The Bard's Tale IV - Now on Kickstarter

The Kickstarter for The Bard's Tale IV has started. A little of a half hour into the race and almost 10% of the amount asked has been covered already.

The Bard's Tale IV Launches on Kickstarter
inXile Entertainment and RPG Fans Go for Three-Peat on Kickstarter - Previously Funded Projects Include Game of the Year Winning Wasteland 2 and Upcoming Torment: Tides of Numenera

Newport Beach, CA - June 2, 2015 - 30 years ago, The Bard's Tale put Interplay on the map and launched Brian Fargo's long and storied career of crafting some of the most beloved cRPGs in gaming's history. Today, inXile entertainment needs your help to return to Skara Brae for the long-awaited dungeon-crawling sequel to the genre-defining Bard's Tale trilogy, and has launched a new Kickstarter campaign looking to raise $1.25 million to make The Bard's Tale IV happen, with plans to invest at least another $1.25 million from their own funds on top.

The Bard's Tale IV will feature labyrinths and dungeons chock-full of dangerous traps, puzzles, and challenges, as well as the winding streets of the city of Skara Brae and its outlying environments. Exploration will take place in the first-person dungeon crawler style of the original trilogy. With full rights to everything from the original games, the story of The Bard's Tale IV will center on a new Skara Brae built upon the ruins of the old, returning familiar gameplay concepts such as No-Magic Zones and Magic Mouths.

Utilizing the Unreal 4 engine, The Bard's Tale IV will also represent a graphical leap forward in the genre, immersing you in a highly detailed and lush world you'll want to map to its farthest reaches. The Bard's Tale IV enriches the setting from the original trilogy with Scottish culture, including a soundtrack inspired by Gaelic music.

inXile plans to use photogrammetry to create in-game 3D objects from photos of architecture, taken right in Scotland. With such detailed assets, The Bard's Tale IV will have intricate interactions, allowing for detailed physical puzzles in the game world, or while inspecting your own items in your inventory to find hidden compartments, latches, and more.

Of course, Skara Brae is not always a friendly place. The Bard's Tale IV will update the classic gameplay of the originals, featuring a dynamic phase based combat system. Combat will utilize the complex decision-making opportunities of traditional phase based combat, but with a constantly evolving enemy strategy and a pacing that keeps you on your toes.

Now in its 12^th year of business, inXile entertainment has fully embraced the crowdfunding model, having successfully funded Wasteland 2 and Torment: Tides of Numenera, releasing the first of those to fan and critical acclaim. With those previous successes, inXile will co-fund this game with their fans, matching the $1.25 million goal with their own money if it is met.

"It's been an amazing last 30 years and I feel so fortunate to continue in the games business for this long.", says Brian Fargo, CEO. "And it is only because of the incredible support our fans have given us that I'm still here today working on these great role playing games. After so many years, I couldn't be more excited to revive the classic Bard's Tale."

Check out the Kickstarter now!

About The Bard's Tale IV:

The original The Bard's Tale was a surprise hit in 1985, putting Interplay on the map and launching the career of Brian Fargo. Now, 30 years later, inXile has full access to the name and contents of the original The Bard's Tale, making it possible to make a true sequel to the originals, living up to the rich dungeon crawler heritage it helped build.