Most of the player's time will be spent moving moving characters along a rectangular grid (sadly, the maps are almost invariably a large flat grid with no level geometry), one turn at a time, planning out attacks. The Banner Saga is, at its core, a tile-based turn-based strategy game. Thankfully, it is good enough to carry the game 'as is' at least. The scenery is so pretty, it begs for more interaction. The characters are so well drawn that they invite animation. One can easily imagine what could have been if given several million more dollars. The same "caravan riding along the landscape" concept, representing the group travelling, is recycled throughout the entire game.
The same tassles flutter the same way in Chapter 7 as they do in Chapter 1. The same portraits are used again and again (and again), with no animation, no mouths moving, no arms moving, not even alternate static expressions of anger or surprise or laughter. This is a project on a budget, though, and not long into the game it shows. Kickstarter or not, The Banner Saga is one of the prettiest things that will be seen and heard this year. Even the voice actors - when there is voice acting (no, the game is not fully acted) - sound gravelly and beautifully authentically Scandinavian. In the background, some lovely period music - really good, orchestrated music - plays, completely fitting into the Viking-inspired setting without being painfully cliché. Flaps of their clothes flap back and forth. Enter a conversation and large, well drawn characters chat back and forth.
Gorgeous hand-drawn snowbound landscapes abound, with wonderfully stylised oval trees and jagged mountains. What has been delivered is some nice work, given the budget.
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