View source for The Bard's Tale (1985 video game)

{{Short description|Fantasy role-playing video game}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=July 2021}}
{{Infobox video game
|title = The Bard's Tale
|image = Bard's Tale Box Cover.jpg
|developer = [[Interplay Entertainment|Interplay Productions]]<br />[[Krome Studios]] (remaster)
|publisher ={{vgrelease|NA|[[Electronic Arts]]|EU|[[Ariolasoft]]}}
[[inXile Entertainment]] (remaster)
|producer = 
|designer = [[Michael Cranford]]
|programmer = 
|artist = 
|composer = 
|engine = 
|platforms = [[Amiga]], [[Amstrad CPC]], [[Apple II]], [[Apple IIGS]], [[Atari ST]], [[Commodore 64]], [[MS-DOS]], [[Mac (computer)|Mac]], [[Nintendo Entertainment System|NES]], [[NEC PC-9801|PC-98]], [[Windows]], [[Xbox One]], [[ZX Spectrum]]
|released = '''Apple II''' {{vgrelease|NA|December 1985<ref name="CE1985">{{cite magazine |title=1985 Index |magazine=[[Computer Entertainer]] |date=January 1986 |volume=4 |issue=10 |page=6 |url=http://www.ataricompendium.com/archives/newsletters/video_game_update/computer_entertainer_jan86.pdf#page=6}}</ref>}} '''Commodore 64''' {{vgrelease|NA|December 1985<ref>{{cite magazine |title=Availability Update|magazine=Computer Entertainer |date=January 1986 |volume=4 |issue=10 |page=14 |url=http://www.ataricompendium.com/archives/newsletters/video_game_update/computer_entertainer_jan86.pdf#page=14}}</ref>}} '''Remaster'''<br>'''2018:''' Windows<br>'''2019:''' Xbox One
|genre = [[Role-playing video game|Role-playing]]
|series = ''[[The Bard's Tale]]''
|modes = [[Single-player]]
}}

'''''The Bard's Tale''''' is a fantasy [[role-playing video game]] designed and programmed by [[Michael Cranford]] for the [[Apple II]]. It was produced by [[Interplay Entertainment|Interplay Productions]] in 1985 and distributed by [[Electronic Arts]].<ref>{{cite web | first=Matt | last=Barton | date=February 23, 2007 | work=The History of Computer Role-Playing Games | title=Part 2: The Golden Age (1985–1993) | url=http://www.gamasutra.com/features/20070223b/barton_02.shtml | publisher=[[Gamasutra]] | access-date=March 26, 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090511115349/http://www.gamasutra.com/features/20070223b/barton_02.shtml |archive-date=11 May 2009 }}</ref>  The game was ported to the [[Commodore 64]], [[Apple IIGS]], [[ZX Spectrum]], [[Amstrad CPC]], [[Amiga]], [[Atari ST]], [[MS-DOS]], [[Mac (computer)|Mac]], and [[Nintendo Entertainment System|NES]]. It spawned ''[[The Bard's Tale]]'' series of games and books. The earliest editions of the game used a series title of ''Tales of the Unknown'', but this title was dropped for later ports of ''The Bard's Tale'' and subsequent games in the series.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Cranford|first=Michael|date=1985|title=The Bard's Tale [Commodore 64 game manual].|url=https://mocagh.org/ea/bt1-manual.pdf|website=Museum of Computer Adventure Gaming History}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|last=Cranford|first=Michael|date=1987|title=The Bard's Tale [Apple IIGS game manual].|url=https://mocagh.org/ea/bt1brcc-manual.pdf|website=Museum of Computer Adventure Gaming History.}}</ref>

In August 2018, a remastered version was released for [[Windows]], followed by the [[Xbox One]] release in 2019.

==Plot==
{{More citations needed|section|date=October 2022}}
The following text from the box cover summarizes the premise:

<blockquote>Long ago, when magic still prevailed, the evil wizard Mangar the Dark threatened a small but harmonious country town called Skara Brae. Evil creatures oozed into Skara Brae and joined his shadow domain. Mangar froze the surrounding lands with a spell of Eternal Winter, totally isolating Skara Brae from any possible help. Then, one night, the town militiamen all disappeared.

The future of Skara Brae hung in the balance. And who was left to resist? Only a handful of unproven young Warriors, junior Magic Users, a couple of Bards barely old enough to drink, and some out of work Rogues.

