Announcement

Collapse
No announcement yet.

The Banner Saga 2 Review

Collapse
X
 
  • Filter
  • Time
  • Show
Clear All
new posts

  • The Banner Saga 2 Review

    There's a character in The Banner Saga called Egil. You probably won't remember much about him even if you played the first game, aside from the fact that he carries a big shield and clearly fancies the protagonist's daughter, Alette. He's alright, but a little forgettable in what becomes an epic tale of giants, magic and a world-devouring serpent. In fact, according to the developers, only something like five percent of players managed to keep him alive throughout the events of the first game. A fairly minor character, then. But as part of that five percent of players (not bragging, just saying), I was delighted to see Egil play a small role in The Banner Saga 2 after importing my save file. These games delight in conveying the terrible burdens of leadership and so it feels especially important that the choices made so far have meant something.
    In fact, as I began this second game in what will be a trilogy, I realised that alongside Egil, something like half of the heroes in my group could have been killed off in The Banner Saga had I opted for a different narrative choice. This was somewhat overwhelming to begin with, as each character retains their level, abilities and items from the previous game - that ends up being a lot of numbers to refamiliarise yourself with. But crucially, it felt like I was leading my caravan, my survivors.
    Of course, there's an overarching plot that every player will experience in The Banner Saga 2 regardless, but along the way I was impressed by the small moments in which characters - characters that didn't have to be there - cropped up with extra dialogue, sometimes offering an alternative approach to a problem I'd encountered. I was expecting Stoic to face the same hurdle that tripped Telltale Games with titles like The Walking Dead, in which the player's decisions usually feel temporary. A character saved in one episode is likely to die in the next to avoid a branching narrative that could quickly spiral out of control. The Banner Saga 2 does a lot less with its minor characters, but as a result, it manages to tell a story that truly is determined by the player. Your decisions aren't delaying the fate of each hero, but rather, deciding it.
    Read more…


    More...
Working...
X