Bard's Tale The Bard's Tale IV Pre-Release Thread [RELEASED, GO TO NEW THREAD]

[Zetor]

Well, $20 was my mental limit for backingpreordering BT4 based on the currently available info. $25 is 'serious business' territory -- would've definitely paid that much in 2012/2013, but "oldschool cRPG" isn't a seller's market anymore.

Maybe the pitch will change my mind, but it's pretty unlikely (they'd better show me some awesome dungeon design, and a combat system that's at least on par with the 15-year-old Wizardry 8... heh, as if)


edit in response to "why is $5 a big deal?" It's not, and I'll buy the game eventually... on a steam sale when it's 50+% off. I have way too many games to play until then, anyway (many of them blobbers, in fact)

 

[Infinitron]

According to the GameReactor interview, they're planning to tune the combat system via PvP play. A very interesting approach.

 

[Lady_Error]

So basically he is treating KS as a preorder system now instead of the support system as it was. Fuck that. I am not sure I want to support BT4 anymore so his new tactics lost him 20$ I was willing to pay. I didn't even play any of the BT games, I just wanted to support InXile but not if they now consider KS just a preorder system.

Why is it that people pretend that those $5 extra make all the difference?

If you like blobbers, you will buy it anyway - it's not like there are a lot of Western blobbers coming out.

If you don't like blobbers, why are you posting in this thread anyway?

 

[Grauken]

According to the GameReactor interview, they're planning to tune the combat system via PvP play. A very interesting approach.

that sounds rather odd, like a prolonged PvP Beta-phase ?

at the moment the combat-system is the biggest question mark to me, which is not a good sign for that kind of game

 

[Infinitron]

According to the GameReactor interview, they're planning to tune the combat system via PvP play. A very interesting approach.

that sounds rather odd, like a prolonged PvP Beta-phase ?

Banner Saga did it before with Banner Saga: Factions. Although I'm not sure if players will be participating in this one, since apparently the graphics will still be in "stick figure" stage at that point. Read the interview: http://www.gamereactor.eu/articles/316844/Backing+the+Bard+-+An+Audience+with+Brian+Fargo/

 

[Grauken]

Not sure if I understand it correctly, but it does sound interesting, whether its fun to play is another matter

 

[Russia is over. The end.]

Wtf. And as an early bird, I expect a good discount. 25 is a retail price.

 

[Darkzone]

Somehow i don't see me paying more then $100 for this game, and if the pitch video does not catch me, then i doubt even the 25$.

 

[Jedi Master Radek]

Fuck you all. "I will buy it for 30$ when it comes out, but not now, even if I know those 30$ will go towards making the game better" All it took to make decadent little whining bitches out of you, was 2 years of relatively good RPGs. But yeah, we have now a small back catalogue of RPGs we don't have time to play, so let our beloved hobby to die once again. I don't like dungeon crawlers, but out of the duty for a genre I will still back BT for the lowest tier. The same I did with Underworld: Ascendant, although in that case it had more to do with the fact I agree nearly in 100% of everything developers said in interviews.
If we, the core audience for oldschool RPGs won't try to back the development of new games in out beloved genre, none will.

 

[ArchAngel]

Fuck you all. "I will buy it for 30$ when it comes out, but not now, even if I know those 30$ will go towards making the game better" All it took to make decadent little whining bitches out of you, was 2 years of relatively good RPGs. But yeah, we have now a small back catalogue of RPGs we don't have time to play, so let our beloved hobby to die once again. I don't like dungeon crawlers, but out of the duty for a genre I will still back BT for the lowest tier. The same I did with Underworld: Ascendant, although in that case it had more to do with the fact I agree nearly in 100% of everything developers said in interviews.
If we, the core audience for oldschool RPGs won't try to back the development of new games in out beloved genre, none will.

Well if you care so much and have money to spare give me one copy?

 

[TheSavant1]

Finally! The spiritual successor of Wizardry 8 !!! How long have I waited for something like that...

 

[Zombra]

Why is it that people pretend that those $5 extra make all the difference?

If $25 is okay, why not $30? If $30 is OK, why not $35? And so on to infinity. There isn't an exact amount that one can point to as making "all the difference", but every potential backer does have a psychological tipping point. Dollars are made up of nickels and dimes.

A Kickstarter that sets the bar higher than the tipping point of their target demographic will fail, as may one that sets it too much lower. Gotta hit the sweet spot - and when we're dealing with numbers like $20 or $30, $5 is a significant deviation from that sweet spot.

 

[Jedi Master Radek]

Fuck you all. "I will buy it for 30$ when it comes out, but not now, even if I know those 30$ will go towards making the game better" All it took to make decadent little whining bitches out of you, was 2 years of relatively good RPGs. But yeah, we have now a small back catalogue of RPGs we don't have time to play, so let our beloved hobby to die once again. I don't like dungeon crawlers, but out of the duty for a genre I will still back BT for the lowest tier. The same I did with Underworld: Ascendant, although in that case it had more to do with the fact I agree nearly in 100% of everything developers said in interviews.
If we, the core audience for oldschool RPGs won't try to back the development of new games in out beloved genre, none will.

Well if you care so much and have money to spare give me one copy?

Nice try. But I suspect you will still buy it after the release.

 

[Infinitron]

Finally! The spiritual successor of Wizardry 8 !!! How long have I waited for something like that...

Uh, have you lost the password to your old account, theSavant? Talk to DarkUnderlord

 

[Wizfall]

Finally! The spiritual successor of Wizardry 8 !!! How long have I waited for something like that...