You are there. You are the leader of this ragtag group of freedom fighters. Luckily you have a Bard with you to sing your glories, if you survive. For this is the stuff of legends. And so the story begins...<ref>{{Cite web |date=2020-05-05 |title=Bard's Tale, The (IBM-PC) - Box, Manual, Disk Scans (1200DPI) |url=https://archive.org/details/bards-tale-the-ibmpchiresscans/Bard%27s%20Tale%2C%20The%20-%20Box%20Interior%20Right.jpg |access-date=2022-10-13 |website=Internet Archive}}</ref></blockquote>

In the game, the player forms a group of up to six characters. Game progress is made through advancing the characters so that they are powerful enough to defeat the increasingly dangerous foes and monsters in the dungeons, obtaining certain items relevant to solving the overall quest, and obtaining information.

The fictional town of Skara Brae consists of 30x30 map tiles containing either buildings or streets (plus gates and magical guardian statues blocking certain streets). Access to one tower in the northeastern and southwestern city corner each is blocked by locked gates. The main city gates, which open to the west, are blocked by snow and remain impassable throughout the game. One street seems to lead south endlessly, by actually teleporting the party back to its beginning upon reaching the portion where the city walls would be.

Certain buildings within the city are special, such as the Adventurer's Guild, Garth's Equipment Shoppe, the Review Board (which is unmarked and must be found first, and is the only place where characters can advance in experience levels), various taverns and temples, and the dungeons. The latter are mazes of various kinds&mdash;cellars, sewers, catacombs, or fortresses&mdash;full of monsters and riddles, some guarded by magical statues that come to life to attack trespassing player parties.

# The first dungeon is the '''Wine Cellar''' (1 level) of a tavern, which turns out to be connected to the '''Sewers''' of Skara Brae (3 levels) that in turn feature an exit that leads to the otherwise inaccessible southwestern corner of the city where Mangar's Tower, the final dungeon, is located. The tower cannot be entered without a key, however. In the sewers, numerous hints are found, including the name of the Mad God. Finding the Wine Cellar requires the party to order some wine at a specific tavern. There was a hint to this in the manual (''Hint: The first dungeon is the wine cellar of the only tavern in town which serves wine. It's on Rakhir Street''). However, this hint was not present in the manual included with the C64 release of the game{{citation needed|date=July 2022}}. Upon ordering wine, the party is sent by the bartender to his cellar to fetch a bottle themselves. It is not actually possible within the game to obtain a bottle of wine, nor is it required to proceed.
# The undead-infested '''Catacombs''' (3 levels) beneath the temple of the Mad God, accessible only if his name is known (the player must type the password to enter). On the lowest level, a Spectre must be defeated to obtain an eye.
# If they possess the eye, a statue of the Mad God in Baron '''Harkyn's Castle''' (3 levels) will teleport the party to the (otherwise inaccessible) northeastern area of Skara Brae where the next dungeon is located; however, it is not required to proceed to the next dungeon immediately. If weakened too much from the fighting in the castle, the party may elect to leave the area via one-way portals instead at this point and return to the city and the Adventurer's Guild.
# '''Kylearan's Tower''' (1 level) can only be reached through the teleporter in Harkyn's Castle, requiring any party who wishes to enter to fight through the castle's three levels first. Kylearan the Archmage awaits the party at the conclusion of his tower maze and turns out to be friendly. He gives the party an access key to Mangar's Tower, the final dungeon, but they still have to circumvent the locked gates around the tower by going through the Sewers.
# Still reachable only via the Sewers at this point in the game, '''Mangar's Tower''' (5 levels) is the final dungeon that has to be overcome to reach Mangar and slay him, provided the party has acquired several items in the other dungeons which are required to best him. At one point within the tower, the party can acquire a key that will allow them to access Mangar's Tower and Kylearan's Tower from the city directly thenceforward, without having to move through the Sewers or Harkyn's Castle, respectively.

==Gameplay==
{{Unreferenced section|date=June 2008}}
[[File:C64 The Bards Tale.png|thumb|A screenshot of ''The Bard's Tale'' on the Commodore 64|alt=]]
[[File:Bard's Tale for Apple IIGS screenshot.png|thumb|A screenshot of ''The Bard's Tale'' on the Apple IIGS]]
''The Bard's Tale'' is a straightforward [[dungeon crawl]]. The objective is to gain [[Experience point|experience]] and advance characters' [[ability score|skills]] through (mostly) [[random encounter|random combat]] with enemies and monsters. This is done while exploring [[maze]]-like [[dungeon crawl|dungeons]], solving occasional puzzles and riddles, and finding or buying better [[weapon]]s, [[armor]], and other equipment.

