Viking: Battle for Asgard

"Viking of War"

I've always wondered why there aren't many games centered on Vikings. They were one of the most fearsome groups of people in the Middle Ages and their habits of destruction and plunder would seem to be right at home in a video game setting. After playing this game, I can safely conclude that Vikings would make a pretty cool video game if the developer actually knew what they were doing.

STORY
This is probably one of the most underdeveloped excuses for a story I have ever seen in a game. Compared to this, Gears of War looks like a work of Shakespeare. The plot, such as I was able to decipher, revolves around Midgard (in Viking mythology, the plane of existence we know as Earth) being invaded by Hel's Legion (Hel being the Norse goddess of the underworld). While it seems like a decent launching point for the story, it never gets beyond what I've just described.

There are also rumblings of a few subplots, such as the references to the death of main character Skarin's father as well as some vague mumblings about Skarin being cursed or some such. Again, these never get off the ground so you're left hanging and often confused because people are referencing things that are never explained. This lends the entire game a disjointed feel where you never know exactly what you're doing or why.

GRAPHICS
I really can't complain about how the game looks. Simply put, it is beautiful. Character models are intricately detailed and rendered. The environments are vast and possess no shortage of cool sights to see. There are numerous caves, towns and ruins that are presented during the course of the campaign which helps keep the standard hack and slash gameplay from getting too boring.

An interesting spin on things is that the environment changes drastically depending on whether or not it is under Legion control. Viking controlled areas are vibrant and beautiful, lots of flowers and sunlight. Legion areas are the complete opposite of that as they are all cloaked in darkness and rain. When moving between areas it is not unusual to watch the brightness of day suddenly disappear to be replaced with night. The whole effect is actually useful in a gameplay sense, because you immediately know when you've stepped into enemy territory.

Perhaps the most impressive part is that I didn't experience a single event of slowdown during my entire time playing. Given that during certain segments dozens upon dozens of characters can be on-screen without causing so much as a missed frame is a cause for celebration (at least in this reviewers eyes)

My one complaint comes from an item that is loosely tied to the story (or would that be “an item that is tied to what is loosely called a story”?). Either way, it is an ever-present irritation. The Brisingamen, a magical amulet carried by Skarin glows with a pale blue light. In Viking held areas it is almost unnoticeable. Upon moving into a Legion controlled area, it becomes an immediate problem, due to the fact that it illuminates the area around Skarin while causing everything else to look darker. This means it is sometimes impossible to detect enemies before they rush out of the darkness at you.

SOUND
I usually find myself struggling to find the words to describe how music or voice acting affects the game in question. But in this unusual instance, that won't be a problem. Why? Because for the most part, there is none. Every enemy in the game in completely mute and doesn't make a sound as it jumps out to attack or even when it dies. Music is similarly absent, with nothing but silence to accompany you as you move across the land. At one point I thought I was about to be treated to a rousing battle score in the midst of a fight, but after a few notes that died out as abruptly as it had started. The overall effect of this silence is quite detrimental to the game and makes it feel unfinished.

There are a few places that counterpoint this unearthly silence, such as the few cutscenes or when Skarin is in a Viking camp. In these instances, there is some spoken dialog which seems pretty well done. Of course it might just be relief to finally hear something that makes it seem good.

GAMEPLAY
How best to sum up the gameplay of Viking? The best description would be “open world hack and slash”. As the dual-wielding Skarin you'll carve your way across the islands of Midgard slaying Legion foes in order to save your people. Each island is entirely open from the get-go and littered with numerous objectives that need to be completed in order to reach the ultimate goal of driving the Legion from the land. Missions can usually be tackled in any order, but since they all consist of the same things it's easiest to just do whatever you're closest to.

The mission objectives are always simple. In any given area there are typically only two actions that need to be accomplished in order to achieve success - Kill all Legion soldiers and release the captured Vikings. Doing this will convert the region to Viking control as well as add troops to Skarin's army. There are a few change-ups to the formula, such as going to an area to retrieve some item or kill some special foe, but due to the fact that they almost always to killing a bunch of people, they end up feeling much the same as the rest of the missions.

The one thing that saves the game from being boring despite all the repetition is the combat. Skarin dual wields an axe and long sword in combat, which allows for some truly spectacular and brutal moves. In addition to the typical light and heavy attacks, he has access to a good number of special attacks which all have their uses in certain situations. At times, the combat is reminiscent of God of War due to the fact that after beating down an enemy to a certain point, a button prompt appears over the head of the enemy, allowing you to pull off a spectacularly brutal execution move. These range from cutting an enemy in half, to beheading or cutting off all their limbs. The God of War resemblance extends to boss fights as well in that you'll have to press a series of buttons to pull of the gory finished maneuvers. The visceral combat somehow manages to stay fun throughout the game, and even makes the uninspired missions fun.

My one problem with the combat is that there is no method of targeting. While this isn't a problem in small skirmishes (say three or four enemies), in larger fights you'll just be striking out and hitting whatever happens to be in the way. This problem is compounded by the erratic camera which makes sudden swings and adjustments as you fight, often leading to your enemies being off-screen while you try to adjust yourself to fight them. Needless to say, this leads to a lot of cheap hits and deaths.

As I mentioned before, you'll be saving a lot of imprisoned Vikings during your travels. This isn't just some arbitrary goal, because at certain points you'll be utilizing them. During special segments your Vikings will face off against the Legion in large army versus army battles. While these could have been the high point of the game, they manage to be one of its lowest. Due to the fact that the soldiers have the intelligence of bacteria and you can't give them orders they'll often just mill around attacking whatever comes their way without going towards the important enemies, such as the Shamans who continually summon reinforcements. The task of killing the Shamans is left up to you alone, which means you'll have to fend off dozens of enemies while trying to bring down the protective shields in order to finish the Shaman off.

Another snag in these large scale battles are the dragons. By completing certain missions you'll enlist the aid of a dragon. They only come into play during these army versus army battles, but they are immensely useful. Or at least they would be if they weren't so hard to use. In order to call in a dragon strike, you have to use “dragon runes”. These runes are obtained by such things as killing Shamans or the stronger Champions on the field. After getting enough runes you'll be able to call in the dragon and lay waste to a single heavily fortified enemy position. The problem is that by the time you have enough dragon runes, it is likely that there isn't much left for the dragon to actually kill.

THE VERDICT
Throughout the duration of the game my feelings ranged from intense loathing to bursts of extreme entertainment. The game presents the awkward situation of having more downfalls than triumphs and yet it somehow manages to pull it all off with a modicum of finesse. If you feel like killing some people, it's worth a rental, but I would be hesitant to actually buy it.

HIGHS
- Brutally violent combat
- Visually impressive

LOWS
- Underdeveloped story
- Erratic camera
- Army versus army battles
- Repetitive

Reviewer's Score: 7/10, Originally Posted: 07/28/08, Updated 10/06/08

Game Release: Viking: Battle for Asgard (US, 03/25/08)