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Difference between revisions of "The Bard's Tale"

From PCGamingWiki, the wiki about fixing PC games
m (Added MobyGames)
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−
{{cleanup|reason=This page contains information for both the original game and the reboot}}
+
{{disambig|the original game|the 2005 reboot and the bundled emulated games|[[The Bard's Tale (2005)]]|the 2018 trilogy remake|[[The Bard's Tale Trilogy]]}}
−
{{disambig|the original 1987 game|the 2005 reboot|[[The Bard's Tale (2005)]]|the 2018 trilogy remake|[[The Bard's Tale Trilogy]]}}
 
 
{{Infobox game
 
{{Infobox game
 
|cover        = The Bard's Tale 1987 - cover.jpg
 
|cover        = The Bard's Tale 1987 - cover.jpg
Line 12: Line 11:
 
{{Infobox game/row/date|DOS|1987}}
 
{{Infobox game/row/date|DOS|1987}}
 
{{Infobox game/row/date|Mac OS|1989}}
 
{{Infobox game/row/date|Mac OS|1989}}
−
{{Infobox game/row/date|Windows|June 17, 2005|wrapper=emulator}}
+
|taxonomy    =
−
{{Infobox game/row/date|OS X|May 31, 2012|wrapper=emulator}}
+
{{Infobox game/row/taxonomy/monetization      | One-time game purchase }}
−
{{Infobox game/row/date|Linux|October 10, 2013|wrapper=emulator}}
+
{{Infobox game/row/taxonomy/modes            | Singleplayer }}
−
|steam appid  = 41900
+
{{Infobox game/row/taxonomy/pacing            | Turn-based }}
−
|gogcom id    = 1207659164
+
{{Infobox game/row/taxonomy/perspectives      | First-person }}
 +
{{Infobox game/row/taxonomy/controls          | }}
 +
{{Infobox game/row/taxonomy/genres            | RPG }}
 +
{{Infobox game/row/taxonomy/art styles        | }}
 +
{{Infobox game/row/taxonomy/themes            | Fantasy }}
 +
{{Infobox game/row/taxonomy/series            | The Bard's Tale }}
 +
|steam appid  =  
 +
|gogcom id    =  
 +
|hltb        = 9771
 +
|lutris      = tales-of-the-unknown-volume-i-the-bard-s-tale
 
|strategywiki = The Bard's Tale
 
|strategywiki = The Bard's Tale
−
|mobygames    = tales-of-the-unknown-volume-i-the-bards-tale
+
|mobygames    = 819
 
|wikipedia    = The Bard's Tale (1985 video game)
 
|wikipedia    = The Bard's Tale (1985 video game)
 
|winehq      =  
 
|winehq      =  
 
|license      = commercial
 
|license      = commercial
 
}}
 
}}
−
{{Series|The Bard's Tale}}
 
  
−
'''General information'''
+
{{Introduction
−
{{GOG.com links|1207659164|the_bards_tale_series|for game series}}
+
|introduction      =
−
{{mm}} [https://steamcommunity.com/app/41900/discussions/ Steam Community Discussions]
+
 
 +
|release history  =
 +
 
 +
|current state    =
 +
}}
  
 
==Availability==
 
==Availability==
 
{{Availability|
 
{{Availability|
 
{{Availability/row| Retail | | unknown | | | DOS, Mac OS }}
 
{{Availability/row| Retail | | unknown | | | DOS, Mac OS }}
−
{{Availability/row| GOG.com | the_bards_tale | DRM-free | | | Windows, OS X, Linux }}
 
−
{{Availability/row| Steam | 41900 | Steam | | | Windows, OS X, Linux}}
 
−
}}
 
−
{{ii}} All digital versions include The Bard's Tale, [[The Bard's Tale II: The Destiny Knight]], [[The Bard's Tale III: Thief of Fate]], and [[The Bard's Tale (2005)]].
 
