Getting the old Bard's tale to work on a newer computer

[TheEmerged]

So, I was watching a Let's Play of a newer game made to look/play like the old computer RPG's, and I got a hankering to play an old favorite of mine -- The Bard's Tale. The original one, not the remake from a few years ago.

Now as it happens I have a "10th Anniversary" CD for Interplay with this program and a few others (like Wasteland and Dragon Wars) I'd like to play later. I popped it in and... nothing. No problem, I do helpdesk for a living after all...

The files won't run. Now I know the "reason" -- the computer I'm installing them on is 64-bit (Win7 Home Premium, to be exact). Any other time I've tried this though, I just select the compatibility mode in properties and it's off to the races. This time, it isn't changing anything.

Any ideas?

[Volatar]

If the game is 16-bit (which, from that age, it probably is) you are strictly out of luck running it on a 64-bit system. If GOG.com ever picks the game up they will make it work though.

[JoshL]

have you tried DOSbox? That works pretty well for most things I've tried.
http://www.dosbox.com/
And from the interview on the front page, looks like GOG is using DOSbox too! (they rock btw)

[TheEmerged]

DosBox got me working, thanks! Now if you'll excuse me, I have two buildings to start walking back and forth between :smalltongue:

[Volatar]

DosBox got me working, thanks! Now if you'll excuse me, I have two buildings to start walking back and forth between :smalltongue:

Yay! I like being wrong. :smallbiggrin:

[factotum]

Yay! I like being wrong. :smallbiggrin:

If it had been a 16-bit Windows application you'd have been right...there weren't actually all that many games released for Windows 3.1, though, most games from that era are DOS games and will usually work with DOSBox just fine.

[Gnoman]

DOSbox will even run Windows 3.1, though it can be a little slow depending on your system.

[ShneekeyTheLost]

Yea, DOSBOX is made of win. With it, I can still play such greats as Masters of Orion 2, Zork, Duke Nukem, and others.

[Maelstrom]

Heh, thought you were talking about this (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Bard's_Tale_(1985_video_game))....not even 16-bit, but 8-bit

[Volatar]

Heh, thought you were talking about this (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Bard's_Tale_(1985_video_game))....not even 16-bit, but 8-bit

He is. tenchar

[TheEmerged]

He is.

Just to be clear, I am talking about that one. I still have my old 5.25 floppies of it, in fact, put away as keepsakes. The version I'm playing comes off of the Interplay 10th Anniversary CD, and it has a couple of imperfections (some characters can continue to go up in Luck passed 18, for example). I'm just about done with the sewers now, I'm already working on my third Fire Horn, and I've remembered why everyone told me I should have used a monk instead of a rogue for my third melee fighter :smallredface:

As I mentioned before, I'm on a bit of a nostalgia kick and will probably play Wastelands and Dragon Wars when I'm done.