Celebrities have always had a tentative but firm presence in the video game landscape, whether it’s video games appearing in movies, popular celebrities streaming games, or even celebrities agreeing to do voice work for a title. But the relationship between the two hasn’t always been a positive one, especially when it comes to celebrity voiceovers. Thankfully,Fable 3manages to be the outlier, providing an absolutelystar-studded cast, each of which gave their performance their all.
Released in 2010,Fable 3may not be as critically-lauded as its predecessor, but it was still a good exclusive for the Xbox 360 console. Putting players in the boots of a Prince,Fable 3’s first acttasks them with taking down their corrupt King brother, while the second act sees them become king themselves, tasked with protecting the kingdom against a mysterious, shadowy threat. Along the way, players will bump into a wide cast of colorful characters, some of which are voiced by big-name celebrities.
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When it comes to celebrity voices in video games,Fable 3has an unrivaled cast, both in terms of performance quality and star-power. One of the most prominent voices in the first act ofFable 3is Michael Fassbender, who voices King Logan. With a naturally deep and commanding voice, Fassbender has total control over every scene he’s in. Similarly, Naomie Harris, later seen inSkyfall, playsFable 3’s Page. Harris' natural charisma suits the revolutionary leader of the Bowerstone Resistance perfectly.
Fable 3also has plenty of other talent involved, some of which are British acting legends. John Cleese, for instance, plays Jasper the royal family’s butler.Skins' Nicholas Hault plays childhood sweetheart Elliot. Comedyscreenwriter and actor Simon Peggplays Captain Ben Finn, a soldier in Albion Royal Army.Gotham’s Sean Pertwee plays the ruthless Saker, leader of a gang of mercenaries.My FamilyandHarry Potter’s Zoe Wanamaker also makes an appearance, playing Theresa, a 600-year-old prophet.Lord of the Rings' Bernard Hill plays the main hero’s mentor, Sir Walter Beck. And rounding out the star-studded cast is Stephen Fry, who plays the charismatic Reaver, a steampunk ex-pirate industrialist.
All in all,Fable 3’s cast is absolutely stacked with famous names and voices. While this can often be a pretty risky move for a video game, with some on-screen actors not being able to translate their talent over to voice work, it certainly pays off inFable 3’s case, with each performance adding a great deal of gravity and substance to the narrative. Having so many celebrity voices is also a great marketing trick, whichLionhead Studiosdefinitely used on the lead-up toFable 3’s release.
Should The Fable Reboot Hire Celebrity Voices?
Celebrity culture is only more prevalent in today’s society than it was whenFable 3released in 2010. With social media becoming an even more integral aspect of everyday life, celebrity opinions - and opinions on celebrities - are often a big part of the daily news cycle. Celebrities are absolutely everywhere now, and including a few inthe upcomingFablerebootcould be a double-edged sword.
From a marketing perspective, hiring some well-known celebs to do some voice work onFablewould be a very smart choice. Though it isn’t as prominent in the video game scene, having a central character played by a big-name actor can really bring in new audiences, and theFablereboot certainly needs as much attention as possible before it eventually releases. However, these potential celebrity hires need to be able to add as much charisma and weight to the narrative asFable 3’s cast did, which is no easy feat. It’s a tricky balance, but ifFablecould pull it off, then it wouldn’t hurt to have some celebrity voices in the reboot.
Fableis in development for PC and Xbox Series X/S.
