The Bard's Tale Review
Corwin, 2005-09-01

Let me get something clear right from the start; I hate top down views and I utterly LOATHE and detest save points! Having said that, I feel much better. If you are able to see past these two barriers, then a delight awaits.

You have no real choice of character; you play the Bard a slightly unsavoury miscreant with only one thing on his mind. However, I knew I was in for a treat when I visited the very first Inn and listened to the drunks singing. Oh, I realise everyone else writes about the clichéd use of the rat here, but for me it was the singing that brightened my afternoon. Later still, when I experienced for the first time the all singing, all dancing rendition of "It's Bad Luck to be You", as the first of many ‘Chosen Ones' met a grisly end, I knew this was a game to be enjoyed for what it was, rather than for what it wasn't. Just follow the bouncing ball.

To be honest, the plot is fairly thin and deliberately unoriginal. The combat is satisfactory, without being brilliant. It's little more than a click fest, with a few special moves thrown in as options or feats. Magic use is limited to summoning assorted creatures and NPC's who will assist you with tasks and fight by your side. There's plenty of variety to choose from and you will regularly learn more tunes to summon different companions, or learn upgraded versions for the ones you have. As you obtain better quality instruments, your mana will increase, as will the the number of characters you can summon. Character development is simple, straightforward and dare I say it, quite basic. However, none of these potential shortcomings makes the slightest impact on the overall delightful nature of this game.

Do you have a sense of humour? If not, stop reading this and go play some silly little FPS. If you have, then you will enjoy The Bard's Tale. Humour is its raison d'etre along with a hefty dose of every gaming cliché I've ever come across in the past 20 years. If you've played and enjoyed RPG's over those years, as I have, you'll immediately recognise elements from all of them, including the obligatory Lava region. That should come as no surprise since Brian Fargo, the man behind the game, has been involved in many of the greatest RPG's of the past 20 years, including the original Bard's Tale series. This is both a homage to and a parody of all those gaming classics.

Part of the fun comes from the repartee between the Bard, wonderfully voiced by Carey Elwes of ‘The Princess Bride" fame and the narrator, who sounds so very much like Tom Baker, everyone's favourite Doctor Who. Our Bard, is no hero. Instead, he's motivated purely by personal greed. This is in sharp contrast to the myriad of so called ‘Chosen Ones' who epitomise the usual gaming cliché of poor naïve farmboy who alone can save the world. Happily, most of these are either quickly killed or wind up in jail for being a nuisance.

The graphics aren't scintillating, your inventory is practically non-existent (everything you find is converted straight to gold unless it's an upgrade of your current equipment), there is limited character customisation, and dialogue choices are limited to two; snarky and not as snarky. The combat tends to be repetitive and sometimes annoying (did I mention I hate Save points?) since at times you can face five or six major battles without being able to save and if you die, you have to load, rinse and repeat. Yet, strangely, none of this matters. It's a fun and engaging romp that will keep you smiling for hours after you've finished it. I'm still finding myself singing "It's Bad Luck to be You" as a smile creases my face. Get this one and enjoy it for what it is. A marvellously conceived send up of my favourite genre, by a master who created many of the concepts he lampoons. On that level, it succeeds brilliantly. Here is one game, where the total is greater than the sum of its parts.