Banishers: Ghosts of New Eden is the newest title from developer Don’t Nod, known best for its work on the Life is Strange series. The title tells the story of Antea and Red, Banishers sent to investigate a curse gripping the settlement of New Eden. As Banishers, Antea and Red are specialized in a variety of rituals with which to investigate and interact with the elements surrounding the settlement’s hauntings. Throughout the Banishers’ trek to New Eden Town, it is up to players to identify and complete the appropriate rituals, each requiring unique summoning materials and unique environmental parameters.

Banishers: Ghosts of New Eden sees Red and Antea face off against a powerful curse, The Nightmare, which has plunged the settlement of New Eden and its surrounding wilderness into chaos. However, their first encounter with The Nightmare does not go as planned, leaving Antea dead and Red haunted by her spirit. As the pair trek back towards New Eden to reclaim Antea’s body and lift the curse, they contend with a variety of hauntings, each of which requires them to perform unique rituals and unearth the truth about the hauntings’ victims and the spirits that plague them.

Banishers- Ghosts of New Eden's Haunting Love Story Explained
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Banishers: Ghosts of New Eden's Haunting Love Story Explained

Banishers takes players through a horror-tinged fantasy epic, and at its heart lies a deeply haunting tale of duty, love, and loss.

Banishers' Haunting Rituals Aid in the Investigation of Its Supernatural Cases

Rituals are special, location-sensitive actions that Red can perform to investigate a haunting or initiate a unique activity in Banishers’ open world. Throughout the title’s narrative, players will unlock and utilize five unique rituals, each of which can only be used when particular elements are present or a haunting-specific item is in Red’s possession. Banishers indicates that a ritual site is near using Red’s Bane Rings, which glow orange upon approach. By understanding each ritual’s intended result and the nature of its environment, players can correctly choose which to perform in a given situation.

Banishers’ rituals can be separated into two categories: haunting rituals and open-world rituals. Harkening and Make-Manifest are the two rituals most often used during Haunting Cases. Harkening rituals allow Red and Antea to reveal the memories of past events, which often leads them to an item directly tied to the ghost being investigated. Harkenings often require Red to gather natural resources from the surrounding environment and can be indicated by a supernaturally foggy environment with floating blue lights.

Using this “tied” item and additional environmental resources, players can complete the second haunting ritual, Make-Manifest, which summons the haunting ghost for questioning. Make-Manifest is the most important piece of any Haunting Case and often influences the punishment that Red and Antea choose to bestow upon the guilty party. The ritual can also be used to make ghosts haunting specific open-world locations appear, leading to small combat challenges that cleanse the site.

Banishers' Open-World Rituals Unlock Unique Rewards and Challenging Activities

Banishers’ open-world rituals can be performed in the field, as players journey between New Eden's major locations. Each leads to unique rewards and sees Red remove a variety of curses, requiring him to face challenging enemies or travel beyond the physical realm. The Summon Scourge ritual is used in sites of particularly strong energy, leading to a confrontation with a Scourge entity, Banishers' optional minibosses. Scourge sites can be identified by a pile of bones or bodies that emit a blueish flame. Unbounding rituals allow Red to open cursed chests found throughout New Eden's environments, each requiring three identical dolls to be performed. Lastly, Void Traveling rituals can be used to enter and exit the supernatural realm. Void sites are perhaps the easiest to identify, as they can only be done on platforms covered in white ritualistic carvings, which are unlocked after the "Swamp Witch" quest on Siridian's Island.

Banishers' rituals are an important part of its overarching narrative and themes, as performing one often leads to much more than a simple reward. Investigating New Eden's optional hauntings unveils a much deeper analysis of the prejudices of the time, leading Red and Antea to reflect on their beliefs as both Banishers and lovers. Likewise, open-world rituals grant context to sites surrounding New Eden's more civilized locals, indicating a traumatic event or malevolent force.

It's up to players to discover how and when to perform each of the rituals in Banishers: Ghosts of New Eden. While many are optional, doing so grants an even deeper look into one of gaming's most haunting, and beautiful, love stories to date.