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Rob Zacny

Episode 369: The Banner Saga 2

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Three Moves Ahead 369:

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The Banner Saga 2

WARNING: The Banner Saga 2 is a story-driven game. Certain plot points will be talked about. Major plot points from the first game are discussed. Such is life in a podcast where the point is to talk about what happens in video games. This week Rob Zacny and Fraser Brown talk about Banner Saga 2, the sequel to the Kickstarter darling that made a splash with its gorgeous graphics and brutal gameplay. The decisions are harder, the battles are more interesting, and lots of people still die.

The Banner Saga 2

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I didn't like Banner Saga 1. There's something self-contradictory in this gameplay. It's sort of iron man as I'm not supposed to replay my story decisions, but it's clear I'm supposed to replay every battle till I get how to do it. I admire battles having symmetrical systems unlike, say, Fire Emblem which is similar otherwise. Still it leaves a bad taste in my mouth.

 

But it reminds me of Fantasy Wars/Elven Legacy games. Those games had the same basic premise: you move through a campaign with a persistent party, sometimes switching to another one. But it had a twist in that story decisions were performed on a battlefield itself. You could send someone to explore ruins or kill some goblins or whatever and you got unique units or items or gold. Gold was the only resources. It sounds like a typical for an RPG encounter but the battles there were even more restrictive than in Banner Saga: you where always on timelimit and to get most gold or special awards you had to complete scenarious ASAP. You really had to sacrifice people and leave unclaimed resources due to mechanics, not just a scripted story. Sadly it was too puzzle-ish for its own good and you could really shoot yourself in a leg by ignoring optional stuff or sacrificing too many units.

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Oh, no! Now, I have to finish the game, before I can listen to this.

I loved the first Banner Saga.

The writing in this game is just exquisite! It holds up against my favorite, long dead, Fantasy writers (E.R. Eddison, Tolkien...). If a game makes you read the entries on the map with delight, you know, they are doing something right. An 'adult' world, without the usual cliches. 

The balance between dialog, travel and fighting has a nice 'flow' to it. And yes, the art ... the devs deserved every prize they received for their game. It is also amazing, what a few dedicated developers can accomplish together.

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