The Bard's Tale IV: Barrows Deep

 PC
User Score
6.5

Mixed or average reviews- based on 101 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 59 out of 101
  2. Mixed: 11 out of 101
  3. Negative: 31 out of 101

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  1. Dubeau
    May 19, 2019
    5
    Bards Tale 4 is surely a step up in the grid base RPG. The graphics are amazing but very poorly managed in terms of performance and of visual filters. I played with re-shade to get rid of the constant blur on the textures. The sounds and the music are easily the best parts of the game. The soundtrack is just lovable. Combat is very weak. It works but you have a lot of balancing problems.Bards Tale 4 is surely a step up in the grid base RPG. The graphics are amazing but very poorly managed in terms of performance and of visual filters. I played with re-shade to get rid of the constant blur on the textures. The sounds and the music are easily the best parts of the game. The soundtrack is just lovable. Combat is very weak. It works but you have a lot of balancing problems. In particular with the resurrected skeletons, which destroy the combat system after 25 hours of gameplay. That, made me leave the game. The puzzle are uneven. Some are decent but others very obscure. The problem is that in the ending phase some obscure puzzles are mandatory. I give it a 55%. I wasn't very please to experience most of the problems of this game after 25-30 hours. While the initial impression were good, the game becomes frustrating in the long run.… Expand
  2. soli
    Sep 23, 2018
    6
    To everyone who is having trouble with load times: install the game to a SSD hard drive. It loads in just a few seconds, compared to what feels like forever on a conventional hard drive. I can say, the difference is like night and day!

    The game is heavily focused on the music & sound effects / ambient sounds -- to get the best experience, I strongly recommend a good sound card & good    To everyone who is having trouble with load times: install the game to a SSD hard drive. It loads in just a few seconds, compared to what feels like forever on a conventional hard drive. I can say, the difference is like night and day!

    The game is heavily focused on the music & sound effects / ambient sounds -- to get the best experience, I strongly recommend a good sound card & good speakers or headphones. Otherwise the game feels flat and mediocre -- really, it's like adding great sound & music to movies rather than watching a movie on Mute.

    I'm personally impressed by how Bard's Tale 4 incorporates puzzles into the adventure. Having played Bard's Tale 1-3, I recall having to solve numerous puzzles and devious & clever riddles (apparently a Celtic tradition). Barrows Deep has an innovative combat system that reminds me of the old-school feel of combat, spiced up -- almost like a mini-game.

    I do recommend staying closely to the main storyline, which gives the game a flow and feel which is rather nice.    … Expand
  3. QweSteR
    Oct 4, 2021
    7
    The Bard's Tale IV: Director's Cut - отличная игра, сочетающая различные геймплейные аспекты: раздолье для исследования и поиска секреток, пища для ума - головоломки, сложные и вполне увлекательные тактические бои. К тому же игра красиво оформлена и приятно звучит.

    Думаю The Bard's Tale IV: Director's Cut прежде всего подойдёт первопроходцам жанра Dungeon Crawler (Blobber'ов), олды же    The Bard's Tale IV: Director's Cut - отличная игра, сочетающая различные геймплейные аспекты: раздолье для исследования и поиска секреток, пища для ума - головоломки, сложные и вполне увлекательные тактические бои. К тому же игра красиво оформлена и приятно звучит.

    Думаю The Bard's Tale IV: Director's Cut прежде всего подойдёт первопроходцам жанра Dungeon Crawler (Blobber'ов), олды же справедливо подвергнут критики. Я не смог осилить Wizardy и Might and Magic, но The Bard's Tale IV понравился.

    The Bard's Tale IV оказался слишком затянутой игрой. И дело не в размере игрового мира и загадках, а скорее в несовершенстве навигации и избыточности незначительных боёв (не всегда быстро найдёшь маршрут, через часов 10 забудешь кому сдавать квест, по пути наткнёшься на пятёрку проходных боёв и т.д).

    Достоинства перевешивают незначительные недостатки. И пусть Брайану Фарго не хватило денег с продаж The Bard's Tale IV на покупку Interplay, но ему удалось сделать достойный сиквел культовой игры.