If only...
Wizardry 8 showed the blobber combat formula could be improved.
Unfortunately the little info we got right now seems to indicate that InXile are more looking to alter the classic blobber formula to something a bit (or totally) different rather than to improve it.

PvP in a classic blobber sounds like completely out of place to me and an ugly waste of resource.
The blobber TB gameplay just did not fit at all with PvP. Even in W8 which has the best (and more "complex" IMO) blobber combat it would be totally uninteresting.
For me it is another hint that BT4 will have a very different gameplay than a classic blobber.

 

[Mustawd]

So basically he is treating KS as a preorder system now instead of the support system as it was. Fuck that.

Can you explain what the difference is to you? Cuz I'm not getting it. If not enough backers pledge then this thing doesn't get made. Period.


Are you saying you want some kind of special stuff in order to back this? Cuz to me that is almost missing the point of Kickstarter in the first place. I.e. a place of crowdfunding. Just because the norm n the past was to give stuff away cheaper/for free, doesn't mean that changing that model to make the funding more successful isn't still crowdfunding.

 

[PhantasmaNL]

25 is higher than i expected.

Also: PoE in the reward schedule?

Will pledge anyway though.

 

[Zombra]

If not enough backers pledge then this thing doesn't get made. Period.

Well ... no. inXile has over $1M banked right now and slated for BT4 production, and likely could easily double that from Torment sales if they wanted to. The only reason Fargo would cancel BT after a failed KS would be lack of consumer interest, not because they actually need the financial support to do it at this point. Crowdfunding certainly is still crowdfunding, and if they can build it with money they got from us instead, good for them; but we won't be "supporting" the development of this project the way we did with Wasteland 2. ArchAngel's observation that we are moving towards a preorder model is apt.

 

[Infinitron]

PvP in a classic blobber sounds like completely out of place to me and an ugly waste of resource.
The blobber TB gameplay just did not fit at all with PvP. Even in W8 which has the best (and more "complex" IMO) blobber combat it would be totally uninteresting.
For me it is another hint that BT4 will have a very different gameplay than a classic blobber.

You misunderstand. They're using PvP to balance it, with one developer "playing" the monsters. The game itself will not have PvP. Read the interview, it's all explained.

 

[Crooked Bee]

Random somewhat related curiosity: DW Bradley's Wizards & Warriors was initially supposed to have PvP competitive multiplayer. I wonder how that would've played out.

 

[Dorateen]

I have to come down on the side that a first-person party based dungeon crawler attached to the name Bard's Tale is priceless. The $25 is about what I paid for Knights of Chalice, and other quality independent cRPG titles, and I expect to pledge higher for this project. I don't care about the psychology of kickstarter. Fargo has run two successful campaigns, he ought to know what he's doing.

 

[Mustawd]

If not enough backers pledge then this thing doesn't get made. Period.

Well ... no. inXile has over $1M banked right now and slated for BT4 production, and likely could easily double that from Torment sales if they wanted to. The only reason Fargo would cancel BT after a failed KS would be lack of consumer interest, not because they actually need the financial support to do it at this point. Crowdfunding certainly is still crowdfunding, and if they can build it with money they got from us instead, good for them; but we won't be "supporting" the development of this project the way we did with Wasteland 2. ArchAngel's observation that we are moving towards a preorder model is apt.

Good points on it getting made without kickstarter. That comment might have been a bit hasty. However, at the end of the day, the whole point of Kickstarter is to help devs bypass the dominant Publisher model. So I guess my point is that we should focus on that aspect if you're concerned about continuing the incline we've been seeing.

 

[TheSavant1]

Uh, have you lost the password to your old account, theSavant? Talk to DarkUnderlord

Yes it's the same me. I forgot all account details and it's totally my own fault. Thanks very much for providing the contact person (once I figure out how PM works)

B2T:
I do hope the PvP part is not serious. That would be a waste of resources.

Other than that, all the information I've come across do indeed hint a Wizardry 8 like experience. Wizardry was one of the games he played (and learned from), so there's hope. Also he describes movement similar, and the phase-based-combat exactly the same way as it works in Wizardry 8 - the best formula ever (except in speed). Then we luckily have our 6-character party (instead of the usual 4-character party). Don't know much about the lore though, as I never played the older parts. But it can't be that bad.

Not sure, but if not for this game - we might never see any game like that in the future. It has been 15 years... and no one else touches this type of gameplay/mechanics anymore. And he's convincing enough in that he does actually *like* to produce a game based on his works in the past. Also it's not something random or completely new, so there is less chance he dismisses it halfway throughout the game. Actually I believe it'll be something with a serious attempt. My backing is certain

 

[Metro]

Fuck you all. "I will buy it for 30$ when it comes out, but not now, even if I know those 30$ will go towards making the game better" All it took to make decadent little whining bitches out of you, was 2 years of relatively good RPGs. But yeah, we have now a small back catalogue of RPGs we don't have time to play, so let our beloved hobby to die once again. I don't like dungeon crawlers, but out of the duty for a genre I will still back BT for the lowest tier. The same I did with Underworld: Ascendant, although in that case it had more to do with the fact I agree nearly in 100% of everything developers said in interviews.
If we, the core audience for oldschool RPGs won't try to back the development of new games in out beloved genre, none will.

I'm supporting them more by paying $40 release versus $25 early bird. Anyway, as I said, I'm not totally convinced this is going to be a Bard's Tale game. Too many odd concepts floating around in early development. If Fargo can afford to hire a slacker like Brother None he can't be hurting for cash too much!

 

[Infinitron]

Official Bard's Tale 4 Tumblr: http://thebardstalerpg.tumblr.com/

They haven't begun using it yet.

Tumblr is now active.