GamesAction RpgWith Banishers: Ghosts of New Eden, Don’t Not is mixing action-RPG combat with challenging, Life Is Strange-style choicesWhen you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.Here’s how it works.
GamesAction RpgWith Banishers: Ghosts of New Eden, Don’t Not is mixing action-RPG combat with challenging, Life Is Strange-style choicesWhen you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.Here’s how it works.
When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.Here’s how it works.
(Image credit: Focus Entertainment)
In Banishers: Ghosts of New Eden, a voice calls out to me. I’m playing as protagonist Red mac Raith, lost and alone in the earliest hours of Don’t Nod’s upcoming action-RPG. I don’t know where I am, or what’s happened to bring me here, but as I wander through a forested area, I hear the voice again. “Where are you?”, Red calls out again, sounding increasingly pained as I’m beckoned down a path leading into a cave. There are no signs of life here save for myself, but a curious green flame ignites a hanging lantern suspended from a tree; as if to guide me.
Making my way further down a rocky incline, I see the ghostly figure of a woman who seems to emit the same green hue as the strange fire I saw moments ago. It’s immediately clear that Red knows who this woman is from the desperation in his voice as he tries to reach her. It’s Antea, the love of his life, and given her spectral form, something terrible must have transpired. When I find myself in front of a small waterfall, the rings on Red’s right hand - that are decorated with curious runes - also begin to glow green, and suddenly Antea stands before me.
It’s an emotionally charged moment, as Red desperately reaches out to grab both her hands, almost as though he’s grounding her back into the land of the living. The lost lovers are reunited, but now that Antea is a ghost, questions hang in the air between them. Can they really truly be together again? And even if they can, should they instead try to find a way to help Antea finally pass on?
During my hands-on session, I get a taste of the story, combat, and world of Banishers: Ghost of New Eden. I feel like I only scratch the surface of the action RPG, but from what I’ve played, it does well to quickly establish that Antea and Red’s relationship is at the heart of the experience in more ways than one. With difficult choices that look set to shape them as a couple, the question of whether they can or even should be together again promises to drive the adventure forward in interesting ways.
Skills and spectres
(Image credit: Don’t Nod)
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(Image credit: Don’t Nod)
During my session, Antea actually seems to call for me to let her help out more times than is really needed, as though she’s constantly saying something in a fight to remind me that I can make use of both characters during one enemy-heavy skirmish. In one sense, I can see why this has been done to make you feel her presence when you fight as Red, but I did find it a little distracting on occasion.
Hearts and hauntings
(Image credit: Focus Entertainment)
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Once I find a ritual spot in the location, I’m able to perform it as Red with the right resources to see a past echo of what transpired here. Apparitions of Jacob and his friend show they were greatly suffering from hunger and had a big argument that led to the best friend’s untimely demise. From this one case alone, it’s evident that Ghosts Banishers of New Eden won’t shy away from presenting you with difficult moral dilemmas. Is Jacob to blame for his friend’s death, or can he be forgiven because his hunger drove him to it? At the close of the case, I’m now faced with a difficult choice to complete it. Do I banish the ghost, help it peacefully ascend, or blame Jacob? The latter option will feed Jacob’s soul to Antea, meaning you essentially take a life.
What makes this so difficult is that blaming the most people will help bring Antea back and thus reunite the lovers. But should you take lives to save one? Even if you could argue that some have done terrible things? Not unlike Life is Strange, I spent a lot of time considering what to do, and when I chose to ascend the ghost, I find myself wondering what this will mean later down the line for the couple.
GamesRadar+ is exploring the most anticipated video games of the new year withBig in 2024.We’ll be launching new articles every day throughout January to help you understand which new games deserve to be on your radar.
GamesRadar+ is exploring the most anticipated video games of the new year withBig in 2024.We’ll be launching new articles every day throughout January to help you understand which new games deserve to be on your radar.
GamesRadar+ is exploring the most anticipated video games of the new year withBig in 2024.We’ll be launching new articles every day throughout January to help you understand which new games deserve to be on your radar.
GamesRadar+ is exploring the most anticipated video games of the new year withBig in 2024.We’ll be launching new articles every day throughout January to help you understand which new games deserve to be on your radar.
GamesRadar+ is exploring the most anticipated video games of the new year withBig in 2024.We’ll be launching new articles every day throughout January to help you understand which new games deserve to be on your radar.
GamesRadar+ is exploring the most anticipated video games of the new year withBig in 2024.We’ll be launching new articles every day throughout January to help you understand which new games deserve to be on your radar.
