Banner Saga

[Longdan]

I got my key to get into Banner Saga but I won't have time to go for a couple of days.

[TheCommandTent]

I was tempted when this was on Kickstarter but never pulled the trigger.  Let us know what you think once you get some time in the game.

[Nefaro]

The head-to-head match based FreeToP multiplayer version is out now, and their initial server overload issues seem to be finally coming under control.

http://store.steampowered.com/app/219340/

I played a couple matches last night - and lost both.  While not extremely complicated, the straightforward turn-based tactical combat is fun and I can see this as something I can regularly enjoy, especially since they're supposed to keep adding available troop types as they continue to work on the single-player game (due out later this year).

I think most people are looking forward to the singleplayer, some in the hopes that it will have a bit of a King of Dragon Pass narrative style role-playing experience mixed with the tactical turn-based battles.  That would certainly kick ass.  But in the meantime, this is there (and free) to play against others.  It's a bit reminiscent of Blood Bowl multiplayer minus the terrible net code that often de-syncs the players, and is much easier to learn & play.

[tgb]

I'm not a multiplayer guy (other than PBEM), but I checked this out and I like the combat engine.  I hope the single player campaign turns out to be halfway decent.

[tgb]

This unlocks on Steam today.

If you haven't pre-ordered already, Gamefly has it at the same pre-order price as everyone else ($19.99), but if you apply the code GFDJAN20, that drops to $15.99, which is pretty much my "Why  not?" price point.

Previews make this sound like King of Dragon Pass with turn-based tactical battles, which is A-OK in my book.

[edit] When I registered my key with Steam, I got a message that it was not available for download yet (which I expected), and in fact that's what the product page says.  Except once I closed the dialogue box, it started downloading, so if you already have a key, give it a shot.

[undercovergeek]

feedback tales!!!!!

[tgb]

Turns out that was a pre-load.  Drat!

[LongBlade]

Says it will unlock in two hours. I've "pre-ordered" and will take a look at this, too.

[Gusington]

Funny I just saw this on Steam and didn't know what it was. But it looked intriguing.

[Tpek]

I've already pre-loaded it. Might even find some time to try it out today :P

[Gusington]

Curious as to what everyone thinks...

[LongBlade]

It unlocks in 20 minutes. I'll see if I can get some lunch going then fire it up.

[Gusington]

Kewl.

[LongBlade]

OK, I've got about 40 minutes of play time on this.

This is mostly a story game with some RPG-like dialog. There is also combat, which resembles some of the earlier D&D games - Temple of Elemental Evil comes to mind with the tiles and the initiative.

You get dumped into the middle of the story. It unfolds and you figure things out, but it can be a bit jarring to be plopped into the game and start making choices without understanding the consequences. This isn't necessarily a bad thing, but you should prepare yourself to start doing things without knowing why. For instance, the game opens and you are almost immediately thrown into combat without knowing why or who you're helping. After it's over you're filled in.

The game has a lot of side-scrolling elements. There appears to be a very big back story. I just glimpsed the world map and it appears to be rather large with lots of description.

I'm not madly in love with this game but I see room to grow and perhaps come to love it.

[Sir Slash]

Looks like a cartoon version of Skyrim. Hope I'm wrong and it's a winner.