Banishers: Ghosts of New Eden | Xbox Review

It’s fair to say that I’m a massive fan of DON’T NOD as a developer/publisher. Their unique, story-driven games always manage to capture and hold my attention. Each entry elicits a multitude of emotions from the players who dare to dive into these incredible experiences. Their newest title, Banishers: Ghosts of New Eden, follows this same template and it’s all the better for it.

The Journey Begins

You’re thrust into the shoes of Red mac Raith and Antea Duarte, who are Banishers that have been called to New Eden due to unusual circumstances. Banishers are basically ghost hunters/exorcists, and New Eden Town is a paranormal hotspot. Even though there are sinister goings-on in this small village, Red and Antea are forced to venture outside of New Eden Town after a tragic event happens. Their main goal is to return to this city, but there is a heavy personal cost tied to their journey.

You see, Antea is a specter/ghost and once you finally make your way back to where you started, you are forced to decide on and enact her fate. It’s a choice that the game makes you sit with, and it encourages you to stick with the decision you make. Of course, it’s not going to force you to go through with what you initially choose to do, but there may be consequences if you break your oath. It’s not an easy decision to make, though. Red and Antea are deeply in love, and you’re forced to decide between two devastating solutions.

Saving People, Hunting Things

During your playthrough of Banishers: Ghosts of New Eden, you’ll be faced with solving haunting cases, helping individuals with personal matters, and fighting off malicious specters. The game is split about an even 50/50 between narrative beats and combat, which was refreshing. Nothing felt like it dragged on for too long, and the switches between tasks kept me on my toes.

It took me 43 hours to complete the main story quest, plus I also solved all the haunting cases and completed all side quests. Of course, this playtime will vary depending on how much you choose to do. Most of these tasks are optional, but they do enrich the story and make you feel more attached to the characters of this world. I never encountered a quest that felt like a chore or filler, which is an amazing feat. I was compelled to figure out each mystery of this world, and I was richly rewarded for it.

Keep On Fighting

The story quests are fairly straightforward in terms of gameplay, usually just requiring you to travel to a certain location, make dialogue decisions, and choose which course of action to take in regards to Antea’s fate. The choices tied to Antea’s fate are pretty binary, which could be disappointing for some players who were hoping for more nuance. You are told by the game which action is good or bad, and there’s not really any room for any morally grey decisions to pop up.

Combat, on the other hand, is simple to learn but can be difficult to master. Red uses a saber and rifle to fight; meanwhile, Antea is more of a brawler who chooses to use her fists to put the beatdown on ghosts, with occasional spectral attacks used to deal extra damage. You’re highly encouraged to switch between the two during your battles (and Antea will let you know she’s disappointed that she wasn’t invited to duke it out). They balance each other out well, and can save each other from a pickle. Most enemies are pretty easy to defeat on the normal difficulty setting, but the handful of boss fights force you to stay on your toes and utilize parrying and dodging to survive their multiple stages.

Once More, With Feeling

I loved my time spent with Banishers: Ghosts of New Eden for the most part, even despite a few hiccups. Red and Antea’s relationship is refreshing and healthy, and you can feel the love these two characters have for each other. It’s a mature connection between two adults, without any petty drama or squabbles to deal with. The citizens of New Eden grew on me, and I became deeply invested in their lives just as much as I was in Red and Antea’s. This is also a graphically stunning game, with brilliant voice acting on top of that.

My only gripes I had were all related to technical issues. I often encountered audio problems, which really put a damper on things when they occurred. Dialogue would randomly cut out and the music would start to loop or become stuck on a certain note. I also experienced frequent framerate drops while running and jumping over obstacles. I even had my game completely crash twice while hopping over fallen trees, forcing me to restart my game and sending me back to the last checkpoint. Luckily, autosaves are frequent so I didn’t lose too much progress, but it was still a bummer when it occurred.

The Final Verdict

Banishers: Ghosts of New Eden is a story-rich experience that continues to haunt me days after rolling credits on it. I adored the journey and became heavily invested in the world of New Eden. The haunting cases and side quests, though optional, flesh the narrative out even further and reward you for completing them. Red and Antea are incredible protagonists, with a healthy relationship fuelling their journey. Combat is solid, and the game itself is quite a looker. The only factors that bring it down are the technical issues that put a damper on the experience. If you’re a fan of DON’T NOD and/or love narratively heavy games (additional brownie points if you’re a fan of supernatural elements), you’ll want to play this title. It’s a gem.

To hear me talk more about Banishers: Ghosts of New Eden, be sure to listen to the February 24 episode of The Gaming Outsider podcast around the 38:33 time stamp.

This review is based on an Xbox copy of Banishers: Ghosts of New Eden provided by Sandbox Strategies for coverage purposes. It is also available on PlayStation 5, PC via Steam, and Epic Games Store.