−
 
−
==Essential improvements==
 
−
===Run in MESS===
 
−
{{ii}} Digital versions of [[The Bard's Tale (2005)]] include the Apple IIgs version emulated in a custom [http://kegs.sourceforge.net KEGS] build.
 
−
{{ii}} Using MESS allows for save states, windowed mode, control customisation and many other enhancements.
 
−
 
−
{{Fixbox|description=Move game files|ref={{cn|date=July 2016}}|fix=
 
−
# Download [http://messui.the-chronicles.org MESSUI] and extract it.
 
−
# Make a <code>roms</code> folder in the MESSUI folder.
 
−
# Download <code>apple2gs.zip</code> from the latest [https://archive.org/search.php?query=collection%3Amessmame+bios+rom&sort=-publicdate MESS BIOS Collection] and put it in the MESSUI <code>roms</code> folder.
 
−
# Launch the game through [[The Bard's Tale (2005)]], then exit.
 
−
# Go to the [[#Game data|Save game data location]] location and copy <code>bt1d1.2mg</code> and <code>bt1d2.2mg</code> into the MESSUI <code>roms</code> folder.<br> Or alternatively you can manually unpack 3 files iibt1.bin, iibt12.bin and iibt3.bin found in the game installation (on Linux they are under "res" subdirectory) using these passwords (they are password encrypted ZIP archives):<br><code>02iibt112</code> for <code>iibt1.bin</code><br> <code>02iibt212</code> for <code>iibt2.bin</code><br> <code>02iibt312</code> for <code>iibt3.bin</code>
 
−
# Run MESS and select Apple IIgs (ROM03).
 
−
# Go to the Device View tab and mount <code>bt1d1.2mg</code> and <code>bt1d2.2mg</code> as Floppy Disk (Sony).
 
−
# Run Apple IIgs (ROM03) to start the game.
 
−
# Choose Slot 5, Drive 2 when prompted for a characters disk.
 
−
{{ii}} To configure the output scaler, Vsync, etc. right-click Apple IIgs (ROM03) and choose Properties.
 
 
}}
 
}}
 +
{{ii}} The DOS version of the game is not available digitally. Digital versions of [[The Bard's Tale (2005)]] include emulated Apple IIgs versions of The Bard's Tale, [[The Bard's Tale II: The Destiny Knight]], and [[The Bard's Tale III: Thief of Fate]].
  
 
==Game data==
 
==Game data==
 
===Save game data location===
 
===Save game data location===
 
{{Game data|
 
{{Game data|
−
{{Game data/saves|DOS|{{p|game}}\*.TPW}}
+
{{Game data/saves|DOS|A:\*.TPW|{{p|game}}\*.TPW}}
−
{{Game data/saves|Windows|{{p|localappdata}}\inXile entertainment\bt1d2.2mg}}
 
 
{{Game data/saves|Mac OS|}}
 
{{Game data/saves|Mac OS|}}
−
{{Game data/saves|OS X|~/Library/Application Support/The Bard's Tale/btpriv/bt1d2.2mg}}
 
−
{{Game data/saves|Linux|{{P|xdgdatahome}}/BardTale/bt1d2.2mg}}
 
−
}}
 
−
{{XDG|true}}
 
−
 
−
===[[Glossary:Save game cloud syncing|Save game cloud syncing]]===
 
−
{{Save game cloud syncing
 
−
|discord                =
 
−
|discord notes          =
 
−
|epic games store      =
 
−
|epic games store notes =
 
−
|gog galaxy            = false
 
−
|gog galaxy notes      =
 
−
|origin                =
 
−
|origin notes          =
 
−
|steam cloud            = false
 
−
|steam cloud notes      =
 
−
|uplay                  =
 
−
|uplay notes            =
 
−
|xbox cloud            =
 
−
|xbox cloud notes      =
 
 
}}
 
}}
 +
{{ii}} Saves are stored on a save floppy (when running from floppy) or in the installation folder (when running from the hard drive).
 +
{{ii}} The {{file|*.TPW}} extension is used for both party files and individual characters (party files only store the names of the characters, not the data for the characters). Files are numbered in the order of creation.<ref name="refcheck Garrett">{{Refcheck|user=Garrett|date=3 September 2021|comment=}}</ref>
 +
{{ii}} Settings are not stored between sessions.
  
