It's about time

Though the Xbox Games Showcase showed off many follow-ups to well-established names, we've gotten some totally original titles too. A prime example of this is Clockwork Revolution, a new game from the creators of Wasteland.

//www.youtube.com/watch?v=DDFuhaYxeMU

In a blog post by InXile Studio Head Brian Fargo, we fortunately find a few details to give this world some context. As the title might imply, Clockwork Revolution will focus heavily on time travel. Fargo promises both "dynamic time-bending combat" and a plot centered aroun??d the gimmick. It looks like players will find themselves traveling to the past and making choices that will affect the future in substantial ways.

The post notes the team is "pushing roleplaying reactivity to new heights" with this game, so we'll have to see how?? much player choice impacts the final product.

That said, don't expect to see Clockwork Revolution anytime soon. The post clarifies that the game is "still e?arly in development," and that this is just a sneak peak. The trailer says the game will "come in due time," so we'll stay tuned to learn more.

At the very least, some of you may wind up with Clockwork Revolution whether you like it or not. The title will launch on Xbox Series X|S and PC, and it wil??l appear day one on Ga??me Pass.

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Gotta keep the steelworks running

The Colorado of Wasteland 3 is pretty rough, and to survive it, you're going to need some steel. The Battle of Steeltown, Wasteland 3's first narrative expansion, is headed ??to the titular Steeltown to resolve an internal conflict so the flow of arms and armor can keep rolling on June 3, 2021.

After deliveries from Steelto?wn start going awry, the player's team of Rangers is sent in to figure out what's up. Turns out bandits? have been raiding, the gates are sealed shut, and the workers are starting to revolt against Steeltown head Abigail Markham.

Alongside a new narrative with choices to make, there are also some new mechanics being introduced and expanded into the base game. Non-lethal weapons, elemental shields, stacking status effects, and telegraphed attacks are all shifting battles up, along with new weapons and armor. The Battle of Steeltown can be played solo or co-op, and it will al?so scale to your level depending on how far you've ?progressed.

Add in some more original music and post-apocalypse inspired covers from Wasteland 3's music supervisor Mary Ramos and composer Mark Morgan, and sounds like this is a big chunk of RPG for Wasteland 3 fans to dig into. The Battle of Steeltown comes to both consoles and PC on June 3, 2021.

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Rebuilding civilisation, one patch at a time

inXile Entertainment has released Version 1.1.1 for its post-apocalyptic strategy title Wasteland 3. The up?date, now live on both PC and console platforms, aims to improve overall performance while increasing stability for the sequel's multip??layer modes.

The biggest fix in Version 1.1.1 pertains to Wasteland 3's co-op mode, which has been known to delay during loading screens, sometimes requiring wait times of up to five minutes. The new update should reduce these instances somewhat, though loading times as a whole are yet to be fully optimised, and will be done so in a larger u??pdate down the line.

Additionally, the new update tweaks a selection of specific bugs relating to certain quests, NPC interactions, merchant s??ellers. Most notable, the Antiques Appraiser perk no longer activates on Scrap items, closing a loophole that allowed players to repeatedly sell and re-purchase scrap for profit. Sorry to all those wheeler-dealers out ?there.

You can check out the full patch notes over on the official inXile blog.

Wasteland 3 is available now on PS4, PC, and Xbox One.

Patch 1.1.1 is now live on @Steam, @GOGcom, @MicrosoftStore, @Xbox One, and @PlayStation 4.

Note: the update will be propagating to update servers over th??e next few hours for Microsoft Store and consoles.

Full notes: //t.co/lXoHBOSjen pic.twitter.com/WFI5TApdj1

— Wasteland â˜¢ï¸ (@Wasteland) September 23, 2020

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One of the first confirmations

After Epic unveiled Unreal Engine 5 last week, we were given vague assurances that developers for both PS5 and Xbox Series X would have access to this new engine (and a console war argument was inadvertently sparked in the process). How??ever, we haven't really heard of any games that would use Unreal Engine 5, ?possibly because it's still more than a year away and not a lot of next-gen games have been revealed yet.

That's why it might not be super remarkable but it is noteworthy that inXile has confirmed its next game after Wasteland 3 will be built on Unreal E??ngine 5. St??udio founder Brian Fargo confirmed as much a few hours ago while replying to a fan.

We've had quite a few questions about our next gen RPG and can confirm it will use Unreal Engine 5. //t.co/65jq0ckz5f

— Brian Fargo (@BrianFargo) May 19, 2020

In recent years, inXile has primarily switched back and forth between Unreal Engine 4 and Unity. The Wasteland games and Torment: Tides of Numenera, for instance, run on Unity. The Bard's Tale IV, however, is Unrea?l Engine. There's probably no hint as to inXile's next game based on which engine the developer chooses.

Although, there may be an indication as to the time table we're working with. Unreal Engine 5 will go into preview in early 2021 before a full launch in late 2021. That probably means it'll be in? the hands of big-name developers first before it's available to everyone. Maybe the takeaway isn't so much "inXile's next triple-A RPG will be built in UE5" so much as it's "A lot of next-gen games ??will make use of UE5 but they'll take upward of two more years to get here."

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Nuke World Order

inXile Entertainment has released a "launch" trailer for its upcoming Wasteland Remastered ??(though the actual release date is still a few weeks away). The short clip revisits the cataclysmic event th??at led to the United States becoming little more than a hole in the Earth, infested with bandits, mutants and dangerous vagabonds.

This new remaster of the 1988 PC adventure features an audio/visual overall, complete with the fixing of bugs that have been around "since Reagan was President." An expanded, remixed soundtrack will score your journey through post-apocalyptic America, while new quality-of-life options will help keep you and your fellow Desert Rangers above ground. For old-school wanderers, the original Wasteland will be included in its entirety.

Wasteland Remastered launches February 25 on PC and Xbox One.

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Let's not Fallout

inXile Entertainment has announced that it will be bringing a fully remastered edition of tactical adventure title Wasteland to PC and Xbox One next month. Wasteland Remastered sees the developer team up with Krome Studios to rebuild the ?classic DOS adventure for a new generation of players.

Originally released way back in 1988, Wasteland combined tabletop RPG elements with the technology of home computers to deliver a post-apocalyptic adventure like none other. Players controlled a party of four through desolate North America?? - la?id waste in the aftermath of global thermonuclear warfare - as they fought mutants, gathered supplies, and undertook missions on behalf of the land's self-appointed military, The Desert Rangers.

