At an early age, I had a fondness for chess, the different pieces having different moves available to them across a simple grid battlefield yet opened up to practically limitless possibilities. As I got older and discovered strategy and tactics RPGs and expanded on those same ideas I grew to love the genre. Controlling characters around an environment, using their abilities to gain advantage over my enemies and perform different strategies, it was thrilling and most of all made me feel really smart. From Final Fantasy Tactics to Fire Emblem I could lose myself for hours finding the perfect strategy for each encounter. In recent years a game came out to critical appraise, Banner Saga.
Featuring Norse Mythology, and an art style reminiscent of classic fantasy animation found in movies like Fire and Ice, it came onto the scene boasting an in-depth tactics based gameplay and engaging story to go along with it. I, unfortunately, haven’t been able to play the Banner Saga games yet, but I did have the honor of taking a look at the final installment of the Banner Saga Trilogy and the series move to the Nintendo Switch. My lack of experience with this series will change very soon after my PAX hands-on experience.
“The series move to the switch is a natural one, the game was already out on mobile devices, so we already had touch controls established. With the release of the third game we are glad to reach a new audience in Switch owners where the entire trilogy will eventually be released.” -Zeb West Producer at Stoic
After having played the original on Switch on the show floor I’d say it may just be the ideal way to play a game like this. Even over mobile. A standard phone could be too small to truly enjoy the visuals the game offers. A tablet on its own lacks the option for a controller. A Switch has the best of all options. Touchscreen, portability with tv option, controllers, and a big enough screen to enjoy what the game offers. The fully animated cutscenes looked brilliant and really felt like those old 80’s animated movies from Ralph Bakshi.
As for the final installment of the Banner Saga Trilogy, 3 looks to put a satisfying cap on the ongoing story that branches the series. For the most part, it is a direct continuation, with only minor changes to look and gameplay. Some of the UI changes actually will and have made their way to the previous games as updates. Those interested in experiencing these games from the start, the games aren’t all that long individually, and rather the entire trilogy would make up the length that is usually expected of a game in this genre. This has allowed them time to gain feedback from players and improve the series as a whole as well as build upon what Stoic has already established.
“As we’ve gotten feedback from players about how our games feel and look, we’ve made changes to make the game more approachable and enjoyable to new players. These little changes make the entire trilogy better. While some things will be exclusive to the new game, they still make sense and will fit right into what players expect from the Banner Saga Trilogy.” – Zeb West Producer at Stoic
I thoroughly enjoyed my time with Banner Saga at PAX East 2018, the game looks, sounds, and plays great. Not only being nominated for Marooners’ Rock’s Best Indie Game of PAX East 2018 but winning it! The award is well earned. My previous experience with Tactics RPGs felt right at home, and I enjoyed the new things that were brought to the table creating unique strategies only found in these beautiful games. With the upcoming release of Banner Saga 3 on July 24th, 2018, it may just be the perfect time to see what the fuss is about and experience the entire Saga from start to finish.
