The Banner Saga

About The Banner Saga

The Banner Saga is a Viking-themed tactical role-playing game developed by Stoic and published by Versus Evil. It launched on January 14, 2014, across PC, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch, Linux, Mac, Android, and iOS. This single-player campaign draws heavy inspiration from classics like Final Fantasy Tactics while telling a mature story reminiscent of Game of Thrones. You lead a caravan of humans and Varl against the Dredge, a warlike race returning to destroy everything in its path. The narrative focuses on the group rather than a lone hero, forcing you to manage relationships and make hard choices that determine who survives. There are no reloads after defeat or endless item looting loops here.

Gameplay

Sessions revolve around turn-based combat where you position your party of diverse characters before engaging enemies in grid-like tactical encounters. You move units one by one, using a combination of melee attacks, ranged strikes, and special abilities that cost action points each round. Managing resources like supplies and morale between battles is just as critical as the fighting itself. Dialogue trees appear frequently during travel segments, letting you shape character bonds and alter story outcomes based on your decisions. The game removes save-scumming by locking in consequences for failed fights or poor choices. You must balance combat tactics with caravan management to keep your group alive against overwhelming odds.

What Players Think

Players and critics have responded strongly to this title. IGDB lists a solid 83.5 out of 100 rating based on 274 user reviews. The community average playtime hovers around 20 hours for a standard run, with completion rates showing many players finish the main campaign but few exhaust every side path. Community moods often lean toward serious and emotional, reflecting the grim tone of the narrative. Review snippets frequently praise the art style and the weight of decision-making. Users note that the difficulty spikes significantly if you ignore resource management. The tactical depth keeps veteran strategy fans engaged long after the story ends.

PlayPile's Take

This is a heavy, story-driven experience priced at $19.99 on most platforms. You should buy this if you enjoy deep tactical combat and don't mind losing characters permanently without a safety net. The game features 30 achievements for those who want to master every mechanic or find hidden endings. It demands patience and strategic thinking rather than quick reflexes. Fans of grim fantasy who dislike grinding for loot will appreciate the focus on narrative consequences. Avoid this if you need constant action or want to reload saves to fix mistakes. The payoff comes from seeing your specific choices play out over a complete, tragic arc.

Storyline

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.[8] 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.[9] The first game in the Saga centers on the return of the Dredge, a warlike race that despises humans led by the Bellower, a nigh invincible Dredge who leads them on a warpath on human and Varl. As a wandering army sent to fight against the Dredge and find a weakness for the Bellower, many difficult decisions are made by the caravan that would shape the fate of both man and Varl.