When beginning the game, the player may create up to six [[player character]]s, chosen from among the following [[character class|class]]es: [[bard]], [[Ranger (character class)|hunter]], [[Monk (character class)|monk]], [[Paladin (character class)|paladin]], [[Thief (character class)|rogue]], [[Warrior (character class)|warrior]], [[Magician (fantasy)|magician]], and [[Evocation|conjurer]]. The classes [[Magician (fantasy)|sorcerer]] and [[Wizard (character class)|wizard]] are available to experienced conjurers and magicians. On some platforms, the player can import previously created characters from ''[[Wizardry (video game series)|Wizardry]]'' and/or ''[[Ultima III]]'', which was somewhat revolutionary at the time of the game's release.

Of particular innovation to the genre was the bard, whose magical songs functioned like long-lasting spells and affected the player's party in various ways&mdash;such as strengthening their armor, or increasing their attack speed{{citation needed|date=July 2022}}. A number of obligatory puzzles in the game were unsolvable without the use of bard songs.{{cn|date=February 2024}} Each bard song triggered corresponding music while he played (some classical, some original).

Magic users were allowed to change classes permanently. The game manual describes a magic user who has mastered all spells from all four classes as "an Archmage, the most powerful being in the world of The Bard's Tale." However, Archmage status had no effect on gameplay other than having all spells available.

Casting one of the 85 magic user spells consisted of typing a four-letter code found only in the printed game manual. However, when using a mouse (in the DOS, Amiga, and Macintosh versions), the full names of the spells would appear in a list to choose from.

Combat is turn-based, described in text rather than shown graphically; there is no notion of moving characters around on a map during combat. Cash and experience points are distributed evenly to all surviving party members after a particular encounter is won.

==Cluebook==
Publisher Electronic Arts published a [[cluebook]] for the game in 1986 ({{ISBN|1-55543-064-3}}){{cn|date=August 2023|reason=Can't find any reference to that book by that ISBN}} that added some original characters and background information to the game's setting. Written by T.L. Thompson, it purports to be an in-universe document that one Pellis, who seems to be an influential individual working against Mangar behind the scenes, entrusts to an unnamed friend who has just come of age: implicitly, the player (party).

It is the journal of Lord Garrick, viscount of Skara Brae's sister city Hamelon. Trapped in Skara Brae by Mangar's spell, Lord Garrick and his party of servants and associates (including Corfid op Orfin the Bard, Ghaklah the Magician, Isli the Paladin, Soriac the Archmage, and the otherwise unnamed "last of the great sage-sorcerors") take it upon themselves to rid Skara Brae of Mangar's influence. The journal narrates how they navigate the dungeons and solve the puzzles until, one step short of actually confronting Mangar, they find that crucial items were stolen by the party's Rogue when he had abandoned them. Soriac prepares a spell that will allow Isli to escape and give the journal to Pellis, but is also thought to rent from the fabric of time everything they have accomplished, and will consume Isli as well as it burn itself out.

==Development==
[[Michael Cranford]] developed the concept, design, and programming of ''The Bard's Tale'' and its successor game (''[[The Bard's Tale II: The Destiny Knight]]''), with additional design by [[Brian Fargo]] (the founder of Interplay) and Roe Adams III. David Lowery designed the graphics, [[Lawrence Holland]] composed the music, and [[Joe Ybarra]] served as producer.<ref>{{cite web |title=The Bard's Tale Compendium |year=2000 |url=http://bardstale.poverellomedia.com/about.html |access-date=March 29, 2016 |work=Credits from the game manuals}}</ref> Cranford stated that most of the game design was based on his and Fargo's ''[[Dungeons & Dragons]]'' gaming experiences.<ref name=Robberson1987/> Cranford and Fargo tried to improve on previous games of the genre in many areas including graphics and sound, with Cranford pointing to the [[Apple I|''Apple'']] version of [[Wizardry: Proving Grounds of the Mad Overlord|''Wizardry'']] as an example of a game that fell short in his judgement.<ref name=Robberson1987/>
''The Bard's Tale'' was originally going to be named ''Shadow Snare'' and was announced as a successor to Cranford's earlier game ''Maze Master'' which was published by [[Human Engineered Software]] in 1983.<ref name="cranford2025">{{cite web|title=Michael Cranford: The History of The Bard's Tale (PRGE 2025) |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oHc5NX5qNk0&t=1081s |date=November 6, 2025|work=[[YouTube]]|access-date=November 8, 2025 }}</ref>

Cranford is a devout Christian. He included references to [[Jesus]] in ''The Bard's Tale'', and all but one of the city names in ''The Bard's Tale II'' are taken from the [[New Testament]].<ref name=Cranford98>{{cite web |author=Cranford, Michael |title=The Bard's Tale Compendium |year=1998 |url=http://bardstale.poverellomedia.com/about.html |access-date=July 22, 2009 |work=E-mail correspondence}}</ref> After a falling-out with Brian Fargo, he was not involved in ''[[The Bard's Tale III: Thief of Fate|The Bard's Tale III]]'' and decided to go back to college to study [[philosophy]] and [[theology]] instead.<ref name=Cranford98/>

