The Best Bard's Tale Game?

I can't pick one - as I never completed any of them, and I was too young to really appreciate which might have been better.

I do remember being most impressed by the last one, though - which is probably because I was old enough to get into it.

But I ruined that by hex editing and cheating, as I eventually grew tired of it for being too easy.

Doh!

The Bard's Tale on my Amiga 500

Welcome to RPGWatch, Suspiria72!

I only played the first two back in the day, so I voted for the first.

Though it has been 30 years since I played it, I don't remember it being that long of a game.

Suspiria72 said:

The Bard's Tale on my Amiga 500

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My best friend back in the day, the guy that got me into RPG's by giving me a copy of Ultima 3(disk doctor) in grade 10 computer class.

I can remember his Amiga, I had a C-64 at until my 286. I broke on him and we thought we knew everything about computers back then. After many drinks we thought we could take it apart and fix it.

Lets just say he had to by a new system after that...an atari st .

Bards Tale 2 for me also. The first game was great such an improvement over Wizardry. But the second Bards Tale had cities.

And let me be another voice that states the 2004 game should not be in this poll. It was nothing at all like the first 3 games and was really more a humorous action adventure game and much more similar to Zelda . . . .

Dajjer said:

Let me be another voice that states the 2004 game should not be in this poll.

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I'll reply once again it's not going anywhere, and it's staying on the poll.

Once again fourteen members have now voted for the 2004 Re-make.

My first video game period was the Bard's Tale, way back in the mists of time. While I don't recall beating 1, I did beat Bard's Tale 2, which was the first CRPG I ever beat (The first game I ever beat was Mega Man 3 on the NES). So that one holds a soft spot in my mind.

As a note, I used to be able to play 'The Seeker's Ballad' on my guitar. That was years ago though. Used to be a site with tabs for several of the songs. I can still remember the BT2 Spell Song (IIRC, it was the intro one).

As for Bard's Tale 4, I'm actually hoping for a more Wizardry 8-esque/Grimrock take. Modern graphics and amenities (i.e. automap. I no longer have the time needed to map out dungeons!), but with an old-school first person dungeon crawler vibe. Party based, etc. I liked 2004 well enough, but it wasn't a CRPG, just an action game (like most modern "RPGs" released now-a-days from the big publishers). Levels do not make an RPG! If they do then Mega Man X is an RPG (it has constant character development through the first 8 stages, with stat increases as you gather armor parts, health increases, energy tanks; as well as gaining additional weapons from the bosses).

Couchpotato said:

I'll reply once again it's not going anywhere, and it's staying on the poll.

Once again fourteen members have now voted for the 2004 Re-make.

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And I will respond once again that it should not be in the poll . . .

We should have a sub poll that asks: Should Bards Tale 2004 have an asterisk besides its name whenever it is mentioned in the same breadth as the other 3 games.

I kid, but this reminds me of something a friend once told me. Everyone has an opinion. But like the flat earth society, some opinions are wrong.

I HEREBY DUB ALL ALL BARDS TALE 2004 VOTERS FLAT-EARTHERS.
SEE MY AVATAR ROAR.
PEW PEW . . PEWPEW ... PEW

My guess is that most of the 2004 voters were simply too young for the first 3 parts.
These games are 30 years old.

HiddenX said:

My guess is that most of the 2004 voters were simply too young for the first 3 parts.
These games are 30 years old.

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Or they simply liked the heavier focus on action-based combat and the amusing story. Who are you to decide what someone likes or dislikes? Or for that matter, who are you to disagree with one of the original series' developers when they decided to make a action game in the same series.

Maybe I know Brian Fargo better than you?

... and Becky Hamilton:

Speaking of him, what did you think of his[Brian Fargo's] Bard's Tale game?

RH: [Sticks finger down throat, makes gagging noises.] When he first described it to me -- he wanted to do a parody role-playing game. In my opinion, the Bard's Tale that Brian released was The Princess Bride. It even had Cary Elwes as the bard; the humor and everything was The Princess Bride and was not Bard's Tale.

Bard's Tale is a game, a gritty role-playing game, with a party fighting monsters in a fantasy role-playing setting. It wasn't The Princess Bride or Shrek. Now, the game that was shipped was one Brian wanted to make, so that's fine. But to me that Bard's Tale game, I would disavow any connection.

If I were allowed to do Bard's Tale IV, I would do what I did in Dragon Wars but with the next technology. It would have 2011 technology. I would make something that would be pretty damn awesome. I just need someone to give me ten million dollars to do it. Unfortunately, my pockets -- let me look in my purse. There's fifty bucks in there.

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