With its dark, dystopian world, grim storytelling, and enthralling adventure, Wasteland would become a classic of its time, and was hugely influential in the development of Bethesda's Fallout series, which would follow in Wasteland's irradiated footsteps almost a decade later.

While there is no footage to go on, Wasteland Remastered aims to capture the original release's gam??eplay, but with fully updated visuals and audio, including new voiceover work. For old-school fans, a toggle will allow you to switch to the original 1988 edition and pull on the ol' nostalgia strings.

Wasteland Remastered launches on PC and Xbox One February 25. Wasteland 3 is currently in development for PS4, PC and Xbox One, and is scheduled to la?unch May 19.

You've been asking, and now we can share...

Wasteland Remastered drops in just one more month—February 25 for Windows (Windows Store, Steam, GOG) and Xbox One (with Xbox Game Pass)! pic.twitter.com/qSCqITMRcq

— Wasteland (@Wasteland) January 22, 2020

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'Microsoft came along and really just turned on the juice'

A significant number of you want nothing to do with snow right now, but it's time to bundle up and watch a new trailer for Wasteland 3, the latest in a line of nuked-out role-playing games from?? inXile.

Wasteland 3 is trading out Arizona's blazing heat for a literal nuclear winter in Colorado, and you'll be able to run ?wild with a six-person Ranger squad in co-op. That'll keep the spider-mechs at bay.

During today's X019 stream, inXile studio head Brian Fargo had a lot of good things to say about Microsoft and its post-acquisition impact on Wasteland 3 (which is still coming to PC,?? Xbox One, and PS4). Even as someone who hasn't managed to get this series off their to-do list yet, I'm interested.

"You don't need to have played the first two Wasteland games," said Fargo. "In fact, Wasteland 3 is completely s??tandalone." He a?lso dropped this tidbit: the game has "half a million words of dialogue."

If you're longing for another tactical RPG, go ahead and set?? the date: May 19, 2020.

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Includes new dungeons alongside various improvements

Developer inXile Entertainment has announced that The Bard's Tale IV: Director's Cut will be releasing on August 27, 2019, for PC, PS4, and Xbox One. Improving on every aspect of the title, this new r??elease will not only include a brand new final chapter but directly address aspects of the game that were c?riticized on launch. Players can expect to see new enemies, weapons, items, classes, gender creation options, and "thousands of fixes and improvements."

While no details of the expanded story have been given, this looks to wrap up the lackluster conclusion of the original by answering what is happening in Haernhold. inXile is teasing hours of new content, not to mention the expanded finale that should better conclude the plotline of Bard's Tale IV.

When Destructoid's Patrick Hancock reviewed The Bard's Tale IV last year, he walked away very unimpressed. As he put it, "The interesting puzzles and fantastic music are not worth suffering through the bugs, lackluster models, and mediocre combat and skills." While things have improved since launch, this new Director's Cut looks to take that even furth?er. Hopefully, fans ??get what they want, because the initial game did look rather promising.

The Bard's Tale 4 Director's Cut is coming in August [PC Gamer]

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Don't give up, skeleton!

I love it when Humble Bundle dips into console gaming every now and then. This week, it's the Humble Indie PlayStation Bundle 2019, a batch of okay to great games ??from a wide range of publishers. Depending on the gaps in your PS4 library, ther?e's a lot to like here. (Isn't that always the way?)

There is one no?t-insignificant asterisk to keep in mind, though: the bundle has regional restrictions. You'll need to have a PlayStation Network account in the SIEA region to redeem the g?ame keys.

With that said, here's how the pricing tie?rs break? down:

Pay $1 or more:

• Grim Fandango Remastered
• The Bard's Tale
• InnerSpace

Pay more than the average price:

• Layers of Fear
• Wasteland 2: Director's Cut - Standard Edition
• The Talos Principle
• Broken Age

Pay $15 or more:

• Killing Floor 2
• Shadow Warrior 2

If you're wondering about InnerSpace, it's an "exploration flying game set in the Inverse, a world of inside-out planets with no horizons." I had never heard of it, but the art direction is on-point and this seems like one of those overlooked games that finds a new audience through bundles and deals???.

As for the rest of the lot, Grim Fandango for a buck is sweet, Layers of Fear and Talos are worth playing for horror and puzzle-adventure fans, respectively, and the $15 tier is an all-out ad??renaline rus?h.

The bundle will be up for grabs until Tuesday,?? February 12 at 11:00am Pacific.

The post The latest Humble Bundle is all about PS4 appeared first on Destructoid.

Netflix Originals? Can't wait for Xbox Game Pass Originals!

In today's episode, me and Associate Editor Peter Glagowski discuss the recent purchasing habits from Microsoft, which lately has included a number of notable game studios. From Obsidian Entertainment (the fine folks behind Fallout: New Vegas) to even Ninja Theory and InXile Entertainment!

But, will this help them in the next generation of hardware? Personally, I think this has been a long time coming. Despite Phil Spencer's statements in the past in regards to exclusive games, I absolutely still think they're the reason why so many people buy the hardware i?tself. I just hope these new studios they've purchased don't end up down the same road as Rare did for nearly a decade.

Whether or not these studios will be making Xbox exclusive games is still anyone's guess, but, if anyone can do Fable IV -- Obsidian Entertainment sure as hell can.

The post Today on Impulse, we discuss if Microsoft’s spending spree will give it the advantage in the next generation appeared first on Destructoid.

Wasteland 3 still due next year

Loo??king back inXile has a history of buddying up with Microsoft, so when recent rumors suggested that they were working out a deal to become acquired by them, it made sense.

Back in 2013 its CEO Brian Fargo talked up Microsoft's approach to indie games and now they're indie no more. ??Microsoft revealed to the world at X018 that they've picked up the studio, which the company says makes "deep, engaging role-playing games." Microsoft says, as they did back at E3 with their other partners, that ?they will "continue to operate autonomously."

As a reminder the company primarily works on RPGs, having developed the popular Wasteland series and several revivals for Interplay's old Bards Tale franchise. inXile's next big project is Wasteland 3, due in 2019 for PC, PS4 and Xbox One.

The post Microsoft acquires yet ??another studio with inXile Entertainment appeared first on Destructoid.

