Game of Thrones: Beyond the Wall Was Inspired by Strong Narratives and Classic Turn-Based Combat

Behaviour Interactive released a new Game of Thrones game this week called Game of Thrones: Beyond the Wall, a game the developer said takes inspirations from compelling narratives and classic turn-based strategy games that many people have probably invested many hours in. The game is based on the Game of Thrones TV show and features some of the most iconic characters from the show's biggest moments, all of which is packed into several different game modes including an original story carried by turn-based combat players may recognize from other hit franchises like Fire Emblem. Dan Guertin, the creative director for Beyond the Wall, said the team looked to strike a balance between these established gameplay elements and a narrative which would keep players and Game of Thrones fans invested.

In the game, players control fan-favorite characters like Jon Snow and Daenerys and do battle though turn-based, tile-map gameplay while building up their forces. The original narrative in the game's main story mode introduces players to new characters and scenarios while alternate game modes provide other ways of playing.

ComicBook.com spoke to Guertin and Behaviour Interactive ahead of Beyond the Wall's release to learn more about the game's development and how it connects to the larger Game of Thrones franchise. Guertin said the team looked at classic turn-based games to channel the right features and mechanics into Beyond the Wall while adding their own influence on it to make it an original Game of Thrones experience.

"When we look at games, we looked at a lot of the classic turn-based strategies and also the latest ones," Guertin said. "We have a bunch of influences. There's no definitive game that we said, 'Okay, this is the one we're inspiring ourselves from.' There's a lot of tidbits here, there. They're from things like Fire Emblem or Wargroove. Even though we were designing a game, even though there were some modern games coming out, we still looked at them to make sure that we nailed an experience that made sense and that played well on mobile as well."

Guertin said the team wanted to strike the right balance between gameplay and narrative. The former is covered with the classic turn-based style, and the latter was achieved by creating a narrative that's easily accessible to players who want a fresh Game of Thrones story while also providing them with some challenges and alternate modes.

"We wanted to find the right balance between a game that would be giving a good enough of an experience for players looking for turn-based strategy can find something, but also the fans coming in that are not really looking for a big game," Guertin said.

Game of Thrones: Beyond the Wall is now available on Apple devices and will come to Android devices on April 3rd.