−
==Video settings==
+
==Video==
−
{{Video settings
+
{{Video
 
|wsgf link                  =  
 
|wsgf link                  =  
 
|widescreen wsgf award      =  
 
|widescreen wsgf award      =  
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|fov                        = n/a
 
|fov                        = n/a
 
|fov notes                  =  
 
|fov notes                  =  
−
|windowed                  = true
+
|windowed                  = false
−
|windowed notes            = Toggle with {{key|Alt|Enter}} (when using [[DOSBox]] or [[#Run in MESS|MESS]]).
+
|windowed notes            =  
−
|borderless windowed        = true
+
|borderless windowed        = false
−
|borderless windowed notes  = When using MESSUI, fullscreen borderless is the default.
+
|borderless windowed notes  =  
 
|anisotropic                = n/a
 
|anisotropic                = n/a
 
|anisotropic notes          =  
 
|anisotropic notes          =  
 
|antialiasing              = n/a
 
|antialiasing              = n/a
 
|antialiasing notes        =  
 
|antialiasing notes        =  
−
|vsync                      = hackable
+
|upscaling                  = unknown
−
|vsync notes                = Use [[#Run in MESS|MESS]] for digital versions; false for DOS version.
+
|upscaling tech            =
 +
|upscaling notes            =
 +
|vsync                      = false
 +
|vsync notes                =  
 
|60 fps                    = unknown
 
|60 fps                    = unknown
 
|60 fps notes              =  
 
|60 fps notes              =  
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}}
 
}}
  
−
==Input settings==
+
==Input==
−
{{Input settings
+
{{Input
 
|key remap                = false
 
|key remap                = false
 
|key remap notes          =  
 
|key remap notes          =  
 
|acceleration option      = false
 
|acceleration option      = false
 
|acceleration option notes =  
 
|acceleration option notes =  
−
|mouse sensitivity        = unknown
+
|mouse sensitivity        = false
 
|mouse sensitivity notes  =  
 
|mouse sensitivity notes  =  
 
|mouse menu                = true
 
|mouse menu                = true
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|touchscreen              = unknown
 
|touchscreen              = unknown
 
|touchscreen notes        =  
 
|touchscreen notes        =  
−
|controller support        = false
+
|controller support        = true
 
|controller support notes  =  
 
|controller support notes  =  
−
|full controller          = unknown
+
|full controller          = false
 
|full controller notes    =  
 
|full controller notes    =  
−
|controller remap          = unknown
+
|controller remap          = false
 
|controller remap notes    =  
 
|controller remap notes    =  
−
|controller sensitivity    = unknown
+
|controller sensitivity    = false
 
|controller sensitivity notes=  
 
|controller sensitivity notes=  
−
|invert controller y-axis  = unknown
+
|invert controller y-axis  = n/a
 
|invert controller y-axis notes=  
 
|invert controller y-axis notes=  
 
|xinput controllers        = unknown
 
|xinput controllers        = unknown
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|other button prompts      = unknown
 
|other button prompts      = unknown
 
|other button prompts notes=  
 
|other button prompts notes=  
−
|controller hotplug        = unknown
+
|controller hotplug        = false
 
|controller hotplug notes  =  
 
|controller hotplug notes  =  
−
|haptic feedback          = unknown
+
|haptic feedback          = false
 
|haptic feedback notes    =  
 
|haptic feedback notes    =  
−
|simultaneous input        = unknown
+
|simultaneous input        = true
 
|simultaneous input notes  =  
 
|simultaneous input notes  =  
 
|steam input api          = unknown
 
|steam input api          = unknown
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}}
 