A crappy day in Skara Brae

I'm confused as to the actual title of this game. On the Steam store page, it lists "Barrows Deep" at the end. But in my Steam library, it's just The Bard's Tale IV. Every time I go to type it out, I inevitably forget about that little subtitle. So let's just call it The Bard's Tale IV for now.

I've never played the previous Bard's Tale games, but the bard class has always been my top choice whenever it presents itself. Man, I was really excited when Final Fantasy XIV: A Realm Reborn offe?red a bard class, even if it was just a singing archer. So? naturally, I became interested in this Kickstarted renaissance of a series based on bards and their tales.

Well, I can't say this is a tale w?orth hearing right?? now.

The Bard's Tale IV (Windows)
Developer: inXile Entertainment
Publisher: inXile Entertainment
Release Date: September 18, 2018
MSRP: $34.99

The Bard's Tale IV is an absolute mess. The framerate is all over the place, and bugs are constantly rearing their ugly head to impede or altogether halt progress. Sure, I'd love to save the world from the biggest baddie who has come from somewhere to ruin everything, but you're kidding yourself if you think it's worth slogging through the muck and the mire of The Bard's Tale IV to do so.

A lot of games will put their best act up front, especially long RPGs. This is absolutely not true with The Bard's Tale IV. While the combat and puzzles are interesting enough in their own right, starting in the dreary grey and brown town of Skara Brae is so...unimpressive. NPC models look like garbage and no NPC is ever moving around. Everyone just stands still in their NPC pose, waiting for the player to come up and speak with them. Even the idle animation?s are poorly constructed, with poses not perfectly lo?oping and jumping from one position to the next.

Hell, even conversations feel stilted. For whatever reason, the player must hit "Continue" after everything an NPC says. This isn't an issue when they are speaking on their own, but it makes the back-and-forth feel so bizarre. Instead of giving the player their choices, they must hit Continue (which stops the NPC's voice track), and then the choices show up??, and then they choose the desired option. It seems small, and it is, but it's just a constant frustr??ating oddity.

The writing is witty and often funny, and ?the lines are delivered well. Though again, many of the character models look ugly and have lifeless animations, creating a juxtaposition between what the player sees and what they h??ear. 

I do want to point out that while Skara Brae and the character models are quite unimpressive, many of the environments are anything but. Maybe the point of Skara Brae is to make the player want to get the hell out as soon as possible, just to see something more ?beautiful. As a whole, the environments provide a stark contrast to the character ??models and prove that there are certainly talented artists on the team.

Exploring these worlds can be a blast, thanks to the often inventive and exciting puzzle designs. Sure, moving-block puzzles are nothing new, but the game quickly introduces more interesting designs that keep the player on their toes. These aren't always very clear, and color is sometimes a factor (shoutout to my colorblindies), but others are intentionally obtuse with hints excellently strewn about. Solving puzzles is easily the best gameplay element of The Bard's Tale IV.

Combat is nowhere near as interesting, but it's not awful. The developers were inspired by Hearthstone's gameplay, and it sure shows. Combat takes place on a 4x4 grid in turn-based fashion. Characters have a ?limited amount of abilities that can be equipped, so players must choose which ones to utilize in battle. The key to combat is balancing the resources available each turn. Bards can drink alcohol to use abilities, magic users need to acquire Spell Points, and everyone taps into the limited "Opportunity" resource for certain abilities.

Winning requires at least some thought, though once I discovered a winning strategy, battles played out essentially the same no matter what. It doesn't help that the AI is as dumb as a doorknob. Enemies are also limited by resources, and it seems as if they give no thought as to how to best spend them. Certain enemies will not move for turns as others try to ??wail away on the player. 

Animations also tend to?? play out slowly, making actions feel delayed. Some moves are "channeled," meaning they take more than a single turn to execute. After the enemy takes its turn and those moves are to be used, there is usually this awkward and terrible delay where the moves simply don't happen yet. I had luck hovering over the character who needed to use the move to sort of...remind them, I guess? The whole process feels frustratingly clunky.

Plus, leveling up isn't exciting. Leveling grants a skill point that can be used in that character's skill tree. In the early going, it's neat -- new skills! Can't wait to use them! So cool! Then, for a while, characters will level up and be shoehorned into taking a node that adds +3 to some stat. Oh, that's good I guess. What's the next node? Oh...also a stat boost. Well, that skill at the bottom seems neat at least, even if it takes another 12 hours to unlock. There is also an entire tree dedicated to crafting that someone needs to take, so they mo?re or less "waste" their skill poi??nts to unlock new crafting recipes.

Oh, and the inventory system is absolutely useless. Everything is just thrown into an inventory grid with no way to filter or sort or anything that RPGs have had for an eternity. If inventory was limited, then I could understand it; there is no need for a sorting option when you can carry relatively little. However The Bard's Tale IV allows for pages upon pages of inventory and there's a distinct ??lack of frequent merchant NPCs. After a while I basically gave up on the inventory entirely. I knew where my potions were, and if I looted something good, it was on the last page. Everything else? Who cares anymore.

The archaic save system also poses problems. There are locations around the world that allow the player to either save the game or "consume" the save point for extra experience, forgoing the save. The issue is that things like crashing or geometry bugs can halt progre??ss, forcing the player to reload their last save. After I lost a chunk of progress the second time due to things out of my control, I never consumed a save point again out of straight-up fear that the game would crash and I would lose time. Plus, the experience boost is paltry for the risk that is being taken.

Okay, let's end on the most positive note there is: the music. Holy cow the music in The Bard's Tale IV is (appropriately) fantastic. Booting up the game and hearing "A summer's day in Skara Brae..." just brings a huge smile to my face. I'm at the point where I'll queue up The Bard's Tale music while pla?ying other games -- it's that good. The Gaelic music fits perfectly with the game's theme and setting, and I'll often find myself stopping just to liste??n to some random NPC sing their little tune. 

Listen, if you're reading this in the future, go and check the recent Steam reviews. My guess is that they will be rather positive on the game. A lot of the issues are tech-related: crashes??, geometry bugs, load times, and framerate can all be fixed with patches. As of now? The interesting puzzles and fantastic music are not worth suffering through the bugs, lackluster models, and mediocre combat and skills. If your interest is piqued here, wishlist it and come ba?ck at a later time; I have no doubt that this game will reach its potential, but it's just not even close right now.

_{[This review is based on a retail build of the game provided by the publisher.]}

The post Review: The Bard’s Tale IV: Barrows Deep appeared first on Destructoid.

