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Puzzle solving and platforming come together in this great port of a classic SNES game.
Introduction:
The Lost Vikings is the first of a string of Game Boy Advance remakes to be released under Vivendi Universal's Blizzard Classic Arcade label. Originally released on the PC, Genesis/Mega Drive and SNES, The Lost Vikings was a charming and unique platform/puzzle hybrid that had the player simultaneously guiding three characters through increasingly difficult maze-like levels. Simple, challenging, and incredibly addictive was the game, but how does it fare ten years on in 2003? Thankfully, despite it showing some signs of old age graphically, the core part of the title; its gameplay, remains every bit as playable as it did all those years ago.
Story:
On the day of the autumn harvest in Viking Village, three villagers named Olaf the Stout, Baleog the Fierce and Erik the Swift make their way home after a day of hunting and feasting. Unfortunately for our three Viking friends, on that very same day Tomator, the evil intergalactic zookeeper, has approached earth with the intention to acquire a couple of human specimens for his zoo. Tired and oblivious to the fact that there was a huge spacecraft lurking in the sky above the village, all three Vikings set off home for a good nights sleep. Before they know it, Olaf, Baleog and Erik are pulled from their beds and drawn towards Tomator's craft. Dazzled and confused, the Vikings find themselves onboard the futuristic craft not understanding quite how they got there. What they do know though, is that they must utilize each other's abilities to escape from this dangerous location and ultimately get back home to Viking Village.
Gameplay:
Looking at the screenshots it would be easy to presume that The Lost Vikings is a simple and basic platformer. Anyone to jump to this opinion without playing the game would be very much mistaken. Instead, The Lost Vikings is essentially a platform-based game shell that revolves heavily around the solving of puzzles. Strategy is also a core gameplay element and becomes apparent very early on when the player is introduced to the three main characters and their specific abilities. Of the three Vikings, only Erik actually has the ability to jump, whilst Baleog can attack with a sword or arrow and Olaf can fend off enemy attacks with his shield. Olaf's shield is also pretty versatile and has other uses. Not only can he use it to glide down at a gradual rate to avoid sharp drops, if he holds it upwards it can be used as a portable mini platform. Additionally, Baleog's arrows are frequently used to shoot out-of-reach targets and switches. Utilizing all three of the characters abilities is vital to make progress through the game, not only because of the puzzle-heavy levels but also due to the fact that the player can only progress onto the next stage when all three Vikings have reached the goal at the end of the level.
One of the greatest aspects of The Lost Vikings' game design is the way that the levels have been so carefully designed that they will require much thought and skill to progress. Unlike many standard platformers, the player has absolutely no chance of survival if they attempt to rush through a stage. Whilst the first set are fairly easy, a few levels in and the player will be facing a constant onslaught of hidden traps and difficult to avoid enemies. Even early on in the game the three Vikings must overcome many instant-death situations, such as electrifying fields and the obligatory spiked pits. As you progress further through the game even more obstacles are thrown in to ensure the player constantly has to rethink their strategy. From pounding weights, controllable magnetic forces and lever-activated bridges to helium-filled balloon pumps that allow the Vikings to float upwards for a short duration; each of the game's many environments features its own unique style and set of puzzles and enemies.
The structure of The Lost Vikings is strictly linear. Even the option to replay levels that have already been completed isn't even available without restarting the game from scratch, which can be highly irritating. The majority of the levels are also designed in a linear manner, with set paths that require the player to use certain characters to solve a chain of puzzles in sequence in order to progress. Whilst this sounds rather limiting on paper, it's actually what keeps you playing. There is a lot less of the tedious exploration-based gameplay we have come to expect from modern-day platformers. Instead, the game is packed full of good old-fashioned puzzle solving, something that's good to see in what has become a tired genre of late. That said, many of the levels are packed full of goodies that will help the player to survive against the stronger enemies. Some of the non-compulsory pick-ups include smart bombs, food (for gaining lost energy) and one-shot-to-kill flaming arrows. Additionally there also some important items scattered throughout most of the levels, usually in the form of coloured keys used to unlock doors or deactivate electronic gates. Bombs are also a frequent sight, which can be picked up and used by any of the three Vikings to break otherwise indestructible walls.
Generally, the control set up on the Game Boy Advance works well, although there are a couple of slightly confusing irritations that become noticeable in some of the more frantic levels. Whilst there are no problems with controlling the movement of each character or performing the primary and secondary moves using the A and B buttons, the GBA's L & R triggers once again cause some headache. To change between the three characters a simple press of either trigger is called for. Whilst this doesn't cause the player any problems other than the usual discomfort through using the L trigger, there are also two other functions assigned to the R trigger. By pressing the R and A buttons together switches can be flipped or other characters can be interacted with. Similarly, pressing the R and B buttons together allows the selected inventory item to be used, be it a key, item of food or something else. With three similarly configured actions assigned to the R trigger and so many instant-death situations in the latter levels it is a frequent occurrence to lose concentration for a split-second, resulting in the loss of a Viking.
Lifespan:
The Lost Vikings offers some 35 levels set over numerous different environments. Despite many of the levels edging on the short side, particularly the early ones, it is not uncommon to have to attempt each level at least 5 to 10 times each due to the intense puzzles that will have many a player scratching their head whilst they work out what they are doing wrong. Despite the high challenge and the need to replay many of the levels in order to complete them, the game never gets frustrating enough that you won't return to it, particularly if you're a fan of retro games. For the average game there has to be a good 20-25 hours of gameplay on offer here. There aren't any exciting bonuses to unlock after completing all 35 levels, but this game is from an era where games relied on strong design and addiction factor rather than cheap bonuses to keep gamers interested. It would have been nice to have seen a couple of extra GBA-exclusive features added, practically everything remains unchanged from the SNES original, other than the inclusion of six on-cart save slots, but Blizzard obviously decided that the game will appeal on its original strengths, and they were right.
Graphics & Sound:
The Lost Vikings is a straight SNES port. The graphics aren't anything spectacular by any means compared to newly developed Game Boy Advance titles, but they never fall below a standard that would make the game ugly to look at. Despite the game's dated look, the environments are always bright and colourful and the character sprites, or more specifically the animation sequences used in the sprites, are particularly amusing and contribute to the overall charm of the game. All of the music from the SNES original is present in this Game Boy Advance remake. Despite a slight reduction in quality, the music, whilst sounding a little dated, perfectly suits the theme of each world, from the Egyptian world to the Spaceship-based world. The sound effects are nothing to write home about, but they do their job and there are even a couple of amusing sounds that accompany situations such as large falls, which add further humour to the game.
Closing Comments:
The Lost Vikings is easily one of the most addictive Game Boy Advance games to be released in recent months. Whilst not everyone will appreciate the game's high difficulty level and frustration factor, those looking for something with a little more depth than your average platformer would be advised to pick up a copy. It may just be a straight port with next to nothing new added, but it's a top quality port of a all-time classic game that, for those who haven't played through the original, would go down a storm in any Game Boy Advance owners collection provided they are prepared for many hours of tricky puzzle-solving. Here's hoping that Blizzard are planning to release a port of the second Lost Vikings title later in the year!