Cranford stated that they used a consultant during game development who suggested various ideas, including the city name [[Skara Brae (Ultima)|''Skara Brae'']], which was also used in ''[[Ultima IV: Quest of the Avatar|Ultima IV]]''—a surprise discovery after that game's release due to the consultant's work on ''Ultima IV'' as well.<ref name=Robberson1987>{{cite magazine |last= Robberson|first= Robbie|title= Interview with the Bard|page=39|url= https://archive.org/details/Space_Gamer_78/page/38/mode/2up|magazine= [[Space Gamer]] |number=78|date=April–May 1987|access-date=March 21, 2022}}</ref> Cranford noted that they did not use the other ideas as the similarities could have been problematic.<ref name=Robberson1987/>

[[Rebecca Heineman]], who worked at Interplay at the time (then as Bill "Burger" Heineman), is credited in the game's manual for the "data compressing routines that allowed ''[Cranford]'' to pack so much graphics and animation", and according to herself also wrote development tools for the game such as a graphic editor and all ports to other platforms. Heineman became openly critical of Cranford in later years, saying in an interview that Cranford, after doing some last bugfixes, held the game's final version "hostage" to force Brian Fargo to sign a publishing contract that contained a clause by which the sequel game (''The Destiny Knight'') would be Cranford's alone.<ref name="matt85">{{cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P-0-0uF9fAE |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211212/P-0-0uF9fAE| archive-date=2021-12-12 |url-status=live|title=Matt Chat 85: Rebecca Heineman Pt. 4|last=Barton|first=Matt|date=December 10, 2010|work=[[YouTube]]|access-date=October 14, 2013}}{{cbignore}}</ref> Brian Fargo confirmed this, but still defended Cranford.<ref name="matt89">{{cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=41h2lx_t89g |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211212/41h2lx_t89g| archive-date=2021-12-12 |url-status=live|title=Matt Chat 89: Bard's Tale and Wizardry with Brian Fargo|last=Barton|first=Matt|date=January 15, 2011|work=[[YouTube]]|access-date=October 14, 2013}}{{cbignore}}</ref>

Cranford in turn called Heineman's words "disparaging slant" and "fiction", noting that Heineman ("a storyteller with an agenda") at the time was (paraphrased) a loner who "sat isolated in a cubicle in the back corner of the room", wasn't involved in the company's business operations, nor deeply involved in ''The Bard's Tale'', and therefore would not know all the details.<ref name=RPGC>[http://www.rpgcodex.net/content.php?id=9163 RPG Codex.net] interview with Michael Cranford</ref><ref name=BT4Forum>[https://forums.inxile-entertainment.com/viewtopic.php?f=43&t=11804&start=20#p156735 Forum posting] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161220064726/https://forums.inxile-entertainment.com/viewtopic.php?f=43&t=11804&start=20#p156735 |date=December 20, 2016 }} by Michael Cranford, explaining his point of view</ref> As far as he (Cranford) could remember the situation, Brian Fargo would not produce a written contract for the game until near the very end of the development, and then only under pressure from Cranford withholding the final product. When he finally did, the contract was not what Cranford thought they had verbally agreed on when he had started working on the project, nor something he felt he could or would have agreed to at the onset.<ref name=RPGC/><ref name=BT4Forum/> Although a compromise was found, Fargo asked Cranford to leave the company after ''The Bard's Tale II: The Destiny Knight'' was finished. The experience contributed to Cranford walking away from game development to pursue a different career.<ref name=RPGC/> Cranford said he later apologized to Fargo after learning that the attorney who had represented him had misrepresented several other cases to his clients and had apparently misled him into assuming the worst.<ref name= BT4Forum/>

Cranford, Fargo, and Heineman have all since stated that they hold no grudges against each other over something that occurred when they were in their early twenties. Cranford and Fargo remain friends. When Fargo, through his firm [[inXile Entertainment]], started making ''[[The Bard's Tale IV: Barrows Deep]]'' on the original game's 30th anniversary, Cranford was invited to join the project and did contribute, while Heineman offered to create a 'remastered' edition of the original three games for modern operating systems (see below).