Pull up a chair and hear the tale...

I don't have any experience with the Bard's Tale games, yet ??I found myself excited when I heard that a fourth title was Kickstarted. I think it's gotten to the point where anything Brian Fargo gets behind has me anticipating greatness.

I do have a fondness for bards, though. Whenever it's an option in an RPG, you bet I'm picking ??up the instrument and giving it a go. I just always found them so cool -- using the power of music to help others? What's not to love?

The Bard's Tale IV (Windows)
Developer: inXile Entertainment
Publisher: inXile Entertainment
Release Date: September 18, 2018
MSRP: $34.99

Despite this being "The Bard's Tale," players actually have the freedom to create whichever character class they would like when beginning the game. Well, actually, you start as a female bard (who seems to be fully voiced?) but then are given the option to do whatever the hell you want after a brief introduction section. Given that I love bards, I stuck with that class but still created my own character just to stick it to the man.

The first thing I noticed about The Bard's Tale IV is just how piss poor the visuals look. This is a game built on Unreal Engine 4 and hoo boy is it easy to tell. This isn't a slight against the engine itself; there are some stellar-looking games out there using UE4. But games that are made in Unreal 4 that didn't manage to avoid the ugly stick all have the same l?ook and style to them.

Character models look amateur, and so do the animations. Character animation loops will often jerk back to their starting spot as I sigh and rest my head in my hands. At times things seem to have a certain stylized look to them, only to have the player turn around and be face-to-face with a butt-ugly NPC that has some serious clipping issues. As much effort as the lore and dialogue put forth to suck the player in, the visuals quickly remind? everyone that they have better things to be doing.

As if it weren't bad enough to be staring at bland visuals, the PC performance is also sub-par. Framerate dips and stuttering are present immediately, which makes little to no sense given the aforementioned lack of quality visuals. I tried playing around with the settings but saw little to no difference. Plus, why the hell am I turning down the graphics on a game that looks the way The Bard's Tale IV does?!

Okay, so what? Plenty of games don't look all that great and are still awesome experiences. Gameplay in The Bard's Tale is an interesting mix of first-person exploration and turn-based combat. The former is filled with small puzzles ?and secrets (some of which I have no idea how t??o even approach) and the latter focuses on using limited resources wisely and not getting too drunk.

I feel as if I've only scr??atched the surface of the puzzle aspects, and the ones I have come across certainly have me intrigued. The combat is s?olid, as players will balance two different resources to best optimize their damage output and mitigation.

The combat takes place on a grid. The characters controlled by the player are represented by their portraits while the enemies are in their full 3D "glory." Bards can drink alcohol to be granted Spell Points, which lets them do bard-y stuff like sing songs for buffs. Magic users can generate Spell Points in various, non-alcoholic ways to do magic-y stuff like light everyone on fire. Everyone shares "Opportunity," ??and thi??s resource is required for most other attacks and abilities.

It feels great to properly utilize everything in a turn and be confident that everything went as planned. Often times I'd find myself remembering that the two resources (Spell Points and Opportunity) are separate and look for cunning ways to utilize both effectively. The animations in combat can lag behind, however. I'll often plan out my entire turn and then go ahead and push all the appropriate skill icons, but the turn still takes forever to complete because all of the animations are systematically playing through. Once or twice I did?n't think the b??attle was over yet, when in fact it was.

It may go without saying, but holy cow I love every piece of music that comes out of my speakers while playing The Bard's Tale IV. It would be a complete failure if a game with this title didn't have stellar music, but even still, I find myself just stopping to listen to some of the ambient music. The Gaelic-themed score is breathtakin??g -- I know for a fact I'll be seeking out the soundtrack as quickly as I can.

I don't have any nostalgia for the series, but this has been a rough entry point so far. The plot, dialogue, combat, and mysterious puzzles keep me invested,?? but it feels like wading through a swamp just getting past the bleak visuals and performance. Hopefully some of the later areas have more care and attention paid to them.

_{[This review in progress is based on a retail build of the game provided by the publisher.]}

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Well, Fargo

"How about this stretch goal?" famed video game designer Brian Fargo asks on Twitter. Most crowdfunding ventures incentivize by upping development efforts -- new modes, console ports, that sort of thing. Fargo's go??ing to try to buy the studio he co-founded in the early '80s.

Fargo says that he'll try to purchase Interplay if The Bard's Tale IV sells two million PC copies in its first 18 months on the market. The Bard's Tale IV has already been successfully crowdfunded to the tu?ne of $1.5 million (and change), and it's set to release tomorrow, September 18. It was developed by inXile, the ??company Fargo founded in 2002 after leaving Interplay.

To be completely fair, Interplay is no longer the attractive property it once was. In the '80s and '90s, Interplay developed and published some of the most popular names in role-playing games. Fallout, A Bard's Tale, Baldur's Gate, and Descent were all linked to Interplay. Two years ago, financial issues caused Interplay to try selling all its video game properties.

It's tough to tell what Interplay might be worth today because it's not all that forward-facing and relevant anymore. Its Twitter profile says it's "the company behind Freespace, MDK, Earthworm Jim, and more great games." There's a?? near-guarantee that inXile is the more valuable of the two companies at this point. Still, there'd be a sweet poetic justice to Fargo buying back Int??erplay -- the place where he earned his fame -- after all these years.

@BrianFargo [Twitter]

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Intense RPG slips from August launch

It looks like Nintendo Switch fans have a little longer to put together their bean-can grenades and cardboard body-armour, as post-apocalyptic RPG Wasteland 2: Director's Cut has been put back a couple of weeks.

Previously announced by inXile Entertainment, the heavy-duty adventure was supposed to launch this month, but will now appear on the Nintendo eShop on September 13. Already available on PS4, PC and Xbox One, Wasteland 2 is the sequel to the original 1988 title, featuring a band of custom-made survivors u??ndergoing missions and gathering ??resources in a desolate, mechanised Southwest America.

Wasteland 2: Director's Cut launches on Nintendo Switch September 13.

#ICYMI - On Sept. 13th, the post-apocalyptic frontier awaits. Check out the latest #Wasteland2 #NintendoSwitch trailer!//t.co/GTpgjlu6xs

— InXile Entertainment (@Inxile_Ent) August 29, 2018

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Up to 25 percent off

With a simple click of your mouse, you could help bring down the price of The Bard's Tale IV: Barrows Deep. In th?e month leading up ?to its release, developer inXile Entertainment has launched a unique marketing initiative where players can reap substantial rewards.

