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Game News Bard's Tale IV Kickstarter Update #42: Subtitle Chosen, Backer Alpha Coming Next Week

Infinitron

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Tags: Chris Keenan; InXile Entertainment; The Bard's Tale IV: Barrows Deep

It's nice to see Bard's Tale IV updates start to come in at a more rapid pace. This month's Kickstarter update is an important one. First of all, the game now has a subtitle. From now on, it's The Bard's Tale IV: Barrows Deep. Second and more importantly, the game's alpha test is being released next week to eligible backers, and will also be shown at GDC later this month. The update isn't long, so I'll just post the entire thing here:

Chris Keenan here, VP of Development at inXile, and we come to you with two pieces of very good news.

First off, next week will be the release of the backer Alpha, and backers’ first opportunity to go hands-on with the game!

This demo showcases many of our core features that we have highlighted in previous Kickstarter updates. This twenty minute Alpha Systems Test includes looks at combat, puzzles & traps, puzzle weapons, Songs of Exploration, and more (including one often asked about Easter egg).

We know many of you are excited to check out the game, and we hope those of you with Alpha reward access enjoy this first hands-on look at it. We’ll have more information next week on how to access the Alpha Test, as well as how to leave feedback for us. We’re excited to get the game into the hands of those Alpha backers!

For the rest of you, there are plenty of ways to get in on the action. Next week marks the start of this year’s Game Developers Conference, one of the game industry’s biggest and most important events. As part of the conference, from 03/21 - 03/23, we will be demoing The Bard’s Tale IV using the backer Alpha Test. There will also be plenty of press coverage of the game, so keep your eyes open (and we’ll be sure to link to some of the coverage in a future update, too).

The second big piece of news you might have caught at the beginning of this update. We are proud to announce the full title of our game and share it with you first - The Bard’s Tale IV: Barrows Deep! We tossed around a number of possible subtitles for a long time. The Destiny Knight and Thief of Fate described important story hooks for those games, but for the return of The Bard’s Tale after so many years, we wanted a name that captured the essence of a dungeon crawler.

From the catacombs beneath the Mad God’s temple to teleporting between realms, The Bard’s Tale series has always been about seeking out places that only adventurers would dare, descending into the depths, overcoming monsters and puzzles, and defeating the evil within... and to be heroes worthy of a tale sung by a bard. Exploring the dark corners of the world is the essence of a dungeon crawler, and in Barrows Deep, your adventure awaits!

We hope you like it, and please let us know what you think! We’ll return with David’s look at the Practitioner archetype soon, but for now enjoy the ride over the next couple of weeks as GDC and the backer Alpha Test take center stage! Thanks to all of you for helping us make The Bard’s Tale IV: Barrows Deep a reality.
So the alpha is a small "Systems Test" like what Torment got back in 2015. Considering that Bard's Tale IV is supposed to be releasing this year, I certainly hope it's in better shape than Torment was at that point. I guess we'll know if the beta is released not long afterwards...
 

Irata

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They did a pretty piss poor job on Wasteland (I've never played nu-Torment - didn't like ol'Torment to be honest), but a dungeon crawler is pretty hard to mess up. It may not be great, but it shouldn't be too hard to put out something serviceable. At least that's all I'm hoping for.
 

Darkzone

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Confirmed for porn-sounding name
Hey the only want us to show how deep this rabbit hole goes.

Warrning
Children don't take any pills from strangers neither the blue nore the red once.
 
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I imagine that Fargo is enjoying a far more relaxed, laid back development on BDIV, maybe even having fun making it. If so, that might reflect well on the game.
 

Irata

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Dungeon crawler is much easier to mess up because you can't cover up shitty mechanics with some storyfaggotry.

I don't know if it could get away with terrible combat, but I wouldn't say Grimrock's was anything special and I still enjoyed that game.

I've not been following Bards Tale 4 religiously, but I thought they were shoving some worthless storyline into the game. I remember not be thrilled about something and usually it's related to how much hackneyed story a game is going to make me sit through.
 

V_K

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I wouldn't say Grimrock's was anything special and I still enjoyed that game.
Grimrock had stellar level design, which is arguably the hardest thing to get right. I don't have high hopes for level design in BT - neither other inxile games, nor the original trilogy were terribly good in that regard.
 

Irata

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I'd agree that Grimrock's maps were well designed. I'm embarrassed to say that I just overlooked that aspect despite it being one of the most important. Ahhh!!! You've ruined my slight hopes!
 

Dorateen

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After that earlier video showing the party approach a dungeon, I was hoping for a different subtitle.

Bard's Tale IV: Hush, Woman!
 

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