==Reception ==
===Critical reception===
{{Video game reviews
| award1Pub = ''Amstrad Action''
| award1 = Mastergame<ref>Game review, Amstrad Action magazine, [[Future Publishing]], issue 36, September 1988</ref>
}}
''[[Computer Gaming World]]''{{'}}s [[Scorpia (journalist)|Scorpia]] in 1985 described ''Bard's Tale'' as "not to be missed!"<ref name="scorpia198511">{{cite news | title=The Bard's Tale | magazine=Computer Gaming World | date=November–December 1985 | author=Scorpia | pages=27 | type=review}}</ref> In 1993 she criticized the game's starting difficulty and single save location, but stated that it had "many points of interest, particularly in the puzzles, and is definitely a game worth getting".<ref name="scorpia199310">{{cite news | url=http://www.cgwmuseum.org/galleries/index.php?year=1993&pub=2&id=111 | title=Scorpia's Magic Scroll Of Games | magazine=Computer Gaming World | date=October 1993 | access-date=March 25, 2016 | author=Scorpia | pages=34–50}}</ref> The game was reviewed in 1986 in ''[[Dragon (magazine)|Dragon]]'' #116 by Hartley and Pattie Lesser in "The Role of Computers" column. The reviewers rated the game well, concluding that "Bard's Tale, a game of high adventure ... is one we recommend for your software library."<ref name="Dragon116">{{cite journal | title=The Role of Computers | author=Lesser, Hartley and Pattie | journal=[[Dragon (magazine)|Dragon]] | issue=116 | date=December 1986 | pages=69–76}}</ref> The game was revisited in ''Dragon'' #120.<ref name="Dragon120">{{cite journal | title=The Role of Computers | author=Lesser, Hartley and Patricia | journal=[[Dragon (magazine)|Dragon]] | issue=120 | date=April 1987 | pages=79–82}}</ref> In a subsequent column, the reviewers gave the game 5 out of 5 stars.<ref name="Dragon126">{{cite journal | title=The Role of Computers | author=Lesser, Hartley and Patricia | journal=Dragon | issue=126 | date=October 1987 | pages=82–88}}</ref>

Calling the Commodore 64 version wondrous, ''[[Compute!'s Gazette]]'' in 1986 stated that while the game's plot and gameplay did not vary from the norm, "its depth of concept and brilliance of execution" did. Praising the complex magic system, the magazine concluded that "the greatest danger is not Mangar—it's the likelihood that you'll never be able to tear yourself away from this masterpiece of a game".<ref name="noel198606">{{Cite magazine |last=Noel |first=Lee Jr. |date=June 1986 |title=The Bard's Tale |url=https://archive.org/details/1986-06-computegazette/page/n45 |magazine=Compute!'s Gazette |pages=44, 46 |access-date=June 18, 2019}}</ref> ''[[Compute!]]'' in 1987 called the Apple IIGS version "unquestionably the most graphically stunning product I have seen on any Apple computer".<ref name="trunzo198710">{{cite news | url=https://archive.org/stream/1987-10-compute-magazine/Compute_Issue_089_1987_Oct#page/n31/mode/2up | title=The Bard's Tale II: The Destiny Knight | work=Compute! | date=October 1987 | access-date=November 10, 2013 | author=Trunzo, James V. | pages=31}}</ref> The [[ZX Spectrum]] version of ''The Bard's Tale'', released in 1988,<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.worldofspectrum.org/infoseekid.cgi?id=0000418 |title=''Bard's Tale, The'' |access-date=December 11, 2007 |work=[[World of Spectrum]]}}</ref> was favorably received. ''[[CRASH (magazine)|CRASH]]'' said that "the Skara Brae environment is so complex and involves so many different factors that it's hard not to get completely enthralled in your quest" and rated it at 86%.<ref>{{cite journal |date=August 1988 |title=''The Bard's Tale'' |journal=[[CRASH (magazine)|CRASH]] |issue=55 |pages=55–56}}</ref> ''[[Sinclair User]]'' rated it at 89%, but noted that it would not appeal to general gameplayers, saying that "''The Bard's Tale'' will enthrall diehard pixie fans [...] but there's too much text, and not enough graphics and animation, to convert the uncommitted."<ref>{{cite journal |date=August 1988 |title=''Bards Tale'' |journal=[[Sinclair User]] |issue=77 |pages=88–89}}</ref> ''[[Your Sinclair]]'' were similarly positive about the game, rating it 9/10.<ref>{{cite journal |last=Gerrard |first=Mike |date=September 1988 |title=''The Bard's Tale: Tales of the Unknown'' |journal=[[Your Sinclair]] |issue=33 |pages=28 |url=http://www.ysrnry.co.uk/articles/thebardstale.htm |access-date=December 11, 2007 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071221204206/http://www.ysrnry.co.uk/articles/thebardstale.htm |archive-date=December 21, 2007 }}</ref>

