Review | Tavern Talk - Time To Talk

There’s a romanticization given to the role of bartender where one can imagine being Ted Danson from Cheers, instead of the harsh reality of the minimum wage worker in a busy Wetherspoons. 

Tavern Talk by Gentle Troll Entertainment gives us that cosy ideal of chatting and building relations with a diverse group of patrons but comes at this well-worn tale with a fantasy twist. You’ll mix drinks for the adventurers who visit your establishment and listen to them talk about their many woes. And I’ll emphasise the word ‘listen’ as the game is more visual novel than adventure, with your protagonist's feet planted firmly behind the bar.

You’ll spend ninety percent of your time in Tavern Talk reading dialogue, so if you’re a gamer looking for tension or an adrenaline rush you’ll probably want to pick up the new STALKER  or Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 instead. There’s a comfy tone and while adventure is all around this world, the tavern itself serves as a safe space. There’s a relaxed and warm feeling to every conversation that takes place there with the plot sometimes seeming to meander as characters instead chatter about slimes or nymphs. This isn’t to say there are no stakes or lack of narrative drive, these just often take a backseat to casual banter with the customers.

The cast is the core of the experience and thankfully I found them all likeable, interesting and fun. It was surprising when I kept getting introduced to new adventurers, even a good few hours into my playtime. Getting introduced to new people constantly gave me something to look forward to - which paired nicely with the anticipation of when some of my favourite regulars would return from their quests. I have a personal fondness for Melli, the 10-year-old cat person. Her contagious cheerfulness makes it enjoyable to see her interact with other customers, with even the edgiest of rogues begrudgingly becoming quick friends with the cute orphan.

While seeing different patrons interact is a highlight with the sheer variety of different personalities, I feel that the playable character doesn’t have enough of an identity to make their conversations with the cast especially rewarding. The player’s character is bland to allow you to project onto them. However, I personally would’ve rather them be more as an individual as the interactions between them and the regular cast make up a large amount of dialogue overall. The protagonist feels less like a bartender and rather like a vending machine. I would’ve liked to see them have different relationships with certain customers depending on your choices.

Choices themselves are sparse and when ‘chosen’ often seem meaningless. I don’t mind there being an illusion of choice but here it's less of an “illusion” and more of “suggestion”. This extends to the gameplay where It took me around half an hour before I was pretty certain that decisions with pouring drinks only changed a few lines. There are plenty of indulgent D&D references in Tavern Talk so I’ll throw in one of my own for this review - it’s railroading. There is a story that Gentle Troll wants you to experience and there’s basically no flexibility or player agency in how you do that. I wish there was a way to build unique relationships with the different travellers, not just for replayability purposes but to make interactions feel like they matter.

The gameplay suffers a similar fate where its inclusion feels redundant. You’re sometimes asked to compile rumours to create quests for your adventuring patrons. This is a baffling inclusion as the hints you need to match are often colour-coded, making this part as engaging as pairing my socks. Mixing drinks is given more complexity but is still simplified, with you always being told exactly which drink to make, which is strange with the many different recipes. There could’ve been a puzzle feature included here where you were the one who had to decide which beverage was the best for the quest or patron. The disappointing part for me is that the simple gameplay elements never change from the first half hour and none of these systems expand on themselves.

I’ve been pretty harsh for these last few paragraphs but I do stand by it. The weaknesses this game has will be a dealbreaker for some. But I want to reiterate that writing is genuinely charming in a way that absolutely redeems the flaws I’ve spoken about. Special praise has to be given to the art style which brings the characters to life with really expressive faces that’ll make you giggle even if you’re ignoring the text they are speaking. The anxiety-ridden elf quivering for the camera instantly makes them feel real and personable. There’s a certain attitude that the art exudes and that’s not limited to the people with the drinks. The tavern itself and its surroundings are brought to life. As you play, adventurers bring back trinkets for you to hang up in your bar, bringing the place looking from my sparse room to my hoarding grandmother's house, full of memories.

I think if you’ve read this review, you’ll know if Tavern Talk is for you. If you’ve got bored of this review and stopped reading before this sentence, it’s absolutely not for you. It’s a slow visual novel with a focus on characters rather than story. If that sounds like something you’d enjoy, pick it up! If not, I’m pretty sure STALKER 2 and COD are available for preorder. This is exactly what you’d be looking for out of this genre though; Tavern Talk is humorous and heartwarming with a fantastical flair straight out of a tabletop game. So if you’ve had friends flake out of your D&D session this week, why not visit the tavern and serve some drinks?

Pros:

Actually humorous and entertaining dialogue.

Unique characters with depth.

Graphics which are good enough to just look at for a while.

Cons

Tedious gameplay.

Lack of choices.