The sanctuary is a horrendous idea that really makes the game a chore to play.
That said, I'd actually gladly play Fable 3 over Fable 1 any day of the week (never played 2). Neither game is what I'd call good but Fable 3 was at least more fun to screw around in, and the game-world has its moments. The ideas are, as often is the case with Molyneux, horrendously under-cooked but becoming a ruler in Fable 3 was at least an attempt to break up the gameplay with something different.
It could be seen as "dumbed down" but being dumbed down from the first Fable is not saying anything at all. It was as shallow as a puddle of water to begin with, with a *terrible* combat system.
So yeah, had a bit more fun with the third chapter but really... If one is looking for a game that would really impress you, I'd look elsewhere unless you can get it really cheap.
I suppose they are sort of charming in some way though, but eh.