Despite all its flaws, I've really enjoyed the Fable series, so I'm looking forward to playing more of 3. I sat down with it for about 2 hours last night and while it's been enjoyable so far, it doesn't seem all that different from part 2. More of like, a streamlined part 2.5 instead of a whole new game. Perhaps the quasi-RTS endgame stuff will really highlight the differences, so I'm eager to try that out.
Overall, I'm on the positive side of things, but I do have a couple gripes. The need for constant interaction in order to gain followers is bothersome. I read the Shacknews review and they pointed out how in the first two games there was a certain novelty to dancing/farting/belching for people, but now it's gotten kind of old, and I agree. Especially now that you're forced to attract so many people as a gameplay mechanic.
My other gripe is that thus far, nothing I've done in Fable 2 seems to have any bearing on Fable 3. I can get past the fact that my character in F2 only had one child, and it was a daughter, but my adventures in F2 seem to have no lasting impact other than people saying "Your the son of the hero!" to my dude in F3. Maybe I've been spoiled by BioWare's Mass Effect and Dragon Age story system, but it's still a little disappointing.
With all that said, I'm still looking forward to playing more of it.
Did anyone notice if the Dog Suit is mistakenly listed as Free in the XBL Marketplace main menu? I could have sworn it was free, so I just clicked through and downloaded it, then only after did I realize I spent 160 points on something I'll never use in-game. Not the end of the world, I'm just wondering if my comprehension skills are failing me.
Re: Bonus Loot - It seems to be coming in fits and starts, with no real rhyme or reason to when it comes. After I unlocked the guns I expected the bonus weapons to pop up as gifts, but it took two area transitions before they popped up, but it wasn't all of them. Whatever, I'm sure I'll end up getting them all eventually.