More games like this?

[ladida_hohum]

This is my favorite game of all time. Some of that is tied to the nostalgia from playing it as a kid on my PC jr. I also really enjoyed the Might and Magic games which is kinda similar to Bard's tale but with more graphics.

I love being able to create my own party, naming them, agonizing over their stats and gear selections and then caring if they died or being mad at them when something doesn't go my way.

I would like to play another game like this, that will give me the ability to spend 3 hours in party creation, naming my guys after my friends and sending them into battle to find fortune and glory.

What's the name of this game? Or was the guy that made Bard's Tale a genius that can't be replicated. Do I need to make this game I want myself? Because I'm only a half assed coder and a terrible artist.

[Tyler Durden]

I would definitely recommend the Wizardry games. Dungeon crawling, party creation, upgrading equipment. It's all there.

[Slooge]

join the gridders group here on steam, they have lots of them in their forum. Also, I got a kick out of devil whiskey, although it does have some bugs, it really is a good game.

[SlickRCBD]

Could you give a link to this "gridders group"?
Back on topic, Bard's Tale was clearly inspired by Wizardry and based on it. Dragon Wars was originally going to be Bard's Tale IV, but for various reasons they made it its' own unique game and took it in its own direction combining elements from Bard's Tale and mechanics from Wasteland.
However, you'll probably also like Magic Candle, and the Might and Magic games. The original Final Fantasy was also clearly influenced by Wizardry and Bard's Tale.

[krickerd]

If you are at all interested in a newer real time rpgs similar to Diablo, I recommend Grim Dawn. It is the most re-playable game I've come across as there are near endless build strategies. It can be quite a challenge, especially in hardcore where death is permanent. I've spent more time on HC characters than regular and have had more near heart attacks than I care to count. And lost more characters than I care to admit. After over 6,000 hours, I still don't have all the Steam achievements.

[Sirius]

since no one replying about the gridders group link

https://steamcommunity.com/groups/gridder

there's an "upcoming gridders" section that pretty active in there
hope it helps

[Skuld]

Battle Brothers is really good fun and I guess a similar concept of adventuring in a party. Although you don't roll your characters you recruit them. Worth a look for party creation, equipping them, completing missions and so on.

[trooperrob]

from a similar time, the gold box d&D remakes are on steam. pools of darkness etc.
I don't think they have had a full control overhaul / remake, and the older ones may be less developed, but may be worth a look. Some are different styles, so don't buy all the trilogies without checking they are what you are after...

[ladida_hohum]

Great suggestions guys. Keep them coming. I appreciate all the input.

[SlickRCBD]

Originally posted by trooperrob:

from a similar time, the gold box d&D remakes are on steam. pools of darkness etc.
I don't think they have had a full control overhaul / remake, and the older ones may be less developed, but may be worth a look. Some are different styles, so don't buy all the trilogies without checking they are what you are after...

I omitted the Gold Box games because of the tactical part, although I loved them as a kid.
From the era is also the Ultima series. If you like the tactical combat of the Gold Box games and the conversation and/or party system from Ultima III and later, you might like the Exile/Avernum series.
The first eight Final Fantasies are also similar to Bard's Tale, as are most of the Dragon Warrior games. The Earthbound games are fun in this style.
I honestly can't think of a lot of Wizardry-style RPG games (because Wizardry came first and Bard's Tale is sorta a clone of Wizardry) in recent years beyond Final Fantasy. Everybody wants more "action" rather than explore the maze, solve puzzles, and combat is done by picking from a menu.
I actaully wouldn't mind a few recs from the last 30 years myself. I missed a lot by being stuck with Apple II and then Macintosh until the 21st century, then have had financial troubles most of my adult life. I now know why it's a B.S. degree, because that myth about a B.S. degree guaranteeing you a good paying job is just a whole load of B.S.

[astrosha]

Not sure what was mentioned in that gridders group, but several other games come to mind :

Centauri Alliance
Eye of the Beholder (trilogy)
Legacy of the Ancients (kind of)
Legend of Faergail

I don't really consider the first 8 Final Fantasy games similar to Bard's Tale, as there is no first person PoV step-based dungeon crawling. The fact that most of Legacy of the Ancients is from a top-down perspective makes it only "kind of" - only the dungeons are the first person point of view step based crawl.

If you can step outside the PC to various consoles, there are several other similar games to consider :
Shining in the Darkness (Genesis, other consoles/PC as part of a Sega compilation)
Shining the Holy Ark (Sega Saturn only AFAIK)
Etrian Odyssey (5 main games, 2 spin offs, all on Nintendo DS/3DS)
The Dark Spire (Nintendo DS)
Elminage (several games on various consoles, two on PC)
Arcana (Super Nintendo)

[SlickRCBD]

Eye of the Beholder was closer to Dungeon Master than Bard's Tale/Wizardry. It's more of an action-rpg.
http://dmweb.free.fr/
I actually liked Dungeon Master more, EotB despite selling better and being more well known always felt like an inferior knock-off despite having better technology to draw on. I don't really consider the EotB trilogy to be the same kind of game as Bard's Tale, and I loved both. As far as consoles go, I don't have any to play on outside an old Intelivision II.

[Fire In The Middle]

Legends of Amberland is an indie game fairly simple but entertaining like Bards Tale.

[Eldrane]

https://silversword-rpg.com/

[VoidEngineer]

As someone else mentioned, the Might & Magic games are a good analog. The genre is called 'blobber' if you want to do your own web search for other titles.

[vorik]

There's also a Bard's Tale 4 by inXile, run by Brian Fargo, one of the devs of BT1.