''[[Macworld]]'' reviewed the Macintosh version of ''The Bard's Tale'', praising the music and gameplay, calling it a "Nice combination of problem solving, combat, and exploration", but criticizing the [[monochrome]] graphics and repetitive gameplay, the latter largely directed towards frequent combat.<ref>{{cite magazine|last = Moran|first = Tom|title = The Bard's Tale 1.0 Review|date = August 1990|url = https://archive.org/details/MacWorld_9008_August_1990/page/n253|magazine = Macworld|publisher = Mac Publishing|page = 220}}</ref>

The Commodore 64 version of ''The Bard's Tale'' was given a 'Sizzler' award and rated at 94% by [[Zzap!64]] magazine, in the 1986 Christmas Special edition. Reviewer Sean Masterson called it "the best RPG on the Commodore".<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.gb64.com/oldsite/gameofweek/21/gotw_bardstale.htm |title=''Gamebase 64 - Game of the Week'' |access-date=May 21, 2013 |work=Reprinted - ZZap! Review}}</ref> In 1993, ''[[Commodore Force]]'' ranked the game at number 13 on its list of the top 100 Commodore 64 games.<ref>{{cite web|title=Top Ton!|url=https://archive.org/stream/zzap64-magazine-101/ZZap_64_Issue_101_Commodore_Force_Issue_11_1993_Autumn#page/n32/mode/1up/|website=Commodore Force|date=Autumn 1993|accessdate=2017-09-03|page=33}}</ref>

When reviewing its sequel in 1988, ''Ahoy!'s AmigaUser'' described ''The Bard's Tale'' as "the all-time classic".<ref name="katzworley198811">{{Cite magazine |last1=Katz |first1=Arnie |last2=Worley |first2=Joyce |date=November 1988 |title=Bard's Tale II |url=https://archive.org/details/Ahoys_AmigaUser_Issue_3_1988-11_Ion_International_US/page/n33/mode/1up?view=theater |magazine=Ahoy!'s AmigaUser |pages=34–36}}</ref> With a score of 7.49 out of 10, that year ''The Bard's Tale'' was among the first members of the ''Computer Gaming World'' Hall of Fame, honoring those games rated highly over time by readers.<ref name="cgw198803">{{cite news | title=The CGW Hall of Fame | magazine=Computer Gaming World | date=March 1988 | pages=44}}</ref> In 1990 the game received the seventh-highest number of votes in a survey of readers' "All-Time Favorites".<ref name="cgw199001">{{cite news | url=http://www.cgwmuseum.org/galleries/index.php?year=1990&pub=2&id=67 | title=CGW Readers Select All-Time Favorites | magazine=Computer Gaming World | date=January 1990 | access-date=November 15, 2013 | pages=64}}</ref> In 1996, the magazine named ''The Bard's Tale'' the 89th best game ever.<ref name="cgw150">{{cite news | url=http://www.cgwmuseum.org/galleries/index.php?year=1996&pub=2&id=148 | title=150 Best Games of All Time | magazine=Computer Gaming World | date=November 1996 | access-date=March 25, 2016 | pages=64–80}}</ref>

===Commercial performance===
''The Bard's Tale'' was very successful, becoming the best-selling computer RPG of the 1980s at 407,000 copies.<ref name="maher20161121">{{Cite web |url=http://www.filfre.net/2016/11/memos-from-digital-antiquarian-corporate-headquarters/ |title=Memos from Digital Antiquarian Corporate Headquarters |last=Maher |first=Jimmy | work=The Digital Antiquarian | date=November 21, 2016}}</ref> It was the first non-''Wizardry'' computer role-playing game to challenge the ''[[Ultima series|Ultima]]'' series' sales, especially to Commodore 64 users who could not play ''Wizardry'' (a Commodore version did not appear until 1987, with inferior graphics to that of ''The Bard's Tale'').<ref name="maher20140625">{{cite web | url=http://www.filfre.net/2014/06/of-wizards-and-bards/ | title=Of Wizards and Bards | work=The Digital Antiquarian | date=June 25, 2014 | access-date=July 11, 2014 | author=Maher, Jimmy}}</ref> By 1993, ''The Bard's Tale'' series had sold over a million copies.<ref>{{cite news |last1=McNamara |first1=Tom |title=The New Bard's Tale |url=https://www.ign.com/articles/2003/10/01/the-new-bards-tale |access-date=4 July 2024 |work=[[IGN]] |date=1 October 2003}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news | last1=Takahasi | first1=Dean | url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1993-08-01-fi-19298-story.html | title=The Game-Making Game Is Big Business | date=August 1, 1993 | newspaper=Los Angeles Times | access-date=August 10, 2018 | language=en-US }}</ref>

==Legacy==
===Sequels===
''The Bard's Tale'' was both a best-seller<ref>{{cite web|last1=Campbell|first1=Colin|title=How EA lost its soul, chapter 8|url=http://www.polygon.com/a/how-ea-lost-its-soul/chapter-8|website=[[Polygon (website)|Polygon]]|publisher=[[Vox Media]]|access-date=July 15, 2015|date=July 14, 2015|archive-date=July 16, 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150716011630/http://www.polygon.com/a/how-ea-lost-its-soul/chapter-8|url-status=dead}}</ref> and a critical success, and produced two official sequels and a "Construction Set" in its time.

