It has arrived. Just as the prophets prophesied (since January) The Bard’s Tale IV is now on Kickstarter to empty our coin purses. It’s got 38 days to run and Brian Fargo and inXile Entertainment are asking for $1.25 million in ransom.
It’s already over got over 4,500 backers pledging north of $200k so it looks on track. They want to revive the dungeon crawler series which today celebrates 30 years of being a thing.
”The Bard’s Tale IV allows you to develop, progress and grow a party of adventurers as you see fit. Build a combat-hardened warrior to lead the way, or a spell-flinging Conjurer to provide support from the back lines. A character’s class provides the basic archetype, but as you progress you will tweak and evolve your party to suit your play style.”
The studio will be letting all class-types expand and be customised, not just the magic wielders. ”As your magic and combat abilities grow, you will combine spells and skills from your different party members for increased effects greater than the sum of their parts. Deciding when to evolve your characters has a major impact on the types of spells that become available.”
”Combat is resolved in a phase-based manner, meaning your entire party takes its turn, and then all enemies take theirs. In the original trilogy, you’d make all of the decisions at once and only then see the results,” explains the Kickstarter.
”For The Bard’s Tale IV, we want a more dynamic experience: as soon as you decide what a character will do, they immediately act. This is the first way in which battles dynamically change, as your rolls and effects can have a variety of outcomes which might make you rethink your next action.”
For tons more visit The Bard’s Tale IV Kickstarter campaign.
For pledges over $20 in the first 24 hours you’ll also get a copy of RPG Wasteland 2, or you could choose The Witcher or The Witcher 2 instead.
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Campaign highlights:
▪ A single-player, party-based dungeon crawl, rich in exploration and combat
▪ Dungeons filled not just with dangerous fights but with challenging puzzles and devious riddles
▪ Dynamic phase-based combat, where the pace of battle is animated and fluid, but still gives you time to think and respond to your enemies
▪ A game set to beautiful Gaelic music, where the Bard’s songs and melodies affect gameplay
▪ Co-funded by fans and inXile: if this game hits its $1.25 million goal, inXile will put in at least $1.25 million of its own money to double the initial budget!
▪ Built using Unreal Engine 4, for PC, Mac and Linux. Available from Steam or DRM-Free from GOG.com
▪ Available in English, French, German, Russian, Spanish, and Polish
▪ Built for and with the help of our fans. Your feedback and input directly impact the design and features of the game during alpha and beta stages