inXile Entertainment is returning to Kickstarter for their next big project, The Bard’s Tale IV, launching Monday June 2nd. They're asking players to return to Skara Brae for a true dungeon-crawling sequel to the original Bard’s Tale trilogy that helped define the computer RPG genre, just in time to celebrat ethe 30th anniversary of 1985's The Bard's Tale.
The Bard’s Tale IV is to feature challenging maze-like dungeons with clever puzzles and riddles to explore in the first-person dungeon crawler style of the original trilogy. inXile has the full rights to use everything from the original trilogy, so the game will be rich with callbacks and old favorites such as teleporter zones and magic mouths. The Bard’s Tale IV will be using the Unreal 4 Engine, immersing you in a highly detailed and lush world. inXile plans to use photogrammetry to create in-game 3D objects from photos of architecture, taken right in Scotland.
With the Bard leading the way, the game will have a strong focus on music and sound design. The game will be inspired by Celtic music and feature actually Gaelic musicians, and the soundtrack and lyrics of The Bard’s Tale IV take cues from Scottish culture, which will be used to enrich the existing setting from the original games.
The Bard’s Tale IV is to feature a dynamic phase-based combat system, utilizing the complex decision making opportunities of traditional phase-based combat, but with a constantly evolving enemy strategy and a pacing to keep players on their toes.
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