Starting today, inXile will track the number of times The Bard's Tale IV is put on users' wishlists on both Steam and GOG. There are cumulative milestones for this initiative. At 100,000 wishlists, the torch from The Darkest Dungeon will be added to The Bard's Tale IV. At 300,000, the price permanently drops from $40 to $35. If it hits 500,000, the price permanently drops to $30 and a new add-on called The Haernhold will release for free.

There's something of a trade-off happening here. Anyone who wishlists will probably end up with a convenient reminder email anytime The Bard's Tale IV goes on sale. It's a savvy tactic that gets the game in front of people now, and, if they put off buying at launch, it gets the game in front of them later too. But, there's an immediate 2??5 percent price cut and some free DLC. The pros are going to outweigh the cons for most people.

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A wonderful marriage between modern RPGs and classic dungeon crawling

The original Bard's Tale trilogy was? developed by Interplay and published by Electronic Arts in the mid-to-late '80s. Despite being h??ard as nails, that trilogy is generally seen as a hidden gem among classic RPGs. They had incredible music, writing, and addicting dungeon crawling gameplay that kept you pushing forward.

Three decades later, the series is back and I had the chance to play an early preview build of The Bard's Tale IV: Barrows Deep from inXile Entertainment. And after spending a little more than seven hours with it, I can safely say the world of Skara Brae inXile Entertainment has crafted is dark, complex, and interesting -- as well as wonderfully written and voice acted. It's a game that has been beautifully updated and reimagined with both modern and class??ic gameplay conventions ?that had me willingly explore every inch of its world.

Set over a hundred years after the events of The Bard's Tale III: Thief of Fate, Skara Brae in The Bard's Tale IV: Barrows Deep has seen better days. The political climate has gone off the deep end as a group called “Temple of the ?Swordfather” are? persecuting and executing those they deem as “old races.” This basically includes Elves, Dwarves, Trows, and anyone that might align with them. Despite the serious tone, however, The Bard's Tale IV is not without a dark?? and wicked sense of humor as w??ell.

From the mo?ment I started a new game, I wa??s greeted with an opening scene of a group of folks being hanged. Prior to the hanging itself, however, there was hilarious small-talk and banter between this group, such as “How about a song before we go?” That was immediately followed up with “It will have to be a short one” as nooses descended before each of them.

This opening perfectly? sets the tone of the entire demo and it only continued to build from there. The writing and dark humor is without a doubt my favorite aspect of The Bard's Tale IV so far. In the time I spent in the dungeon underbelly of Skara Brae, I heard plenty of great dialogue and banter between my party, NPCs, and enemies alike. All of which is wonderfully voice acted and I could easily tell the voice cast were hav?ing a blast with some of the dialogue.

For those of you wondering if you need to play th??e original trilogy before playing this; I think if you did,?? it would add some extra context, but it's certainly not a requirement. Hel??l, I only?? managed to survive a little over an hour into each of the three original Bard's Tale games (make that about 15-20 minutes in The Destiny Knight), before seeing the game over screens.

That said, I never once felt like dialogue or lore was going ov??er my? head in The Bard's Tale IV. Right after the hanging scene, you begin your adventure as a default character known as Melody (who happens to be a Bard). Shortly after, though, you're given the option to create your own character and pic?k between four different archetypes, each with their own unique skill trees.

The character creation offers a number of different character portraits and models to choose between across seven different cultures. This includes four different groups of Humans, Dwarves, Elves, and Trow. Each of them also has a unique passive ability. The creatio?n process also features a variety of male or female voices to pick between for your character.

Personally, I went with the “cynical female” voice, which included plenty of self-loathing dialogue that lived up to the cynicism. Notably, you can't seem to change the name of specific character portraits, so despite making a new character, you could potentially still end up with Melody if you stick with the same character portrait.

You can select ?between four different archetype?s in The Bard's Tale IV. These archetypes include Practitio??ner, Fighter, Rogue, and Bard. Practitioners allow you to dabble in various forms of magic and spells, includ?ing the ability to summon monsters. Fighters are your typical tanks and berserkers, with better overall constitution stats than other archetypes, making them the best choice for taking hits and protecting more fragile characters.

Meanwhile, Rogues can get past enemy defenses and can land devastating blows, all while being able to conceal your party from enemy detection. Then, finally, you have Bards (which is what I went with). Ba??rds basically act as your drunk support characters that can play various tunes on different instruments to buff other characters in the party. This requires spell points, however, which you gain as a Bard by consuming alcohol! Clearly, this was an archetype that spoke to my soul.

Each archetype als??o contains a different set of skill trees, with a variety of different skills to experiment with. The skill trees play a very important role in The Bard's Tale IV. Because not on??ly do they allow you to expand your move set, but, they also dictate everything from what type of equipment or weapons you can use, as well a??s different types of armor you can wear.

For example, as a Bard, you'll first need to expand your skill tree in various instruments before you can use them, which in turn, allows you use different buffs and abilities from those instruments. Specific skill trees become more powerful?? and diverse the more skills you learn within that tree, allowing for plenty of experimentation. It's just as deep as it is interesting.

At its core though, The Bard's Tale IV is still very?? much a dungeon crawler. Running on the Unreal Engine 4, you explore the land of Skara Brae in a first-person perspective, with the first dungeon you'll encounter simply known as “Lower Skara?? Brae.” Which is a much older section of Skara Brae that has been left to decay away beneath the new section of the city. Initially, when I first entered Lower Skara Brae, I was too busy going up to walls and gawking at the photogrammetry rendered textures and the incredibly dense and detailed environmental work.

In all honesty, at first glance, I thought The Bard's Tale IV was simply just a first-person fantasy RPG. But, then I began to notice the makings of a dungeon crawler as I explored deeper into Lower Skara Brae. This decrepit place contains plenty of shortcuts strewn about, most of which are locked behind diffe?r??ent puzzles (such as re-aligning cog pieces to open doors) or can only be accessed from one side or with a specific skill.

You'll navigate this place through narrow pathways and streets that branch out everywhere in a maze-like fashion. While doing so, you'll also stumble on various enemies tha??t patrol these narrow paths and streets that will spot you if you're too close in f??ront of their limited vision. The Bard's Tale IV may have captured my interest to keep playing with the dark humor, but it's when I was dungeon crawling in Lower Skara Brae that I knew I was hooked.