}}
  
−
==Audio settings==
+
==Audio==
−
{{Audio settings
+
{{Audio
 
|separate volume          = false
 
|separate volume          = false
−
|separate volume notes    =  
+
|separate volume notes    = On/off only (toggle with {{key|V}}).
 
|surround sound          = false
 
|surround sound          = false
 
|surround sound notes    =  
 
|surround sound notes    =  
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|mute on focus lost notes =  
 
|mute on focus lost notes =  
 
|eax support              =  
 
|eax support              =  
−
|eax support notes        =  
+
|eax support notes         =
 +
|royalty free audio       = unknown
 +
|royalty free audio notes  =
 +
|red book cd audio        =
 +
|red book cd audio notes  =  
 
}}
 
}}
  
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|vulkan versions        =  
 
|vulkan versions        =  
 
|vulkan notes          =  
 
|vulkan notes          =  
−
|dos modes              = unknown
+
|dos modes              = CGA, EGA, Tandy
−
|dos modes notes        =  
+
|dos modes notes        = EGA mode is listed as "RGB monitor" in setup. An additional black & white Composite mode (not Hercules) is also supported.<ref name="refcheck Garrett"/>
 
|shader model versions  =  
 
|shader model versions  =  
 
|shader model notes    =  
 
|shader model notes    =  
 
|windows 32-bit exe    = unknown
 
|windows 32-bit exe    = unknown
 
|windows 64-bit exe    = unknown
 
|windows 64-bit exe    = unknown
 +
|windows arm app        = false
 
|windows exe notes      =  
 
|windows exe notes      =  
−
|macos 32-bit app       = unknown
+
|macos intel 32-bit app = unknown
−
|macos 64-bit app       = unknown
+
|macos intel 64-bit app = unknown
 +
|macos arm app          = unknown
 
|macos app notes        =  
 
|macos app notes        =  
 
|linux 32-bit executable= unknown
 
|linux 32-bit executable= unknown
 
|linux 64-bit executable= unknown
 
|linux 64-bit executable= unknown
 +
|linux arm app          = unknown
 
|linux executable notes =  
 
|linux executable notes =  
 
}}
 
}}
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==System requirements==
 
==System requirements==
 
{{System requirements
 
{{System requirements
−
|OSfamily = Windows
+
|OSfamily = DOS
  
−
|minOS    = 2000, XP, Vista
+
|minOS    = 2.0
−
|minCPU  = Intel Pentium 4 2.0 GHz
+
|minCPU  =  
−
|minCPU2  = AMD Athlon XP 2400+
+
|minRAM  =  
−
|minRAM  = 512 MB
+
|minHD    =  
−
|minHD    = 6 GB
+
|minGPU  =  
−
|minGPU  = Nvidia GeForce FX 5700
 
−
|minGPU2  = ATI Radeon 9600
 
−
|minDX    = 9.0c
 
−
}}
 
−
 
 
−
{{System requirements
 
−
|OSfamily = OS X
 
−
 
 
−
|minOS    = 10.6
 
−
|minHD    = 3.6 GB
 
−
}}
 
−
 
 
−
{{System requirements
 
−
|OSfamily = Linux
 
  
−
|minOS   =  
+
|recOS   =  
−
|minCPU   = Intel Pentium 4 2.0 GHz
+
|recCPU   =  
−
|minCPU2  = AMD Athlon XP 2400+
+
|recRAM   =  
−
|minRAM   = 512 MB
+
|recHD   =  
−
|minHD   = 6 GB
+
|recGPU   =  
−
|minGPU   = Nvidia GeForce FX 5700
+
|notes    =  
−
|minGPU2  = ATI Radeon 9600
 
−
|minOGL  = 2.0
 
 
}}
 
}}
  
 
{{References}}
 
{{References}}

Latest revision as of 15:01, 4 February 2024

This page is for the original game. For the 2005 reboot and the bundled emulated games, see The Bard's Tale (2005). For the 2018 trilogy remake, see The Bard's Tale Trilogy.

