Stoic Studio has released its epic tactical RPG The Banner Saga onto the App Store for iPhone and iPad (although it does not run on iPhone 4). If you didn’t know, The Banner Saga was already released on PC earlier this year.
The Banner Saga is the first game from Stoic Studio, which consists of three ex-Bioware folks, and they’ve followed a similar formula that many Bioware games do (Dragon Age, Mass Effect) when designing their own independent game. This means you can expect choice-driven conversations to advance the story, as well as turn-based combat.
One of the big differences in The Banner Saga from Bioware’s RPGs is that the combat is grid-based and very brutal – death is almost certain for some of your units. The game also has survival-based travelling sections during which you need to manage supplies, whether to take on new recruits, and which battles to engage in and which to run away from. Consequences of your actions are heavy and it can become quite gruelling.
The Banner Saga is inspired by Viking legend and set in a land stuck in perpetual twilight. It’s also one that’s being ravaged by the terrible stone giants known as Dredge. Warriors have left their villages to come together and fight this threat, with humans and the giant horned-people known as Varl working together against the Dredge.
Rounding off the game’s package is a superb animated art style, which draws from the golden age of animation, and looks a lot like the old Disney cartoon adaptation of Sleeping Beauty.
You can purchase The Banner Saga on the App Store for $9.99 right now. It should be coming to Android shortly. Otherwise, it’s also available on PC from a number of digital stores for $19.99.