As for the combat, it's a turn-based affair with a mix of tactical positioning with your characters on a 4x4 grid. If you've played Darkest Dungeon you should take to it right away. Players can initiate combat by approaching an enemy from behind or before being spotted to get the first turn. If you're spotted, however, the enemy gets the first turn. Various skills use up “opportunity,” which limits the number of skills and actions you can perform per turn.

Skills also have different ranges of effect, so for example, some skills can simply hit enemies directly in front of them?. Others will only hit things within a specific area of effect on the grid. Certain skills require a turn or more to charge. For example, I? ran into a particular enemy with a skill that could one-shot anything in front of it, but, it first needed to be charged. So, I could either simply move my characters out of the way on the grid or attempt to disrupt the attack's charge by hitting the enemy with mental damage.

Overall, it's a combat system that is just as deep as every other aspect of the game I've mentioned so far, and it's all the more rewarding because of it. I'm sure there are a million other things I've glanced over, such as the larger puzzle rooms, to blood drinking cultists, and even a Soup Nazi. In fact, the developers themselves have even mentioned what's in the preview build is only ??scratching the surface of the content that will be in the full game.

Everything I've? seen and played so far blends together pe??rfectly in The Bard's Tale IV. This is a game that combines the best of both classic dungeon crawling and modern RPGs. The Bard's Tale IV is also just another example of how inXile Entertainment is currently thriving with crowdfunding and simply making great games with the motto of "if you want it, we'll build it." For more information on the development of The Bard's Tale IV, be sure to check out CJ Andriessen's interview with lead designer David Rogers.

_{[This piece is based on a preview build of the game provided by the publisher.]}

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Crowdfunding backer demo is out today

InXile Entertainment is one of a few companies to take to crowdfunding like a fish to water. It's been around since 2004 when it developed its first game, The Bard's Tale, an action-adventure title that shares a name with the classic RPG series but none of the characters and locations. The title was decently reviewed, but not exactly a monster seller.  It wasn't until the developer turned to Kickstarter to fund a sequel to the 1988 open-world RPG Wasteland that it found its niche. With t??e??am members on board who worked on those classic EA games, the company would make its mark giving fans sequels to these long-lost classics.

Wasteland 2 was a massive hit for the company. It raised more than $3 million through Kickstarter and Paypal, was eventually ported to consoles and will soon find another release on Nintendo Switch. Its follow-up, the crowdfunded Torment: Tides of Numenera, saw similar success though it missed its expected release date by a country mile. The company is now hard at work on Wasteland 3, funded through Fig this time around, and a project that is an absolute dream game for lead designer David Rogers, The Bard's Tale IV: Barrows Deep.

The Bard's Tale franchise is as old as I am. Developer Interplay Productions knocked out the original trilogy in rather short order, releasing the final game, Thief of Fate, in 1988. By the time I got into computer gaming, the series was a relic of the past. 30 years is a very long time to go without getting a new entry, but with a team?? of dedicated developers, the Unreal Engine 4, and Rogers at the helm, this series is set to return in a way that'll please new and old fans alike.

"The story picks up 150 years past the end of The Bard's Tale III so it really gives us a chance to reintroduce the world, the lore, and the backstory to first-time gamers," he explained. "But fans of the old games will realize we used the map of Skara Brae from those games to make Lower Skara Brae. (Editors note: In Barrows Deep, the new Skara Brae is built on top of old Skara Brae, New New York style.) The dungeon you play in the demo is the Cellars ;of Kylearan's Tower, which is one of the first dungeons you played in the original game. Hark??yn's Castle is still there, you can still do the 99 Berzerkers Fight. We hit all those little hallmarks and landmarks of the original game and made sure to put them in there so it feels like home; like you're seeing Skara Brae as you never s??een it before."

At a hands-on and inteview session in San Francisco, Rogers gave me a guided tour of the first part of a new demo for the game. Because this is my first time in Skara Brae, I wasn't quite sure how to compare it to the city of old. Obviously, a game made in 2018 ?is going to look a hell of a?? lot better than one made in 1985, but inXile has really gone all-out in designing this decrepit world with Unreal Engine 4. The city, both above and below ground, looks absolutely stunning; like a tourist destination that's slightly off from a place you'd find in the real world.

"We took a trip over to Scotland to take shots for photogrammetry and for reference on the buildings and the world," Rogers said. "We even went to Mary's Kings Close, which is built very similar to Skara Brae underground. We ?tried our best to mimic ??the Scottish aesthetic as much as we could but also, we didn't want to make it feel like Earth or just like how Scotland actually is, so we warped things around and made it really bizarre."

The game has been in development for more than two years. While it's being made to feel like a natural extension of the original trilogy, Barrows Deep finds influence in other games that have come since. Take the Ancient Luck Stones for instance. Found throughout the world, these are stones players can bind to, making it a save point they can respawn from, or consume for experience at the cost of deleting it from the game forever. It's a concept that reminds me of the Shovel Knight save-point system, a?? comparison Rogers completely agreed with.

The Ancient Luck Stones are just a few of the clever developments Rogers and team are making with The Bard's Tale IV, but their main objective is to mesh story wi?th the genre ??in ways not seen before.

"We're really trying to innovate the dungeon crawler genre," Rogers explained. "Games like Legend of Grimrock, while being awesome, they dump you on an island and there's no character development because there is virtually no story. It's just 'Uh, go do dungeon stuff.' It's cool, but that's all it is. We have a full cast of fully voiced characters, a wholly original soundtrack, a really rich story that we reinforce at ever??y angle in different ways, and the character progression is just so deep."

Barrows Deep'??s rich story is explored through world building and character dialog, both with non-playable characters and among party members. Team members will chat during downtime, asking each other questions that expand on their backstories, and not every NPC will take kindly to your crew as a handful of ??the citizens who populate this world come preprogrammed with prejudices against some of the races.

That will be better ??explored when the full game launches later this year. The demo releasing today is around five hours long, something Rogers considers a "sliver" of the full package. The final product will be around 30 hours long, though Rogers admits he might be underestimating that. Ho??wever long the final product ends up being, the scope of it is being made possible in great part due to the last game the development team worked on.

"The game I worked before this is The Mage's Tale which is our VR game. It's set in the same world so we could explore the art style and some of the dungeon assets we share from one game to another. We are able to make this game as big as we can because we were able to build The Mage's Tale first."