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1Nemesis review: “A magical sense of tension”
1Nemesis review: “A magical sense of tension”
1
Nemesis review: “A magical sense of tension”
2Arcs review: “A whole lot of game in a small package”
2Arcs review: “A whole lot of game in a small package”
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Arcs review: “A whole lot of game in a small package”
3Path of Exile 2 review: “A stellar start to a thrilling and brutal dark adventure”
3Path of Exile 2 review: “A stellar start to a thrilling and brutal dark adventure”
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Path of Exile 2 review: “A stellar start to a thrilling and brutal dark adventure”
4Indiana Jones and the Great Circle review: “The best adventure Indy has embarked on in over 30 years”
4Indiana Jones and the Great Circle review: “The best adventure Indy has embarked on in over 30 years”
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Indiana Jones and the Great Circle review: “The best adventure Indy has embarked on in over 30 years”
5Marvel Rivals review: “So preoccupied with trying to be like Overwatch that it forgets to play to its own strengths”
5Marvel Rivals review: “So preoccupied with trying to be like Overwatch that it forgets to play to its own strengths”
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Marvel Rivals review: “So preoccupied with trying to be like Overwatch that it forgets to play to its own strengths”
1Sonic the Hedgehog 3 review: “Keanu Reeves as Shadow is wasted whilst Jim Carrey steals the show”
1Sonic the Hedgehog 3 review: “Keanu Reeves as Shadow is wasted whilst Jim Carrey steals the show”
1
Sonic the Hedgehog 3 review: “Keanu Reeves as Shadow is wasted whilst Jim Carrey steals the show”
2Mufasa: The Lion King review – “It’s no Hakuna Matata but this Disney origin story is a class above the 2019 movie”
2Mufasa: The Lion King review – “It’s no Hakuna Matata but this Disney origin story is a class above the 2019 movie”
2
Mufasa: The Lion King review – “It’s no Hakuna Matata but this Disney origin story is a class above the 2019 movie”
3Kraven the Hunter review: “The insistence on an R-rating helps save this, with a decent helping of bloodthirsty action”
3Kraven the Hunter review: “The insistence on an R-rating helps save this, with a decent helping of bloodthirsty action”
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Kraven the Hunter review: “The insistence on an R-rating helps save this, with a decent helping of bloodthirsty action”
4The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim review – “An uninspired expansion of the most iconic screen take on Tolkien”
4The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim review – “An uninspired expansion of the most iconic screen take on Tolkien”
4
The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim review – “An uninspired expansion of the most iconic screen take on Tolkien”
5Nightbitch review: “Amy Adams' disappointing dark comedy is all bark and no bite”
5Nightbitch review: “Amy Adams' disappointing dark comedy is all bark and no bite”
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Nightbitch review: “Amy Adams' disappointing dark comedy is all bark and no bite”
1Doctor Who 2024 Christmas special review: “Ncuti Gatwa is as magnetic as ever in this delightful festive treat”
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1
Doctor Who 2024 Christmas special review: “Ncuti Gatwa is as magnetic as ever in this delightful festive treat”
2Secret Level review: “An uneven experience with serious highlights that ultimately make up for the misses”
2Secret Level review: “An uneven experience with serious highlights that ultimately make up for the misses”
2
Secret Level review: “An uneven experience with serious highlights that ultimately make up for the misses”
3Skeleton Crew review: “Perfectly captures the vibes of classic Star Wars with a swashbuckling twist”
3Skeleton Crew review: “Perfectly captures the vibes of classic Star Wars with a swashbuckling twist”
3
Skeleton Crew review: “Perfectly captures the vibes of classic Star Wars with a swashbuckling twist”
4Creature Commandos review: “James Gunn’s heartwarming, R-rated tale about super-monsters proves that the DCU is in good hands”
4Creature Commandos review: “James Gunn’s heartwarming, R-rated tale about super-monsters proves that the DCU is in good hands”
4
Creature Commandos review: “James Gunn’s heartwarming, R-rated tale about super-monsters proves that the DCU is in good hands”
5Cobra Kai season 6, part 2 review: “Returns to the sort of hard-hitting form that made it such a fan favorite in the first place”
5Cobra Kai season 6, part 2 review: “Returns to the sort of hard-hitting form that made it such a fan favorite in the first place”
5
Cobra Kai season 6, part 2 review: “Returns to the sort of hard-hitting form that made it such a fan favorite in the first place”