The Banner Saga

The Banner Saga
Developer(s) Stoic
Publisher(s) Versus Evil
Distributor(s) Steam
GOG.com[1]
Designer(s) Alex Thomas
Programmer(s) John Watson
Artist(s) Arnie Jorgensen
Composer(s) Austin Wintory
Platform(s) Android
iOS
Linux
Microsoft Windows
OS X
PlayStation 4
PlayStation Vita
Xbox One
Release date(s)

Windows, OS X, Linux, iOS, Android

  • WW January 14, 2014

PlayStation 4, Xbox One

  • WW January 12, 2016

PlayStation Vita

  • WW TBA
Genre(s) Tactical role-playing
Mode(s) Single-player, multiplayer

The Banner Saga is a Viking-themed tactical role-playing video game developed by Stoic, a trio of indie game developers formerly of BioWare, and published by Versus Evil. It was released as a single-player campaign, The Banner Saga – the first game of a projected trilogy – on 14 January 2014, as well as a separate free-to-play online multiplayer game, The Banner Saga: Factions, in February 2013.

Gameplay

A development screenshot of the game's turn-based combat component

The core of the game is a single-player campaign of turn-based combat engagements inspired by games such as Final Fantasy Tactics and Shining Force, with the player controlling and being able to build up a party of characters with complementing abilities.

According to the developers, their aim was to create a "mature game for adults in the vein of Game of Thrones or The Black Company". They intend to engage players emotionally by allowing them to build relationships with the game's characters and shape the outcome of the story through an array of conversation choices.[2] The game eschews certain conventions of action-oriented computer role-playing games such as the focus on a young lone hero's story, looting and buying items, or reloading a saved game state after defeat. Instead, the developers intended to tell the story of the player's caravan as a whole, and encourage players to accept and deal with the consequences of any defeats they may encounter.[3]

The Banner Saga centers on the return of the Dredge - a warlike race that despises humans - led by Bellower, a nigh invincible Dredge who leads them on a warpath. As a wandering army sent to fight against the Dredge and find a weakness for Bellower, the caravan make many difficult decisions that would shape the fate of both man and Varl. Meanwhile a darkness starts to encompass the world as a giant serpent causes massive earthquakes and breaches across the lands.

In the second chapter of the Saga, the army heads towards Arberrang, the human capital. Meanwhile, a mercenary group known as the Ravens, led by Bolverk, head off to Mannaharr to hide Bellower's body and to investigate the serpent.

The Banner Saga: Factions

The turn-based multiplayer combat component was released on Steam as a free standalone game, called The Banner Saga: Factions, prior to the release of the single-player game. Factions became available to backers on 18 February 2013 and to the public on 25 February.[4] It allows players to pit teams of six combatants, chosen from 16 classes, against each other.[5]

Setting and style

Concept artwork from the game

The game is set in a Viking-inspired fantasy setting, chosen by the developers so as to avoid what they considered the "overdone 'elves, dwarves and orcs' dynamic".[2] With a visual style influenced by Eyvind Earle's art for the 1959 Disney film Sleeping Beauty, as well as the work of Ralph Bakshi and Don Bluth, The Banner Saga's art features primarily hand-drawn animation sequences, characters and backgrounds.[2]

Factions uses the city of Strand as its main user interface, with players selecting different buildings of the city to access various playmodes and functionalities. Additionally, according to Stoic, "the city will evolve as the story unfolds".[6]

Development

The game's developers – Alex Thomas, Arnie Jorgensen and John Watson – left BioWare after working on Star Wars: The Old Republic, with the intention of making a game for their own enjoyment.[7] The project was financed through the crowd funding platform Kickstarter. It was opened to pledges on 19 March 2012[7] and met its funding goal of USD 100,000 in the course of the next day.[8] The project eventually accumulated USD 723,886 from 20,042 backers.[9]

On January 14, 2014, the game was released with help from Versus Evil via digital distribution on Steam. Initially released for the Windows and Mac platforms ports to iPad and Android were released in October 2014 with more ports to Linux, PlayStation 4, PlayStation Vita, and Xbox One planned for 2015.

