The Banner Saga

 Xbox One
User Score
8.1

Generally favorable reviews- based on 41 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 29 out of 41
  2. Mixed: 9 out of 41
  3. Negative: 3 out of 41

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  1. IkeEllis
    Sep 13, 2016
    3
    You can put all of your resources into a character, and then with one bad decision, that character can die. That would be fine if there was a good way to save and restore your game, but there isn't. You can make a mistake so costly that it will force you to restart the whole game, only to make another bad decision five minutes past the original one.

    Also, the story is terrible. There    You can put all of your resources into a character, and then with one bad decision, that character can die. That would be fine if there was a good way to save and restore your game, but there isn't. You can make a mistake so costly that it will force you to restart the whole game, only to make another bad decision five minutes past the original one.

    Also, the story is terrible. There is no character development, no reason to care about the outcome, no sense of urgency. So when a character dies, the only thing you think is "there goes all of my effort." There is no real emotional impact. That's unfortunately because most of the game is dialogue. It's just flat, boring dialogue with made up names.

    I hope you enjoy watching people walk. You spend a lot of time watching your troops walk to new places. There is no way to speed this up.

    I gave it three stars because the actual turn by turn strategy portion of it is really fun and interesting. It reminds me of a light version of Civilization.    … Expand

Awards & Rankings

76
#76 Best Xbox One Game of 2016
93
#93 Most Discussed Xbox One Game of 2016
93
#93 Most Shared Xbox One Game of 2016

Critic Reviews

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Metascore
76

Generally favorable reviews - based on 9 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 6 out of 9
  2. Mixed: 3 out of 9
  3. Negative: 0 out of 9
  1. games(TM)
    Mar 27, 2016
    70
    Despite these drawbacks, The Banner Saga is still a solid tactical RPG with a charming art style and a story that, while initially daunting, eventually becomes manageable and memorable.
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  2. COGconnected
    Jan 25, 2016
    75
    The Banner Saga is a good game when it comes to it’s unique combat, art style, and atmospheric score but the awkward transition of the menus to console and the presentation of its plot hold it back from being great.
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  3. Eurogamer Italy
    Jan 25, 2016
    80
    A rough, heavy, but beautiful story, with deep characters, a wonderful handmade graphics and an original lore. But it's not a game for everyone, with it's slow pace and tons of texts to read.
    Read full review
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