for PC, PS5, and Xbox Series X (as well as day-one on Xbox Game Pass) in autumn 2026.