    ОЦЕНКА 7.8/10:
    The Bard's Tale IV: Director's Cut достоин прохождения, игру совсем не обязательно изучать вдоль и поперёк. Повторное прохождение затронет лишь самых преданных поклонников жанра, но вряд ли удовольствие окажется соразмерно первому опыту, всё же игра линейная.    … Expand
  4. TheTodd68
    Jan 2, 2019
    6
    To start out: I recommend this game, with hesitation. It's definitely recommended if you are a fan of "classic" CRPGs, including the original Bard's Tale Series.

    The game definitely is presented as a sequel to the original game, and in that vain, it succeeds well, transitioning between a combat focused CRPG and a puzzle adventure game. To hit some highlights: * There's a decent    To start out: I recommend this game, with hesitation. It's definitely recommended if you are a fan of "classic" CRPGs, including the original Bard's Tale Series.

    The game definitely is presented as a sequel to the original game, and in that vain, it succeeds well, transitioning between a combat focused CRPG and a puzzle adventure game. To hit some highlights:

    * There's a decent amount of content; I'm about 20 hours in and I'm guessing only 25-30% "done".
    * The game is configured for progressive revelation. Early maps don't unlock all of their content (making navigation of the early maps tedious) until certain skills are unlocked that open up other map areas.
    * Character classes from the original series are present in name only. Progression is basically via skills gained during level ups. A set of skills is selected for each character to use during combat. The need to have an effective mix of skills in the party is very important due to this gameplay element.
    * Excellent use of music and audio in the game. Probably the game's highest point, reaching AAA quality.
    * The gameplay switches between combat and puzzle solving. It tends to focus on one or the other, and the puzzle content is quite high--if you're interested in a combat focused RPG, you'll be disappointed by the large amount of puzzle content.
    * The game is fairly linear in terms of the plots and quests. There are side quests, but they seem to be given and persist for quite some time until they can be completed. As such the game plays in a very linear fashion: fight, solve puzzles, finish quest, optinoally finish side quest, repeat.
    * Open world. I really wanted an experience similar to Dragon Age Inquisition, with an open world feel and exploration being key. This game is not that, it (to me) was somewhat disappointing.

    The previous points elaborate the gameplay elements I feel are key to enjoying the game.

    Finally: I've ignored one of the major downsides for the game--the game engine. As of early Jan. 2019 it can best be described as a mess. It looks "ok", but the performance for the "ok" is atrocious. Load times are somewhere between long and painfully long. Combat can be fun, but the timing and animations make the entire experience seem prolonged--and unlike the original trilogy there's no "speed up combat" option. If you have to replay combat after a loss, it becomes even more tedious. To that end: if you aren't willing to accept (up front) the issues with the engine, you'd be better off playing another game.    … Expand
  5. Biberattacke
    May 10, 2020
    7
    Bards Tale IV Directors Cut
    Es ist ein OldSchool RPG aus der Ego Perspektive aller Black Crypt oder Lands of Lore (kleiner Verweis: jahaa ich weiß, dass die Wizardry Reihe und Dungeon Master viel populärer sind, aber ich habe weder das eine noch das andere je gespielt (Notiz an mich: Bildungslücke???)
    Dennoch habe ich dieses kleine feine Genre für mich wieder entdeckt und als Experiment    Bards Tale IV Directors Cut
    Es ist ein OldSchool RPG aus der Ego Perspektive aller Black Crypt oder Lands of Lore (kleiner Verweis: jahaa ich weiß, dass die Wizardry Reihe und Dungeon Master viel populärer sind, aber ich habe weder das eine noch das andere je gespielt (Notiz an mich: Bildungslücke???)
    Dennoch habe ich dieses kleine feine Genre für mich wieder entdeckt und als Experiment eben Bards Tale bei Steam erworben. Die Alternative wäre Operencia: The Stolen Sun gewesen, aber ich hatte bis dato keinen Epic Store Account und dieses Spiel ist eben temporär exklusiv für diesen welchen,

