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PAX Prime 2015: Versus Evil Demos Impressive Roguelike ‘Bedlam’ and ‘The Banner Saga 2’

Publisher Versus Evil had a bunch of games at PAX Prime 2015, and while none were demoing on mobile specifically, a couple of games based on the engine for The Banner Saga ($9.99) are on their way to mobile, with Bedlam and The Banner Saga 2, and the development of Guild of Dungeoneering continues onward, with a mobile version in the future.

Skyshine’s Bedlam is extremely promising, as it combines the isometric turn-based strategy of The Banner Saga with the roguelike and resource-management aspects of FTL ($9.99) and Out There ($4.99). You command the crew of a wasteland-trekking vehicle, making choices to help guide you along in your trek to survive the harsh wasteland. Combat has you rolling out up to 6 units – with bonuses for using fewer units – and engaging in battles where each team takes 2 actions per turn. So, anyone can act, but you have to balance out the factors of whether one move is worth it compared to the inaction with other characters. Oh, and there’s character permadeath. It’s really cool, and you should keep an eye on it down the road for its eventual mobile release.

The Banner Saga 2 will pick up where the original game left off, with the choices you made, including one major happening from the end of the original, having a huge impact on the story of the sequel. Expect more of what made the original great, including a greater focus on cinematics and story events.

Finally, Guild of Dungeoneering, which I last saw at PAX South, is still set to come to mobile, with the PC version out and receiving expansions already. While there’s no launch date for the mobile version of this or any of Versus Evil’s games, they are all built on cross-platform engines, and are all worthy of attention in the coming months.