Video Game Review: Banished

 

Quick Info

Developer: Shining Rock Software
Released: February 18, 2014
Platform: Windows PC, Steam, GOG.com. If you buy from their website, you will get a Steam Key if you buy it there, too.

What is "Banished"?

Banished is a city-building game set in the Medieval period. On the surface, it appears to be just your average city-building game. You build resource buildings, keep your citizens happy, and trade goods your citizens create. But Banished is different from other city-building games because of a few major differences; you do not have to worry about money in this game. Instead, this city-building game does what others haven’t: it kills your population, your citizens arrive in the city, work, get married, have kids, grow old, and die.

It is very fun and challenging to play on hard mode.

Gameplay

Gameplay involves the settlers gathering up different materials to build buildings, such as wood chopping, forestry, fishing, blacksmiths, mines, quarries, hunting lodges, and herbal medicine to help keep your village up and running.

You can also build trading posts, hospitals, and a town hall to bring more villagers and trade with other villages for items you don't have at the start of the village.

The difficulty is the amount of materials you start with; depending on your settings, you'll start with more or fewer materials at the beginning of the game. The game never "ends" unless all your villagers die off.

This game is a lot of fun, especially if you enjoy city-building games. It doesn’t have a lot of depth, but if you know how to play city-building games, this will be a challenge.

The gameplay is complex when it comes to managing everything, but the game has really good tutorials, and it shows you how to play the game. The tutorial is easy to understand and explains almost everything very well.

Graphics

The graphics look nice; it’s not outstanding, but that’s not the point of the game. It does look very good, though. It’s fun to watch people go throughout your town as they go to work and live life in your village.

It doesn't look like the most amazing game graphically, but it has a nice art style that I really like, and it looks good, but not mind-blowing or cutting-edge like a game from a triple-A publisher.

The UI

The user interface is really easy to use, and you can customize it so you can choose what you want to see. You can see everything, but it has the bare minimum and it's very convenient to keep track of everything going on in your village.

Strategy is the Key

The key to surviving in Banished is the strategy, and that's what makes the game so much fun. Do I focus on food, or do I need to get the houses up as fast as possible? What about firewood?

Trying to think of the best strategy so that people don't die during the winter is a fun challenge, and why I play this game for hours and hours.

You'll have to choose between the blacksmith shop, because you need tools, or if you want to build a tailor shop. Every decision counts, and that's why I love this game!

Soundtrack

The music for the game’s soundtrack is also very well done, and it sounds very nice. The soundtrack has very pleasant music, and it's very soothing. And I like the music, but it does get a little repetitive, but it's all very pleasant to listen to.

You'll Feel Great When You Succeed

You'll feel a huge sense of accomplishment if you can take your small group of survivors and turn your tiny village into a large, bustling city. I think that it's really neat that you can make it happen, and since there's an added element of having your people build your buildings, it just becomes more challenging since you can't just click on a spot and then a building appears.

There's also a resource management element to the game that makes it challenging, but if you can get enough resources, you can survive; you just have to have a good strategy to do it.

The AI Is Weird

The major flaw of the game is that when you’re trying to select things to trade, the arrow sliders are very small on the trade menu, and I keep choosing the wrong item. Also, some people have had problems trying to get the game to start after buying it on Steam. Check the Steam community forums for help.

The AI will also let your villagers starve to death sometimes, even when you have plenty of food nearby. It can become frustrating when villagers take too long to go get food and die for no reason at all.

Final Thoughts

I highly recommend this game; it’s not perfect, but for being developed by one person, it’s excellent. It’s not the greatest-looking city-building game, but it’s challenging and fun. I’ve played for hours, and I’ve really enjoyed it. If you don’t like slow-paced games, this isn’t for you, but if city-building games are your thing, check it out. It’s not too expensive, and it’s a lot of fun.

Overall Grade: A-

Banished is a lot of fun and provides hours and hours of fun and challenging city-building and management. It looks nice and has a great soundtrack and decent AI. The gameplay is fun, but the AI will sometimes do some weird things. The game is still a lot of fun.

I really loved this game, and I will definitely recommend it to anyone who loves city-building games. You'll enjoy playing this game, but it can be repetitive if you play it a lot.