The Bard's Tale
The Bard's Tale cover
Developers
Interplay Entertainment
Publishers
Electronic Arts
Europe Ariolasoft
Release dates
DOS 1987
Mac OS (Classic) 1989
Taxonomy
Monetization One-time game purchase
Modes Singleplayer
Pacing Turn-based
Perspectives First-person
Genres RPG
Themes Fantasy
Series The Bard's Tale
The Bard's Tale on HowLongToBeat
Icon overlay.png
The Bard's Tale guide on StrategyWiki
The Bard's Tale on MobyGames
The Bard's Tale on Wikipedia
The Bard's Tale
The Bard's Tale 1987
The Bard's Tale II: The Destiny Knight 1988
The Bard's Tale III: Thief of Fate 1990
The Bard's Tale Construction Set 1991
The Bard's Tale (2005) 2005
The Mage's Tale 2017
The Bard's Tale Trilogy 2018
The Bard's Tale IV: Barrows Deep 2018
The Bard's Tale IV: Director's Cut 2019

The Bard's Tale is a singleplayer first-person RPG game in the The Bard's Tale series.

Availability

Source DRM Notes Keys OS
Retail
DRM details are not known
DOS
Mac OS
The DOS version of the game is not available digitally. Digital versions of The Bard's Tale (2005) include emulated Apple IIgs versions of The Bard's Tale, The Bard's Tale II: The Destiny Knight, and The Bard's Tale III: Thief of Fate.

Game data

Save game data location

System Location
DOS A:\*.TPW
<path-to-game>\*.TPW
Mac OS (Classic)
Saves are stored on a save floppy (when running from floppy) or in the installation folder (when running from the hard drive).
The *.TPW extension is used for both party files and individual characters (party files only store the names of the characters, not the data for the characters). Files are numbered in the order of creation.[1]
Settings are not stored between sessions.

Video

Graphics feature State Notes
Widescreen resolution
320x200 only.
Multi-monitor
Ultra-widescreen
4K Ultra HD
Field of view (FOV)
Windowed
For DOSBox toggle with Alt+↵ Enter (see the glossary page for other workarounds).
Borderless fullscreen windowed
See the glossary page for potential workarounds.
Anisotropic filtering (AF)
Anti-aliasing (AA)
Vertical sync (Vsync)
For DOSBox use an unofficial build (see the glossary page for other workarounds).
60 FPS and 120+ FPS

Input

Keyboard and mouse State Notes
Remapping
For DOSBox use the DOSBox Mapper (see the glossary page for other workarounds).
Mouse acceleration
Mouse sensitivity
For DOSBox set in the DOSBox configuration file.
Mouse input in menus
Mouse Y-axis inversion
Controller
Controller support
Full controller support
Controller remapping
For DOSBox use the DOSBox Mapper (see the glossary page for other workarounds).
Controller sensitivity
Controller Y-axis inversion
Controller types
XInput-compatible controllers
PlayStation controllers
Generic/other controllers
Additional information
Controller hotplugging
Haptic feedback
Digital movement supported
Simultaneous controller+KB/M

Audio

Audio feature State Notes
Separate volume controls
On/off only (toggle with V).
Surround sound
Subtitles
Everything is text-based.
Closed captions
Mute on focus lost
For DOSBox change the priority background value in the DOSBox configuration file.
Royalty free audio

Localizations

Language UI Audio Sub Notes
English

Other information

API

Technical specs Supported Notes
DOS video modes CGA, EGA, Tandy EGA mode is listed as "RGB monitor" in setup. An additional black & white Composite mode (not Hercules) is also supported.[1]

System requirements

DOS
Minimum
Operating system (OS) 2.0
Processor (CPU)
System memory (RAM)
Hard disk drive (HDD)


References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 Verified by User:Garrett on 3 September 2021