*''[[The Bard's Tale II: The Destiny Knight]]'' (1986)
*''[[The Bard's Tale III: Thief of Fate]]'' (1988)
*''[[The Bard's Tale Construction Set]]'' (1991)

A compilation of all three classic ''The Bard's Tale'' games, entitled ''The Bard's Tale Trilogy'', was released for DOS by Electronic Arts in 1990.

According to programmer [[Rebecca Heineman]], the name of the overall series was to be ''Tales of the Unknown'', and the three games were to be entitled ''The Bard's Tale'', ''The Archmage's Tale'', and ''The Thief's Tale''. This is supported by the cover art of the original ''Bard's Tale'' release, which proclaimed the game as "''Tales of the Unknown'', Volume I." However, the immense popularity of the first game prompted Electronic Arts to re-brand the series under the more well-known name.<ref>{{cite web |author=Heineman, Bill |title=The Bard's Tale Compendium |year=2000 |url=http://bardstale.poverellomedia.com/beyond.html |access-date=February 24, 2011 |work=Interview transcript}}</ref> Michael Cranford, however, stated that an Electronic Arts agent they worked with had come up with the city name ([[Skara Brae]], named after a real-life settlement in prehistoric [[Orkney]]) and the game's title, ''The Bard's Tale'' (from originally: ''Tale of the Scarlet Bard''), and that ''The Destiny Knight'' was never going to be called ''The Archmage's Tale''.<ref>According to his [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sNszzdB8HBs GDC 2018: Classic Game Postmortem: 'The Bard's Tale I and II'] presentation (around the 31:32 mark)</ref>

What was originally going to be ''The Bard's Tale IV'' became an unrelated game called ''[[Dragon Wars]]'' (1989) at a very late point in its development process, due to rights issues after developer Interplay parted ways with publisher Electronic Arts.<ref name="heinem-interview">[http://www.digitpress.com/library/interviews/interview_rebecca_heineman.html Rebecca Heineman Interview.] Digit Press, 2006.</ref> The game's name and storyline were changed to disassociate it from the Bard's Tale series.

In 2003, [[Brian Fargo]] (who created maps for the first two ''Bard's Tale'' games and directed the third) left Interplay Entertainment and began a new [[video game developer|game development company]] named [[InXile Entertainment]]. In 2004, they released their first game, also titled [[The Bard's Tale (2004 video game)|''The Bard's Tale'']], an unrelated, console-style, top-down, [[Action role-playing game|action RPG]] which pokes fun at traditional, fantasy, and role-playing game tropes as in those found throughout the original ''Bard's Tale''. It was not a proper sequel to the classic series, nor was it connected in any respect apart from the title and location: the story takes place on the [[Orkney]] [[Mainland, Orkney|Mainland]], where the ruins of real-world Skara Brae lie. Although a legal loophole allowed InXile to use the ''Bard's Tale'' name, and the company had evidently planned to incorporate more elements of the original games,<ref>{{cite web|title=The Bard's Tale Compendium |year=2004 |url=http://bardstale.poverellomedia.com/beyond.html |access-date=February 24, 2011 |work=Game review}}</ref> Electronic Arts still owned the original [[trademark]]s for the ''Bard's Tale'' series itself, and InXile was not legally allowed to use any of the plot, characters, or locations featured in the original trilogy in their 2004 game.

In May 2015, Fargo announced that he was planning to develop and a sequel funded through [[crowdfunding]] on [[Kickstarter]], ''[[The Bard's Tale IV: Barrows Deep|The Bard's Tale IV]]''.<ref>{{Cite web|url = https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/inxile/the-bards-tale-iv|title = The Bards Tale IV by inXile entertainment|access-date = June 15, 2015|website = [[Kickstarter]]|date = June 2, 2015}}</ref> The game, which was released in 2018, continues the storyline of the original trilogy but has significantly changed gameplay.

''[[The Mage's Tale]]'' was published by InXile in 2017 as a spinoff game using [[virtual reality]] technology. It was developed concurrently with ''The Bard's Tale IV''.

