Austin Wintory blew us away in 2012 with his soundtrack to Journey, and independent video game, and this year he’s back with another wonderful soundtrack, The Banner Saga.
The Banner Saga, another indie game from Stoic Studios, raised 700k+ on Kickstarter to jump start the game’s development, as well as Wintory’s score. It is apparently a pretty good turn-based RPG (akin to Fire Emblem or Ogre Tactics, for those into these types of things); a view of the game play may aid in putting the score in context. Those intimate with Journey’s smart, sophisticated soundtrack may be swoon over Wintory’s smooth transitioning and his masterful balance of styles within the game’s score, all fitting perfectly with Journey’s game play. By contrast, The Banner Saga is more of a rough-and-tumble game, and the score is much more blunt with its compositions, as it evidenced with its more direct approach and even the addition of singers (which tie in well with the Medieval imagery). Nonetheless, Wintory is sure to pull from his strengths, from the somber and effective “Long Past the Last Sigh” to the energetic finale of “Strewn Across a Bridge” — and let’s’ not forget the score’s cornerstone, “Of Our Bones, The Hills.” Quite ambitious in nature, Wintory scores another hit with The Banner Saga and once again leaves us craving more.