I've not finished the game yet but I've already gotten my money's worth. I can see how a 12 year old game maniac who plays continuously might finish Fable the lost chapters quickly and feel like $50 is a lot of money for just a few days of solid play. But for a busy adult, whose game skills are not olympic, and $50 is not noticible, you WILL get your money's worth. I think I'll be playing this game in my spare moments for weeks and then I'll periodically return to it over years to play a bit more.
With regard to the freedom factor - its true that this game is not as free-form as Morrowind or Baldur's Gate. You can wander around, but mostly over a relatively small set of paths and towns. Its not a gigantic unexplored world to get lost within. I think this game's freedom is a different type. The freedom in this game revolves around what type of hero you want to become and I think in this case the game does a great job of allowing you to select what you want to be. And there look to be many acceptable, fun answers. In this way I think this game is a step above Morrowind or Baldur's Gate.
Overall, Fable the lost chapters is amazingly well built. Balanced, smooth, fun, without excess frustration, and a pleasure to play.
Hopefully the creators will use the same technology to build a sequal with even greater flexibility and world size to satisfy all the RPGers.
