A vampire, werewolf, and dwarf walk into a bar – no, wait, that’s not right. A vampire is someone who gets mistaken for a werewo… No, that’s not right either. Anyway, welcome to our review of Tavern Talk! It’s a game that’s not about making tavern jokes but is a visual novel-style game in which you play an innkeeper at a D&D-style bar!
Coffee!
You got yourself a cup of coffee? Good. Like I said in the intro, Tavern Talk is a cozy visual novel about running a tavern in a D&D-inspired fantasy! The game’s primary goal is to gather rumors, serve drinks, and meet adventurers on a life-changing quest. Luckily, you are no ordinary bartender!
Tavern Talk?
In Tavern Talk, you own the Wayfarer’s Inn, a famous watering hole in the fantasy land of Asteria. But you’re no ordinary barkeep. Be it a potion of seething fury or prancing swords, the drinks you serve can change your customer’s destiny forever. You can also turn the rumors you hear at work into bold quests for your patrons! Yes, sorry to break it to you, but that is how quests are born—nothing about storks, cabbages, or putting things in other things.
Befriend a colorful cast of adventurers as they brag about their latest triumph – or commiserate an utter failure. Whether it’s relaxation or a fresh thrill, you’re on hand to give each patron what they need, which ranges from drinks to life advice and pumping them up with drug-infused beverages to help them with the quests. This can lead to funny interactions since your drinks ‘help’ them with their quests. One quest made my archer too confident in their shot, which led to shooting another patron with said arrows. Oh, but it did give me a nice trinket as a thank-you for the quest, so it all worked out in the end, I guess?
Gameplay
Gameplay-wise, it’s a visual novel, all right. It involves a lot of reading and dialogue options, but it also offers you the brewing potions part as a nice change of pace. The game looks stunning, with a charming to-watch art style and a great cast of characters. Putting tiny bits of rumors together to create quests isn’t the most challenging part, but it is fun to see how the rumors create quests and how your own ingame choices affect the outcome of the adventures. But in the end, it’s a visual novel – and I still find these hard to grade/rate since it’s such a unique way of gameplay.
Conclusion
So, to conclude! If you like TTRPGS, like the D&D games (Baldur’s Gate and such), or visual novels like Coffee Talk or Necrobarista, you are in for a treat. It’s fantasy meets baristas, with a twist of good old D&D in this Visual Novel called Tavern Talk. Come for the art style, and stay for petting the dragon..puppy.., or hybrid. It’s cozy and lovely; if you are into visual novels, you will love this. And if you are on the fence about picking it up, the devs released an hour-long demo you can try out before picking up the game.
