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Intro First in a series of classic titles from Blizzard's past, The Lost Vikings features the tale of three Vikings who had the demeanor of the Three Stooges and the ingenuity of the player's wit. Prepare to embark on one of the most deceivingly difficult, and humorous, journeys on the Game Boy Advance to date. Gameplay: 8/10 Anyone recall Flashback? If so, then they would recall a platformer that required incredible timing and nerves of steel. While not as strict to the subgenre as the upcoming port of Blackthorne, The Lost Vikings has the same element of seeming as a typical platforming title, but turning out to be so much more. In essence, The Lost Vikings is nothing more than mini puzzles that are played out in a platform manner. Each level is broken up into different segments that require the player to get from point A to point B, with no sidetracking in the middle. While there are hidden passages, they're extremely short and consist of simply grabbing an item and returning to the normal playing area, which is no more than a few feet away. Players will have to contend with enemies that fire projectiles, use themselves as weapons, locked gates, breakable walls, laser fences, and so on. Oh, did I mention that the Vikings were kidnapped by aliens? As you can imagine, wacky antics can, and do, ensue. What makes the game so much more than the standard platformer is the fact that the player controls three separate Vikings, independently, but each has an attribute that makes them vital to the group. Jumping, attacking, and defending, are separated as each Viking handles each specialty: Erik the Swift can run and hammer down walls, and is the only one who can jump; Baelog the Fierce can attack with his sword, but his bow can also be used to hit switches behind laser barriers; and Olaf the Stout has a massive shield that can be used to not only protect the gang, but also to use a glider for descending high levels and also as a platform for Erik to jump off of. All three enjoy a hardy sense of humor, with an arsenal little one-liners, that keeps things lighthearted and entertaining. Along the way, items like bombs and health will found to help supplement the Viking's small array of weaponry. There's also a large amount of helpful icons sitting around to help the player get through situations that look hopeless. There's also a lot of hunting for keys, but luckily, they tend to be within a reasonable distance from the locked doors, so that rarely becomes a problem. What really keeps the entertainment value high are the sporadic hints and segmented levels, otherwise, the constant replaying would have really brought the entire experience down - considering that the player will die, many, many times. There isn't enough health or goodies in the world to keep your little guys safe for very long. What
makes The Lost Vikings so difficult is that each Viking needs to survive.
That sounds reasonable, but the game will put players in very unreasonable situations.
Without the ability to peek a little in any direction, the player is left virtually
blind, aside for what they see on the screen. In doing so, the game takes on a
fairly slow pace as Olaf always takes the lead, due to having the shield - there's
no telling when a turret will pop-up or a projectile-welding enemy will appear.
If a situation seems safe, and Erik is sent in to jump on a ledge or Baelog in
to secure an area, and an enemy with a projectile is around, the three hits allotted
to the Vikings can be taken away mighty quickly. Strangely, the game continues
when a Viking dies, leaving the player to finish the level for no real reason,
other than to scope out future hazards before attempting a retry. Regardless,
even with all the help factored in, The Lost Vikings will be a challenge
to almost any gamer. Graphics:
7.5/10 Sound: 7/10 Control:
9/10 Overall:
8/10 [ top ] | |||
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