Lost: Via Domus

"Surprise -- It's Not That Bad!"

'Lost: Via Domus' is a game which features a storyline based on the popular American televised show, 'Lost'. It features a survivor of Flight 815 who awakens on a deserted island with his fellow crash survivors, but has no memories of his past or his own identity. He soon become entangled with a mysterious smoke monster, the creepy inhabitants of the island, and his own dark memories. The game falls into the action genre, but features mystery and puzzle elements, as well as interaction with other characters. I will do my best to give the game a fair review, keeping in mind it was a game developed to appeal to fans of the 'Lost' television show.

GAME PLAY: The game has its faults in this category. The gameplay is simple and can even be fun at parts -- for example, racing through the jungle trying to maneuver the obstacles is not a bad way to play, and taking photographs in your 'flashback' scenes is kind of clever. There are also some gripping scenes that engross you in what you are doing, especially one challenge in particular that leads to multiple endings depending on how you act. However, the gameplay is overall pretty uninspiring. There are not very many layers to the action in the game, and the main character's own investigation is fairly straight forward and not very challenging. The result is a game that only holds your attention for a few hours -- just as long as the story stretches. There is very little replay value. Finally, the bottom line is that the gameplay is pleasant, but uninspiring. It would probably have been a lot better if there had been more to do. I will give the GAME PLAY category for this title a 6 out of 10.

GRAPHICS: *Sigh* I will admit it -- the characters' faces look creepy. They move like zombies, and lack any real emotion or facial expressions aside from squinting their eyes and shaking their heads. However, the environments are pretty well designed. The only bad part is that there are so few places to explore. Also, the most intense scenes -- the plane crashing, a certain computer message, the scenes involving a ghost -- are not animated any differently, and don't come across as intense as they could; They do not fall flat, but they do not reach their full dramatic potential. Hence, the graphics are kind of below par. I will only give the GRAPHICS category for this title a 6 out of 10.

SOUND: SO MANY people hated the voice acting in this game, but I did not think it was so horrible. It was not great, of course, but it could have been a lot worse. The music was not so bad, either. All the right sounds played when there was some dark, creepy place to explore, or when there was a menacing threat to the main character. The only sound I sincerely disliked was the opening shot of each 'episode', when the word 'LOST' came floating toward the screen... It just does not have the same grandeur as the televised show. So, the sound is basically mediocre but not absolutely terrible. I will give the SOUND category for this title a 7 out of 10.

STORY LINE: The game actually shines here! Granted, the game does not take very long to complete. However, the main character's back story is very interesting, and his development is kind of nice. The story has a few twists I was not expecting, and if you like mysteries, you may even find yourself more attracted to this story than you expect. The worst part of the storyline is how short it is, and the ending can seem a little cruel to players who really want to feel a resolution to the story. However, I honestly enjoyed the main character and his progress on the island. Fans of the show should note that the story does not completely revolve around their favorite characters from the television series, although these characters DO play a role in the main character's quest to find answers to his past. I will give the STORY LINE category for this title an 8 out of 10, and mention that it lost points because it was too darn short.

FAN SERVICE: Hm, let's see... Most die hard fans of the show will probably not be too impressed with how few characters from the show are in this game, or how much screen time those characters get. Honestly, my 'fan boy' side was unimpressed as well. But please, do not listen to the people who claim the voice acting is too horrible to enjoy the 'Lost' cameos! While the characters seem out of place in certain parts of the story, and do not really factor as much into the main character's quest as I had originally hoped, I DID like the atmosphere they helped create. They really came across as characters who were dealing with their own feelings and drama, even if those things did not necessarily factor into the game's story line. The cameos of everything else island-related -- The Others, the smoke monster, the DHARMA stations -- were all really great, though. I thought the island was well designed, and the jungle honestly felt as dangerous as it does on the show. So, the fan service was pretty nice. I will give the FAN SERVICE category for this title an 8 out of 10. I will say one more negative thing here -- Sayid sounded horrible, and had very poor characterization. He was not nearly as intense or tough as he is on the television show. Just saying!

X BOX 360 ACHIEVEMENTS: These were ridiculously easy to accomplish. Most of the achievements came from taking pictures of various things on the island. All of those things would be instantly recognizable to a 'Lost' fan, and serve as sweet little Easter eggs for people, like me, who watch the show. Other achievements were immediately given to you upon achieving certain challenges, wrapping up segments of the story line (called 'episodes'), or discovering something new on the island. One of the easiest ways to earn X Box 360 'points' would be to play this game from start to finish. The achievements were almost disappointingly easy to unlock, unfortunately. I will only give the X BOX 360 ACHIEVEMENTS category for this title a 5 out of 10.

BOTTOM LINE: I would quickly recommend this to a 'Lost' fan who likes the show and wants a keep sake from the years when 'Lost' was a big television phenomonon. That's the reason why I bought the game, since the show's end is just a couple of years away. The price on this game is not so bad right now, so fans should take a chance. On the other hand, if you are not a big 'Lost' fan, you may still want to rent this game. It's a nice mystery story, and should only take a few nights to fully complete. I am glad I took a chance on this game, and did not listen to all the harsh criticism this title has so far received. Overall, I give this game a 7 out of 10.

Reviewer's Score: 7/10, Originally Posted: 01/05/09

Game Release: Lost: Via Domus (US, 02/26/08)