Tahira - Review @IndieGames

At first glance, the core game loop of Tahira: Echoes of the Astral Empire really does seem a lot like that of The Banner Saga. Where the latter puts a lot of emphasis on the toll the journey takes on the people, however, Tahira's emphasis is on its desparate fights. The Astral Empire's soldiers outnumber Tahira's people badly, which means the player absolutely must take advantage of the environment to win.

The first time I lost a battle in Tahira, it was a long, drawn-out affair. This was the second battle in a row with no break. My remaining units were tired, their injuries unhealed and their skill points unrestored. We held up pretty well for a while, but eventually I realized that if I didn't fall back, I'd be overrun. I had to sacrifice some units so the others could flee. My second line, too, fell, leaving me with only my four named heroes, the ones whose deaths would earn me an instant defeat. Clever use of positioning, abilities, and supplies let me hold out until there were only two archers left... when one miscalculation led to my defeat.

It's through such mechanics that the combat of Tahira really supports its story. Your units can get more powerful, but there are still only a limited number of them. The enemies, however, have units upon units to throw at you, which can make it feel like things are exactly as bad as the characters say it is.

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forgottenlor said:

I'm about 5 hours in (its supposed to be about 12). Its most like the Banner Saga, but without the camp stuff, character building and with a linear story instead of lots of choices. Still I find myself enjoying it more than the Banner Saga. For one the combat is better and much more variable. For another I found the Banner Saga depressed me. Tahira has a lot of dark elements to be sure, but there is still a little humour, hope, and warmth to it. Its not, in my opinion, a great game, but its fun for in between.

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Kordanor said:

And the lack of these RPG-elements and the resource management actually makes it more enjoyable than banner saga to me. As you don't suddenly lose a team member which used the nice items and you are also not traveling into the unknown making the resource management extremely silly. It's just battle after battle with a couple of conversations in between. Not sure if the decisions in the conversations matter.

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