===Remastered Edition===
During the [[Kickstarter]] campaign to create a proper fourth installment to the series, inXile partnered with [[Rebecca Heineman]] and her company Olde Sküül to remaster the original trilogy for modern personal computers running [[mac OS]] and [[Windows]] (instead of the emulated versions offered by inXile).<ref>{{cite web|last1=Sarkar|first1=Samit|title=The Bard's Tale 4 Kickstarter backers to receive original Bard's Tale trilogy free|url=https://www.polygon.com/2015/6/11/8766299/the-bards-tale-4-kickstarter-original-trilogy-free|website=[[Polygon (website)|Polygon]]|access-date=September 6, 2019|date=June 11, 2015}}</ref> After reaching an impasse in development, Olde Sküül and inXile agreed to transfer the project to [[Krome Studios]].<ref>{{cite web|last1=Mazagalli|first1=Paul|title=The Bard Takes Some Questions!|url=https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/inxile/the-bards-tale-iv/posts/2188974|website=[[Kickstarter]]|access-date=September 6, 2019|date=May 17, 2018}}</ref> Krome Studios and inXile released the remastered edition on August 14, 2018, as part of the remastered ''The Bard's Trilogy''.<ref>{{cite web|last1=Vincent|first1=Britta ny|title=inXile Entertainment's The Bard's Tale Trilogy Remaster is out now|url=https://www.shacknews.com/article/106715/inxile-entertainments-the-bards-tale-trilogy-remaster-is-out-now|website=[[Shacknews]]|access-date=September 6, 2019|date=August 14, 2018}}</ref>

The Remastered Edition essentially re-wrote the original games, keeping only the storyline and gameplay design but little if any of the original game code. Graphics, sound, and user interface were updated to modern standards, various bugs were fixed, and a unified authoritative gameplay was devised when it turned out that there were significant differences not only between parts I, II, and III of the original trilogy (such as the number of characters in the party or spells being available at different levels, or not available at all, in different installments), but also between ports of the same game. Some content was added, including female character portraits and (inconsequential) references to the Bard's Tale IV storyline.

The remastered edition of the original trilogy was released for [[Xbox One]] on August 13, 2019. This followed the acquisition of inXile Entertainment by [[Microsoft]]. The collection supports [[Xbox Play Anywhere]].<ref>{{cite web|last1=Madan|first1=Asher|title=Cult classic 'The Bard's Tale Trilogy' warps on Xbox One, supports Xbox Play Anywhere|url=https://www.windowscentral.com/cult-classic-bards-tale-trilogy-warps-xbox-one-supports-xbox-play-anywhere|website=Windows Central|access-date=September 6, 2019|date=August 13, 2019}}</ref>

===Novels===
A series of novels based on ''The Bard's Tale'' were published by [[Baen Books]] during the 1990s. Although the books had little in common with the storyline of the games, their existence is a testament to how influential the ''Bard's Tale'' [[brand]] had become. They include:

#''Castle of Deception'', by [[Mercedes Lackey]] and [[Josepha Sherman]] (1992, {{ISBN|0-671-72125-9}})
#''Fortress of Frost and Fire'', by Mercedes Lackey and Ru Emerson (1993, {{ISBN|0-671-72162-3}})
#''Prison of Souls'', by Mercedes Lackey and [[Mark Shepherd (Novelist)|Mark Shepherd]] (1994, {{ISBN|0-671-72193-3}})
#''The Chaos Gate'', by Josepha Sherman (1994, {{ISBN|0-671-87597-3}})
#''Thunder of the Captains'', by [[Holly Lisle]] and [[Aaron Allston]] (1996, {{ISBN|0-671-87731-3}})
#''Wrath of the Princes'', by Holly Lisle and Aaron Allston (1997, {{ISBN|0-671-87771-2}})
#''Escape from Roksamur'', by Mark Shepherd (1997, {{ISBN|0-671-87797-6}})
#''Curse of the Black Heron'', by Holly Lisle (1998, {{ISBN|0-671-87868-9}})

While they are listed here in the order they were published, some books in the series connect more than others, such as ''Castle of Deception'' and ''The Chaos Gate'', ''Prison of Souls'' and ''Escape from Roksamur'', and ''Thunder of the Captains'' and ''Wrath of the Princes''.

==References==
{{reflist}}

==External links==
*[http://www.bardstale.de/ The Adventurer's Guild]
*[http://www.gamebase64.com/game.php?id=622&d=18 ''The Bard's Tale''] at Gamebase 64
*{{WoS game|id=0000418|name=The Bard's Tale}}
*{{Lemon Amiga game|id=121}}
*{{moby game|id=/tales-of-the-unknown-volume-i-the-bards-tale|name=''The Bard's Tale''}}
*[http://bardstale.poverellomedia.com ''The Bard's Tale Compendium'']
*[http://www.c64sets.com/set.html?id=66 Box, manual, and screenshots] at C64Sets.com

{{Bard's Tale series}}

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