Ludography
80/100
Metacritic9 critic reviews
More scores
Metacritic usersuser score
73/100
Player reviews
87% positive1,459 reviews
Steam Deck
Verified
Runs on
Windows, Mac
Price
US$17.99

Where to get it

Tavern Talk cover

2024 · Gentle Troll Entertainment · Adventure · Indie

Tavern Talk

Nintendo console exclusive

A cozy visual novel about running a tavern in a D&D-inspired fantasy! Gather rumors, serve magical drinks, and meet adventurers on a life-changing quest.

Released
20 June 2024
Platforms
Nintendo SwitchWindowsmacOS
Genres
AdventureIndieSimulationVisual novel
Developers
Gentle Troll Entertainment
Publishers
Gentle Troll Entertainment
Modes
Single-player
Perspective
Text
Themes
FantasyDrama
Country
Germany
Age ratings
PEGI 7ESRB E10+USK 6
Languages
Chinese (Simplified), English, French, German, Japanese, Korean
Time to beat
16hmain story24hcompletionist

About

Tavern Talk is a visual novel developed by Gentle Troll Entertainment, and released on June 20, 2024 for Nintendo Switch and Windows. Players take control of a fantasy innkeeper who serves drinks and interacts with adventurers in a magical medieval setting.

›Story

The game is about the owner of Wayfarer's Inn, a tavern in the fantasy land of Asteria and the patrons they meet along the way. The player must serve magical drinks and interact with adventurers who visit the tavern, including elves, vampires, vukakin, dwarfs, echoes, phantasm, meerfolk and so many more. As they talk to the various adventurers, they uncover more lore about an ancient threat which is rising in Asteria.

Maybe they prevent the worst from happening, but this is up to the player.

You walk into a tavern and get to work! You are the owner of the Wayfarer’s Inn, a popular 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 intrepid quests for your patrons!

Players say

Media

The articlegameplay, story, development, reception

Gameplay

Players must mix a variety of different drinks and potions for customers. Each recipe has different effects on the characters' stats, which can influence their story. Players can also post quests for adventurers to go on. When patrons return from adventures, they can bring back items for the tavernkeeper to decorate the inn with.

Story

The game follows the owner of Wayfarer's Inn, a tavern in the fantasy land of Asteria. The player must serve drinks and interact with different adventurers who visit the tavern, including elves and vampires. As they talk to the various adventurers, they uncover more lore about an ancient threat which is rising in Asteria.

Development

The game was developed by indie game developers Gentle Troll Entertainment. It was inspired by tabletop roleplaying games such as Dungeons & Dragons and visual novels like VA-11 Hall-A (2016) and Coffee Talk (2020). A free demo for the game was released on Steam on June 10. The full game was released on June 20, 2024.

The game's development was funded through the crowdfunding site Kickstarter, receiving more than twice its €20,000 fundraising goal within a day.

Reception

Tavern Talk received "generally positive" reviews according to review aggregator Metacritic. Fellow review aggregator OpenCritic assessed that the game received strong approval, being recommended by 79% of critics.

Ben Sledge of The Gamer gave the first episode a positive review, writing that: "Tavern Talk doesn't just inhabit the cozy genre, it embodies it. Everything about this game exudes warmth, whether it's talking through your Elfin friend's anxieties about becoming an adventurer or the portents of the apocalypse." Katherine Castle of Eurogamer compared the game favorably to Coffee Talk and the Legends & Lattes novels of Travis Baldree. Jamie Moorcroft-Sharp of Destructoid found the gameplay to be satisfying yet shallow, but called the writing and dialogue options "incredible".

Awards

Releases by platformdates and regions as published

PlatformReleasedRegions
Windows20 June 2024Worldwide
Nintendo Switch20 June 2024Worldwide
macOS20 June 2024Worldwide

Editions and related releases

Included in
Tavern Talk + Pirate Palooza (Costume AOC)Tavern Talk and Dreamwalker Bundle
Downloadable content
Tavern Talk: Tempest Tantrum

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Collections2 collections

Description adapted from its source, CC BY-SA 4.0.