Bard’s Tale IV Trailers Provide Insight Into Combat, Character Creation

In a pair of spotlight videos, inXile Entertainment has pulled back the curtain on two aspects of its upcoming The Bard’s Tale IV: Barrows Deep, a revival of the long-dormant franchise. Focusing on character creation and combat respectively, the two videos exhibit gameplay footage with voice-over narration walking the viewer through various gameplay options. The first video grants a look at the four different character archetypes players can choose from — the eponymous Bard, spell-slinging Practitioner, front-line Fighter, or stealthy Rogue — as well as how choosing a character’s cultural background determines their look and passive ability. The second, more recent, video showcases all manner of combat variables, from First Strike sneak attacks and hazardous traps, to choosing tactical squad positions and synergizing special abilities into combo moves.

The Bard’s Tale IV: Barrows Deep was funded in 2015 via a successful Kickstarter campaign, and is the first mainline sequel in the franchise in thirty years. The game is slated for a September 18, 2018 release both in North America and Europe, and is coming to PC, Mac, and Linux. To promote the game, the developer has implemented a Wishlist Initiative, dropping the price of the game as certain thresholds of players wishlisting the game on Steam, GOG.com, and Humble Bundle are met.