    Nun aber zum Spiel:
    Die Story vom Bards Tale ist recht schnell erzähl: Ancient Evil is lurking in the Dark... Punkt.
    Anfangs weiß man noch nicht genau worum es geht, aber alle fremden Rassen und Andersgläubigen in der Spielwelt werden von der vorherrschenden Klasse der Kirche und ihren fanatischen Paladinen verfolgt und tyrannisiert. Schnell bekommt man aber mit, dass mehr dahinter steckt und loooooos gehts.
    Ich will nicht spoilern deswegen... gleich zum Fazit: Nett, nicht mehr aber auch nicht weniger.
    Interssanter ist die Spielmechanik:
    -Elfenwaffen die, wenn man ihre Rätsel löst, zusätzliche Bonusfähigkeiten freischalten.
    -Tolle Anspruchsvolle Rätsel, zum Teil seeeehr anspruchsvoll (ich habe 2 mal in ein Walkthrough gucken müssen und bis heute nicht verstanden warum man von einem Bild mit Krähen auf ein Glockenspiel schließen kann, Notiz an mich: viellicht bin auch einfach zu blöd???)
    -Taktische Rundenkämpfe die gerade anfangs recht fordernd sind, nachher aber fast ein bisschen zu einfach, wenn man die richtige Allround Taktik gefunden hat. Ein Wechsel der Skillung ist bei meinem Durchlauf nur ein mal notwendig gewesen (Schwierikgeitsgrad Normal ohne Permadeath),
    Die Atmosphäre ist meist recht gelungen. Sehr liebevoll gestaltete Musik. Obwohl ich kein Fan irisch oder schottischer Volklore bin ist es hier, wo es doch im Kern um den Barden an sich geht, sehr passend und gelungen. Vor allem steckt viel arbeit drin, und das merkt man! Die Grafik hat sehr schöne Glanz und Lichteffekte, allerdings sind die Animationen teilweise recht hölzern. Außerdem gibt es auch in der DR Cut Version teilweise in den Kämfen fehlende Animationsphasen und das ist wirklich nicht das was ich von einer DR Cut Version erwarte. Die Sprecher sind ausnahmslos gut (alles Englisch mit häufig starkem schottischem Akzent und deutschem Untertitel (sehr empfehlenswert, wie gesagt schottischer Akzent))

    Insgesamt hatte ich viel Spass, wenn auch gleich das Spiel zum Ende hin (die letzten 4 Stunden Spielzeit) teilweise Qualvolle Rätsel beinhaltete. Am Ende war man aber dann doch froh und stolz wenn man sie gelöst hatte.
    Kurzum: Ich bin froh dieses Experiment gewagt zu haben und werde irgendwann nächstes Jahr dann auch mal zu einem anderen Rollenspiel dieser Art linsen,,, evlt auch Operencia, es erscheint dann ja auch bei Steam, Nachtrag: Operencia wird aktuell gerade von mir gespielt    … Expand

Awards & Rankings

83
#83 Most Discussed PC Game of 2018
32
#32 Most Shared PC Game of 2018

Critic Reviews

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Metascore
71

Mixed or average reviews - based on 42 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 21 out of 42
  2. Mixed: 17 out of 42
  3. Negative: 4 out of 42
  1. CD-Action
    Feb 13, 2019
    80
    The Bard’s Tale IV is like a beautifully composed song performed on out of tunes instruments. There are moments when it borders on genius, other times it actively encouraged me to uninstall and forget it. For every strength it has a weakness. Good writing, superb puzzles, great music, outstanding voice-overs and solid mechanics are counterbalanced by quite awful visuals (how can Unreal Engine 4 look so bad?), some examples of bad design, a truckload of bugs (how about skills that don’t work or the ability to loot a chest through a ceiling?) and frequent crashes. For me the advantages were what mattered more, but I completely understand scores in the region of 4/10. [12/2018, p.58]
  2. LEVEL (Czech Republic)
    Dec 31, 2018
    80
    An adventure in which lute is played and songs are sung just can’t let you down. Bard's Tale has a lot of flaws, but it finds a way to the player's heart. However, the game is pretty far from its original trilogy. [Issue#290]
  3. RPG Site
    Dec 4, 2018
    70
    The Bard's Tale IV: Barrows Deep has a satisfyingly deep and flexible battle system, surrounded by heavy puzzle exploration and a narrative that doesn't manage to stay interesting. There are some really neat systems at play here for those looking for intricate combat, but performance issues and a lacking storyline make it a hard sell to a larger audience.
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