Wrapping up our session, I asked Rogers if he has any plans for a Bard's Tale V. ?He said without a doubt and so long as there is demand fr?om the audience, he and inXile will be there to meet their needs.

"There were a group of fans who clearly put their money where their mouth is and said 'We want this game.' I think it's pretty easy to see there is no game like it. It's one of a kind and I love developing original games. This is a blast to work on and people have been clamoring for a game like this. We said we wanted to bring back The Bard's Tale and we want to really modernize the dungeon crawler. $1.5 million worth of peop?le said 'yes please do' and so here we are. It's nice to be able to make a game and know that people want it because they already said they d??id."

The Bard's Tale IV: Barrows Deep will launch for PC on September 18, 2018, for $39.99. Mac, Linux, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One ports are expected to arrive before the end of the year. Today's beta is available to Kickstarter backers as well as th??ose who preorder either the Platinum or Ultimate edition of the game.

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Bingo

inXile Entertainment said it had plans for Nintendo Switch and as we now know, those plans include porting over the post-apocalyptic RPG Wasteland 2: Director's Cut. That might not be the precise game you were hoping to see pop up fi??rst, but it'll certainly bols?ter the Switch's library.

Here's a quick glimpse from inX??ile CEO Brian?? Fargo.

How about a little tease... pic.twitter.com/Zwh8gL8cQL

— Brian Fargo (@BrianFargo) December 12, 2017

In a follow-up tweet, Fargo confirmed that the team behind the mobile ports of The Bard's Tale will handle Wasteland 2 for Switch. "I have to give props to Nintendo owners for your love of the machine," he added. "[The photo??] had th?e quickest traction of most anything I've ever tweeted."

Brian Fargo [Twitter]

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There's an opening here and inXile should take it

Wasteland 2 and Torment: Tides of Numenera devel?oper inXile Entertainment doesn't have any Nintendo Switch announcements to make quite yet, but we're one critical step closer to that happening.

According to inXile CEO Brian Fargo, the ??developers h?ave been "approved" for Switch.

We are now approved Nintendo Switch Developers.... stay tuned for future n?ews. We are fans of the Switch and our devs are exploring ideas.

— Brian Fargo (@BrianFargo) October 18, 2017

It's worth noting that The Bard's Tale IV and Wasteland 3 are in production for 2018 and 2019, respectively, and the latter game? is planned for release on PC, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One.

I'm of the opinion that basically all Switch port news is good news, but this stands out?? somewhat; inXile makes a particular type of game that isn't as well-represented on Nintendo's platform.

Brian Fargo [Twitter]

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Long time no see

The folks at inXile are showing off an early look at what combat will be like in The Bard's Tale IV, a Kickstarter-funded game I admittedly forgot was in the studio's pipeline but am g??lad to see again.

Take a look! But before you rush to comment about the rough character portraits (and yeah, they are rough), kee??p in mind that's "still at a first pass" and "there are things we're not in love with yet."

As for the grid-locked combat itself, while this footage is slow and guided enough to get the point acr??oss generally, "One thing that is harder to see in the video is our input queuing system. When you take an action in combat, you can begin ordering another party member bef?ore the action has played out," and "this keeps the flow of combat moving along faster than a traditional turn-based system." Nice to hear, because after you reach a certain familiarity with a game, that stuff really adds up.

"There's a l??ot more to talk about here, from the way elements like health, mana, and armor interact with each other, how channeling abilities and focus work, the way that temporary status boons can affect a character's functionality, or how positional tactics can let you set up more devastating damage," inXile added. "These? open up a lot of subtle possibilities, but we'll save more of those details for future updates."

New Gameplay Video [Kickstarter]

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Paint the snow red

As we first told you last week, developer InXile Entertainment is working on Wasteland 3 and is looking for your help to make it happen. Its Fig campaign launched today and is already raking in the dough. The developer is looking to raise $2.75 million?? dollars on the platform to help cover what we've been told is an at minimum $6?? million budget. The reveal came with a few screenshots, but today we're seeing the game in action for the first time.

Outside of that guy's disgusting-ass ear holes, I'm d?igging the look of it so far.

If you're planning on backing it, doing so in the first 48 hours of the campaign will get you a free game, either STASIS or Underrail. Th??ose who have donated to previous InXile campaigns will also receive a $5 discount on reward tiers.

The above clip wasn't the only video released today. ??Ther?e's also the one below, featuring special effects and comedy straight out of bad 90s syndicated television.

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Looking to raise nearly $3 million

In 2012, the folks at InXile Entertainment turned to Kickstarter to finance the development of the critically acclaimed Wasteland 2. The next year, it returned to the crowdfunding platform to fund 2017's Torment: Tides of Numenera. Next week, the company will once again be asking fans to open their pocketbooks, this time in a Fig campaign for Wasteland 3.

Breaking away from the desert and city locals of Wasteland 2, this new entry in the isometric post-apocalyptic strategy series will be set in the snowy hinterlands of Colorado. You play as the last remaining member of Team November, dispatched to the icy tundra to build your reputation amongst hostile factions and deadly lunatic??s. In one of the several changes fans can expect from the sequel, you no longer have to go about it alone. With online co-op, you can tackle the frosty backwoods of the Rocky Mountains with a friend.

The press release announcing Wasteland 3 wanted to make it per?fectly clear that you can play through the game by yourself and experience everything?? it has to offer. However, if you team up with a friend, you both have control of your own group of Rangers, giving you the ability to split up and cover more ground. If you start a game with a friend, you can continue on without them, but decisions you make in the story will affect them when they log back in.

Other additions to the sequel include an upgradeable vehicle that you can pimp out with weapons to assist you in battle?, team-based attacks, and an expanded home base that will do more than just give you your next quest. It will now allow you to gather materials, reach out to other factions via radio, set up trade routes, research, and more.

On board for the project is concept artist Andrée Wallin, who worked on Wasteland 2 and Star Wars: The Force Awakens. STASIS developers Christopher and Nic Bischoff are also assisting with the project and are responsible for the concept art seen in the gallery below. Writing duties will be covered by the Tides of Numenera team and will incorporate that game's revamped dialog tree ??system.

If you want to help fund Wasteland 3, the Fig c??ampaign will start October 5. The goal is to raise $2.75 million with $2.25 million of that possibly coming from accredited investors. There ??will also be opportunities for unaccredited investors as well as rewards for people who just want to give whatever money they can. So far there is no launch window for the game, but when it does come out it will release simultaneously for Windows, OS X, Linux, PlayStation 4 and Xbox One.

