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Banishers: Ghosts of New Edenexplores the recently colonized land of New Eden, trying to find and root out the source of a dangerous curse afflicting the people. As you travel through the world, you explore the story and relationship between Antea and Red and their own conflicts with the ideas of life and death.
Put into a unique situation, Antea and Red are able to shape the lives of those afflicted by the curse, for better or for worse. The landscape is gorgeous, and the story is truly marvelous. However, a good story is only one facet of making a great game, and some hold conflicting opinions about whether Banishers: Ghosts of New Eden is worth the price tag and the time. As the Banishers say, Life to the Living, Death to the Dead.
Review
Our Tabletop Editor,Joe Parlock, reviewed Banishers: Ghosts of New Eden, and while he loved the writing, he found the rest of the game a “constant onslaught of samey locations, wonky combat, and boring enemies.” He offered the game three out of five stars, given that it has its shining moments and some great writing, but the rest of it can be tedious.
I’m entirely comfortable saying Banishers has some of the best video game writing in recent years, standing up there with greats like Citizen Sleeper, Disco Elysium, and The Forgotten City. But you’re going to have to really put the work in to experience it, because everything else about Banishers is an absolute slog.
The characters don’t always move quite right (leading to floaty combat) andthe lock-on feature is practically useless if you’re not fighting a single enemy.
There’s really only a handful of various enemy types you may go up against, though the bosses are pretty interesting. However, if it’s your cup of tea,the environment is downright gorgeous at various points,and theavailability of photo modeshows that the developers were fully aware of this.
He noted thatthe game explored some really mature themes and had an excellent story, but the environment and combat ended up just a bit too repetitive to make the story truly worth the time it took.
Time
Generally, if you’re trying to beat Banishers: Ghosts of New Eden,you’ll be looking at about 25-30 hours to complete the core game.
If you’re trying to 100 percent the game, however, you’ll probably be dealing with around 70 hoursworth of content.
Unless you’re truly enamored with the environment and the gameplay,Banishers: Ghosts of New Eden probably doesn’t have a high replayabilityunless you’re going for the other endings.
The story is amazing, but most of your time trying to 100 percent the game will be spent going into various caves and trying to find your way into various areas of the map to track down hidden chests, rather than indulging in the story and side quests.
There are five endings, but the path to reaching them is pretty similar across the board.
Cost
Banishers: Ghosts of New Eden retails at $49.99and isavailable on PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X and Series S, and on Windows.It is unlikely that it will arrive on Xbox Game Pass or on the PlayStation Plus Subscription.
There is a bit ofextra DLC, the Wanderer Set, which costs an extra $2.99 on Steam.
You can also get the Collector’s Edition or the Red Echoes edition.Both of these editions come with the game and its DLC, though theCollector’s Edition also features a statue of Red and Antea, the game’s official book, a Steelbook, and two Banisher signet rings, all of whichcosts $199.99on Focus Entertainment’s Store.
If you’d like theRed Echoes Edition, it comes with a ‘leather’ notebook, illustrated with Red’s memories alongside an ink quill writing set for $84.99on Focus Entertainment’s online store.
What Players Are Saying
Definitely Worth It For The Story - Jack Pierik
While Banishers: Ghosts of New Eden doesn’t have the longest playtime, nor the most cutting-edge combat, there’s one thing it does remarkably well: it tells a powerful, gripping story. Through the lens of the game’s protagonists, you’re thrust into a grim, late 1600s setting rife with supernatural maladies, loss, regret, vengeance, love, and dark, shameful secrets waiting to be unraveled.
If you’re looking for a valuable, memorable, and emotional journey powered by rich, thoughtful writing, this game won’t let you down. Is it too informal to say, “Dude, this game is so good I’m considering making my first tattoo a reference to the game?”
It Was Love At First Banishment - Tallis Spalding
To put it simply, I fell head over heels for the story and the environment, and given that I play my games on easy mode (I’m here for the story and the story alone), I don’t take much issue with the combat.
Banishers: Ghosts of New Eden is the perfect game for me because it explores those creepy horror elements without trying to send my pulse through the roof. The atmosphere is on point, and my roots in history have kept me completely enraptured by this game.
A Great Story Behind A Massive Slog - Joe Parlock
There’s a lot to like about Banishers. Its setting is fascinating, and diving into the dark history of a colony of righteous Christians lets it explore some incredibly mature themes. The bond between Red and Antea is also one of the strongest romantic relationships in any game.
However, to get to all that, you have to play through 20+ hours of samey combat and identical environments. If you’re not in it for the story, Banishers doesn’t do anything engaging enough to stick with it.
