I’ve been trying to thrust myself into the Fable 2 fandom for a while and I think this new deal from Microsoft and Lionhead may help tremendously.  When there’s free involved it’s hard not to help especially when that free includes three (3) Xbox Live Arcade games. 

Lionhead Studios and Microsoft Game Studios announced that consumers who pre-order a copy of the Xbox 360™ exclusive, Fable II, at participating retailers worldwide, will be given free access to download the Fable II Pub Games when they are released this August. Available exclusively on Xbox LIVE Arcade, fans can transfer the gold earned in these casino-style mini-games to the world of Fable II, when the game is available later this year.

The final names of the Xbox LIVE Arcade Fable II Pub Games (which will be available as one download) are: Keystone, which is a combination of Craps and Roulette, Spinnerbox, which is an updated take on slot machines, and Fortune’s Tower, which is a press your luck style of game. The download will also include a Shell, which is a tutorial of all three games.

If you don’t pre-order, the games will be available for 800 Microsoft Points.  Keystone, Spinnerbox and Fortune’s Tower will also be embedded as part of the full retail copy of Fable II (limited collector’s and standard editions).  Why wait though when you can start earning that Fable II gold next month?  I’m all in.