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Techland is publishing

While an isometric RPG like the Kickstarted Torment: Tides of Numenera is better served on PC, having it also available on consoles for those who don't mind playing with a gamepad is something I can get behind. That's the plan, with Techland (Dying Light) "handling retail distribution, marketing the game, and physical backer rewards come release," according to inXile's Chris Keenan. "This allows us to focus the vast majority of our resources on development of the game?? itself."

"After the critical and commercial success of Wasteland 2: Director's Cut on consoles, and with fans clamoring for it, it had been in our plans to bring Torment: Tides of Numenera to PlayStation 4 and Xbox? One," noted CEO Brian Fargo.

With Techland helping ou??t, inXile is working toward a simultaneous PC and console launch in Q1 2017. T?hat can be cause for concern, especially for a crowdfunded title. Let's hope everything goes smoothly.

Updated Our Journal (57): Techland Partnership [Kickstarter]

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Wasteland 2 free this weekend on Steam

Wasteland 2: Director's Cut, 2014's Kickstarter RPG from inXile Entertainment, is this weekend?'s free game on Steam. From ??now until Sunday at 1PM pacific, you can download and play the game through Steam free of charge. 

Should you not be able to power through the roughly 40-hour main quest, you can also buy it for $20 (half off). That deal is good until Mond?ay at noon, so you can wait until after you've had some time playing for free to ??make the decision.

You play as an Irishman out? in the fields, where he fights for his meals and gets his back into his living. Thanks to robust dialogue options, he doesn't need to fight to prove that he's right, but even if he does, he doesn't need to be forgiven.

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Backers can get it first

Torment: Tides of Numenera has been taking its time, but the beta will be out before long.

All eligible crowdfunding backers will gain access during the week of January 17, 2016 (exact dat??e TBA). Then, on January 26, the beta wil??l see a wider release via Steam Early Access.

InXile's Brian Fargo describes this upcoming build as "quite lengthy for an early be??ta," noting that it covers "the game's introductory sequence (some of which you may have already seen a portion of in the alpha) as well as most of the first major location of the game, Sagus Cliffs."

For those of you who have kept up with Torment throughout its producti??on, are you still excited?

Updated Our Journal (51): De-Cyph?ering the Beta Release Date [Kickstarter]

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Replaced by inXile vet

If this month's alpha showing inspired faith Torment: Tides of Numenera would hits is previously planned Q4 2015 release window, sorry, a bit lo?nger to wait yet as the $5 million crowd-funded RPG has settled on a new 2016 release date. A beta is scheduled for this year, though.

Developer inXile made the announcement in a Kickstarter update wherein project manager Kevin Saunders announced his departure from inXile. Wasteland 2 lead and 12 year inXile vet Ch??ris Keenan replaces Saunders down the stretch.

"As a fresh set of eyes on the project I can tell you it's shaping up to be the awesome experience you all expect and deserve," Keenan wrote. "However, to maintain the quality standard we've set for ourselves, we can't rush through these final stages to get it out the door. Instead, we're going to take the time we need on Torment: Tides of Numenera, which means we are planning a 2016 release."

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A short look at Crisis encounters

It seems like so long ago that inXile brought Torment: Tides of Numenera to Kickstarter. But really, it's onl??y been a couple of?? years. Much has changed for video game crowdfunding. Much hasn't.

Have I been keeping tabs on the project in the time since? Well, no. But today seems like a good day to check in, what with this new video about Crisis encounters.

When conflicts arise, you'll have more options available than just fight or flight. As explained by designer Jeremy Kopman, Crises are meant to "bring the same sense of reactivity and choice and consequence that is the hallmark of Torment dialog into our turn-based gameplay."

Here's one example of how a battle can play out.

I like the permutation where the foe becomes outnumbered after his companions are taken out and he tries to stop the fight. Kopman demands compensation only to discover the guy isn't carrying much. "I ??don't think that's enough to buy him?? his life, so let's kill him anyway."

Damn, that's cold!

"As we move forward, we'll be making each Crisis a hand-crafted scenario where we can offer high levels of reactivity, shifting states, and human-feeling AI behaviors in every encounter," promises Kopma?n. "There won't necessarily be one best solution in any Crisis, and your tools will range from brute strength, to unique Numenera and abilities, to social skills and conversation."

Last we heard, Torment was still on for a Q4 2015 release.

[Thanks, Laughing Owl]

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Well. If you pay $20+, anyways

Back The Bard's Tale IV's Kickstarter Campaign with $20 or more of your? hard-earned cash, and you'll secure yourself the "free incentive" of the first three games in the series for free.

That's full versions of The Bard's Tale (1985), The Bard's Tale 2: The Destiny Knight (1986), and The Bard's Tale 3: Thief of Fate (1988) for dropping $20+ towards ??inXile's Kickstarter camp??aign.

“It’s pretty amazing to see how far the graphics have come since these first games and it’s fun to think that people will still be playing th??ese classics decades after release," said Brian Fargo, InXile's CEO. "These games made my career so it’s only fitting that we are doing another game.”

“Of course playing them will not be necessary to understand the new title, but we wanted to give our backers the opportunity to and are always happy to give o?ur supporters some free extra value!”

Announced via Twitter during PAX South, The Bard's Tale IV is currently around $100K away from its $1,25?0,000 goal.?? It's expected to hit PCs in October 2017. 

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First-person exploration!

Oh, good. When inXile launched its Kickstarter for The Bard's Tale IV earlier this week, the?re wasn't much to go on in terms of actual game footage or assets. Here's an in-engine look at the hopeful dungeon crawler which, at the time of writing, is closing in on $988,000 of its $1.25 million goal. If and when that target is met, inXile will pump an extra $1.25 million into the ?project's budget.

"The biggest question we get is how we plan to bring the genre forward, and this video should answer the question," said CEO Brian Fargo. "Exploring in the world is a major part of the experience and we wa??nted to make use of the full screen and all that Unreal has to offer to make it as compelling as possible. Once combat starts, the combat shifts out of the first-person mode??."

It's undecided precisely how The Bard's Tale IV will present combat given the variable nature of the budget, but Fargo notes with ce??rtainty that "it? will be party and turn/phase based."

The Bard’s Tale IV In-Engine Video [Kickstarter]

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