Ben and Abnaxus

Hi guys,

Edit:

Ragnar answered my tweet:

@RagnarTornquist Any chance of bringing Abnaxus and Ben Bandu back for Dreamfall Chapter, since they were cut from Dreamfall?

@TCO_TSW Yes.

So today I want to talk about Bandu-umanu-banta-au-rubana-biutan-binaort "Ben Bandu", and Abnaxus the Venar.

Ben Bandu
Bandu-umanu-banta-au-rubana-biutan-binaort (meaning the little one who tries hard to live up to his father who sings to the Soil in the Banda Language), also known by the name of Ben Bandu is a character that April encounter in the Longest Journey. She meets Ben Bandu when she is traveling to Riverwood on her way to defeat Roper Klacks. She finds out that Ben is looking for his brother Bandu-Uta who has mysteriously disapeared. April later frees Bandu-Uta from the Gribbler and earns the respect from the Banda. Ben is seen for one last time, just before April leaves the camp and he proudly proclaims that he had been chosen to join the diggers. 

So by now some of you might be wondering: why should we still care about this character? The answer is short and simple: because there is a VERY good chance that Ben Bandu will be seen again in Dreamfall Chapters. Ben Bandu was originally supposed to return in Dreamfall, but was later cut from the game. The scene he was supposed to take part in can be seen below. 

This scene is believed to be the " Rebel Ambush" where we saw April for the very first time during Dreamfall. It is not sure what his role in these scene was supposed to be, he would probably have been attacked by the Azadi and saved by the Rebels, but unfortunately we can only speculate. Ragnar has sad that the character had been cut from Dreamfall because he was not important enough to the story. Eventually his character model "Ben_Bandu" made it into the game. It can be seen in the Old Town market when either playing as Zoe or Kian.

Don't worry, we might still see him again. As I mentioned earlier that there is a very good chance that Ben returns to the TLJ universe in Dreamfall Chapters. Ragnar commented on the cut saying: "Yes, he's still alive, his story is important, and he still has a part to play in the saga." Ragnar also implied that he (Ben) was destined for a dark fate, similar to that of Abnaxus who I will come to in just a second. So will we see Ben return? Only Ragnar knows, but I certainly hope so! I was very sad to learn that he was removed for Dreamfall and I think it would have made the story even better, but hey no point at looking back right? 

Abnaxus the Venar

So I have mentioned the name Abnaxus quite a few times already in this post. Abnaxus is a Venar whom April meets on her second and third visits to Arcedia. Abnaxus is known for his weird speech, which are caused by the fact that the Venar see all times as one. His people have chosen him as an ambassador because (only) he can focus on one particular moment and therefore talk to people who "flow" with time. Abnaxus is last seen only moments before the Tyren invade the city as he gives April his piece of the stone disk. 

Just like Ben Abnaxus was originally supposed to make an appearance is Dreamfall. In the concept art (above) you can see him wearing keys and an amulet that strongly resembles the talisman of the Balance. Ragnar commented on his role in Dreamfall saying: "[he was] left in a very bewildered and tragic stage following the events of TLJ [...] Dreamfall was always a darker and more tragic story, and there were few happy endings". It is a shame this character was a cut as well, because again I believe it would have made Dreamfall's story even better. At least we can hope to see him return in Dreamfall Chapters as well, can't we? 

That is all for now, don't forget to check back and check the wiki entries on Ben and Abnaxus if you want to refresh your memory on the characters stories again.

-WorldsReunited