Tales (video game)

Lore & Background

Tales was developed by Ape Marina, a small team inspired by the works of Sierra and Lucasarts, led by creators Andrea Ferrara and Giovanni Ottomano, with Mark Lovegrove as executive producer. An early version won an AGS Award for Best Demo in 2014. The official launch trailer was released on YouTube on November 4, 2016, and the release date was announced in early October 2016. The soundtrack, created by Luigi Di Guida, features 23 tracks with 50 minutes of original music, drawing from renaissance, medieval, and Arabic influences, and is included with each version of the game.

Reader's Guide

Tales is notable for its non-linear gameplay, where each stage takes place within a different book, and the player can move between books using a magic bell item. The player leaves behind inventory when entering a new book and builds a new one unique to that tale, allowing return to earlier books to progress the main quest. The plot follows young librarian Alfred Walsh, voiced by British comedian Alasdair Beckett-King, who must venture into stories affected by a mysterious darkness released from a forbidden book, assisted by Merlin the wizard. Characters include figures from Mesopotamian, Norse, and Greek mythology, such as Urshanabi, Loki, and Thor, each voiced by different actors. The game was nominated for seven AGS Awards in 2017, including Best Game Created with AGS, Best Gameplay, Best Puzzles, and Best Voice Acting. AdventureGamers awarded it 4 out of 5, praising the graphics and artwork but noting inventory handling can be frustrating. FutureSack highlighted the humor suitable for all ages, and ITC gave it 4 out of 5, recommending it to classic adventure game fans. Testiversum scored it 8.1/10, noting slightly blocky graphics and low resolution.

Did You Know?

• The magic bell item allows the player to travel between books and is available in all stories.
• The protagonist Alfred Walsh is voiced by British comedian Alasdair Beckett-King.