Soundtrack

The fully orchestrated score was written by Austin Wintory.[9] It features Malukah, Peter Hollens, Johann Sigurdarson and Taylor Davis as soloists. The ensemble that performed the music was the Dallas Wind Symphony.[10][11]

Reception

The Banner Saga has an aggregate score of 82 out of 100 (based on 32 critical reviews) on Metacritic, signifying "generally positive reviews".[12] The iOS version of the game obtained an aggregate score of 90 out of 100, signifying "universal acclaim".[13]

According to IGN, The Banner Saga excelled both in its art and in its varied story full of meaningful choices. The reviewer also approved of the game's tough, but rewarding combat system and bleak, but beautiful soundtrack, while considering that the game could have explained key gameplay mechanics better.[14] Eurogamer praised the game's art and elegant combat system, while criticizing the lack of variety in combat.[15] Hardcore Gamer commended its feature-quality production values as well as its deep and engaging combat.[16]

GameSpot awarded The Banner Saga a score of 7.0 out of 10, saying "The Banner Saga is a beautiful game, filled with interesting ideas and enjoyable battles."[17] Eurogamer awarded it a score of 8 out of 10, saying "The Banner Saga offers a refreshing take on the tactical RPG with a story every bit as engaging as its combat."[18]

Legacy

A sequel, The Banner Saga 2, was announced in December 2014.[19] The game was released on April 19, 2016.[20] A miniatures board game, The Banner Saga: Warbands, was announced in August 2015.[21]

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to The Banner Saga.

References

  1. ↑ Release: The Banner Saga on gog.com (February 4, 2014)
  2. 1 2 3 Mattas, Jeff (6 March 2012). "The Banner Saga 'in the vein of Game of Thrones;' Kickstarter launching soon". Shack News. Retrieved 19 March 2012.
  3. ↑ "Interview with Stoic on Banner Saga". Live Pixel. 23 August 2012. Retrieved 22 August 2012.
  4. ↑ "Banner Saga Out Now For Backers, Everyone Next Week". Rock, Paper, Shotgun. Retrieved February 20, 2013.
  5. ↑ Pinsof, Allistair (19 September 2012). "Preview: The Banner Saga Factions". Destructoid. Retrieved 21 September 2012.
  6. ↑ "The City of Strand". Stoic. 13 July 2012. Retrieved 24 July 2012.
  7. 1 2 Curtis, Tom (19 March 2012). "When ex-BioWare devs make their own strategy RPG". Gamasutra. Retrieved 19 March 2012.
  8. ↑ Mattis, Jeff (21 March 2012). "The Banner Saga reaches Kickstarter funding goal in under two days". Shack News. Retrieved 22 March 2012.
  9. 1 2 Kickstarter. "The Banner Saga". Retrieved 21 April 2012.
  10. ↑ Wintory, Austin. "The Banner Saga". Bandcamp. Retrieved 13 January 2014.
  11. ↑ Peele, Britton (March 12, 2014). "How The Banner Saga’s soundtrack found roots with the Dallas Wind Symphony". Retrieved 2016-01-26.
  12. ↑ "The Banner Saga". Metacritic. Retrieved 14 January 2014.
  13. ↑ "The Banner Saga". Metacritic. Retrieved 14 January 2014.
  14. ↑ Johnson, Leif (14 January 2014). "HIGH NORSEPOWER". IGN. Retrieved 14 January 2014.
  15. ↑ Harman, Stace (14 January 2014). "The Banner Saga review: Trooping the colour". Eurogamer. Retrieved 14 January 2014.
  16. ↑ Thew, Geoff (2014-01-14). "Review: The Banner Saga - Chapter 1". Hardcore Gamer. Retrieved 2014-01-19.
  17. ↑ VanOrd, Kevin (January 14, 2014). "The Banner Saga review: An Axe To Grind". GameSpot. Retrieved March 14, 2016.
  18. ↑ Harman, Stace (January 14, 2014). "The Banner Saga review: Trooping the Color". Eurogamer. Retrieved March 14, 2016.
  19. ↑ Moser, Cassidee (5 December 2014). "The Banner Saga 2 Announced". IGN. Ziff Davis. Retrieved 2 August 2015.
  20. ↑ Estrada, Marcus (25 June 2015). "E3 2015: The Banner Saga 2 is a Deeper, Darker Sequel". Hardcore Gamer. Retrieved 2 August 2015.
  21. ↑ Gera, Emily (2 August 2015). "The Banner Saga Goes The Way Of The Board Game". Rock, Paper, Shotgun. Retrieved 2 August 2015.
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