Fable dodges GTA VI with another delay

The reboot of the classic Xbox series is now coming out in February 2027.

By Ian Carlos Campbell
A character from Fable fighting a basilisk with a sword. Microsoft

Fable, a reboot of the Xbox fantasy RPG series developed by Playground Games, has been delayed. The game's release date is shifting from fall 2026 to February 2027 "so it can have the dedicated moment it deserves," according to a post from Xbox on X. The new release date will give developers more time to polish the game before it comes out, while also moving it out of the blast radius of Grand Theft Auto VI, which is scheduled for release on November 19.

This isn't the first time the reboot has been delayed, and as Microsoft notes in its announcement post, the back half of the year is particularly stacked with big releases like Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 4, Control Resonant and the aforementioned Grand Theft Auto VI. Moving to 2027 rather than duking it out with those more hotly anticipated titles could give Fable more time to shine. It does make a long development cycle even longer than it was before, though. The Fable reboot was originally announced in 2020, and Microsoft didn't share proper gameplay footage of the game until January of this year. That means from announcement to release, Fable will have taken seven years to make, and that's likely not taking into account work that went into the project ahead of its original announcement.

During its earlier 2026 showcase, Microsoft demoed Fable's detailed character creator and ambitious approach to simulating NPCs. The company also shared that the game would be available on PlayStation 5, alongside Xbox Series X/S, PC via Steam and Xbox and Game Pass Ultimate. While Fable won't be available this year, Microsoft says it will show off "a major new look" at the game during its Xbox Games Showcase on June 7.

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