Viking Battle For Asgard - 4/10
If you're a fan of acton titles from either the hack n slash, adventure or survival horror range then you have a reason to smile as the PS3 has birthed some beauties from Heavenly Sword (hack n slash), Uncharted Drakes Fortune (adventure) and Condemned 2 Bloodshot (horror) Looking at the release schedule will have you licking the salt off your palms with titles such as MGS4, GTA IV, Project Origin and Alone In The Dark. All sure to be classic games, but then a few games slip under the spotlight to surprise you, Viking Battle of Asgard is one of those titles, why was it such a sneaker title? Why wasn't it talked about? Well to put lightly, it wasnt talked about because the game isnt really worth playing. Some titles crawl from the unknown to surprise the gamer with steller reviews and excellent graphics, i was hoping Viking would be one of those games, sadly its far from it and falls into the same dull category as another blood saturated hack n slash dud, Conan.
You step into the furry sheep viking boots of Skarin, a brickwall sized Viking with a pony tail, or two, that would make most women jealous. This walking man beast is about as likeable as the chiseled chum from Conan, in other words, he is not likeable at all and lacks any sense of character, vocally he sounds flat and plain and kills any sense of a serious revenge fueled feared brutal warrior, which is what we should expect from a tough as nails looking Viking. The storyline reeks of a Peter Jacksons movie/novel. You're the lone relient Viking, who tramples a massive fantasy land that has been overtaken by the gorgeous evil goddess, Hel, and her army of demons. You still awake reader? Basically this grass blade thin storyline has our ferocious gladiator wandering around an open environment doing the impossible, from taking on massive demonic armies and tearing limbs off his otherworld opponents, on paper, it sounds like a recipe for a fun gaming session, and it could have been if it wasnt executed so poorly.
I must give credit where credit is due though, if you want gory combat, than Viking is the fitting game for your crimson requirements. Its not Condemned 2 gory, but its gory enough. Skarin can lop off enemies arms with his twin axes, chop heads clean off, dice torsos, carve through soft flesh and spray claret all over the land. There is plenty of blood and gore to fill your needs. The brutal finishing moves are also quite good as well at first glance, one of my faves has Skarin skewer an enemy like a fresh kebab before yanking the likeless foe off his weapon in an explosion of gore. Sadly however, the same kill animations get tired quickly which leaves no excuse to want to play through the game again, let alone enjoy the combat again.
The world of Viking is quite a spectacle, big open fantasy worlds full of inhabitants and effects, from camps of fellow vikings drinking mugs of beer in the village, lonesome warriors wandering around for their own reasons etc. The scenery on offer is also quite impressive, oceans that show off some neat rippling wave effects, isolated beaches populated by sunken canoes, caves lit up by flickering fire torches and forests that boast vivid colours and visual touches that will more than lighten up the experience somewhat. The whole world even has a day and night cycle with the odd weather effect alteration which adds a sense of realism to the games world. Trekking through the island allows you to chat with the locals for tips and info on the story, interaction and mixing in with the crowd is a good feature to have, but not everyone on screen can be talked to, which is understandable as the game can sometimes show off around 100+ characters on screen at once, pretty impressive. Entering the otherworld however is less exciting, in the otherworld soldiers and friendly warriors are replaced by monsters and creatures, plus there is less to do, you either fight more monsters or rescue your comrades who are trapped in wooden cages. Did i hear someone yawn?
the most intense part of Viking is the braveheart esque battles, these enormous fights can be frantic affairs and show off up to 500 or so enemies on screen with the odd giant cyclops amidst the huge crowds of blood thirsty critters, its an impressive feat on the developers part, but offers nothing we havent seen done better before, the recent Dynasty Warriors 6 and less recent Heavenly Sword did the whole army brawls a year ago and did it far better than Viking did. Nonetheless these epic war fights can still offer a fair share of enjoyment. The ability to summon dragons to your aid helps spread out the action abit as your lair esque type dragons descends from the sky to literally BBQ the hordes of monsters in your wake.
Visually, Viking struggles to reach next gen visuals, the characters look ropey and poorly animated and apart from the odd flashy magic effect here in there around the game world, the game wont be praised for its good looks. Waterfalls for example have slim realism to them if any at all, you get a flowing white wall, and thats it, theres your waterfall. Rain effects are equally lazy, with drops of grey lines making out the rain.....hardly modern day technology put to good use. If you want something hot to look at, either grab a porno or wait for GTA IV and MGS4.
Overall, Viking does more things wrong than it does right. The epic battles of good vs evil armies are quite enjoyable and the free roaming island that allows you to interact with characters helps add atmosphere to the game experience. But the combat is lacking heavily, feels stale and offers zero style to the likes of say Stranglehold and Assassins Creed. If you want an open world environment to explore thats actually worth exploring then try Assassins Creed or wait for Rockstars world dominator, GTA IV. Viking is worth a rent and gives you enough time to explore its world and have a few hours fun with the constant monster mashing, but apart from the odd thrill, Viking isnt a game i'd bother with, it feels stiff, looks unfinished and its timing is shocking considering GTA IV is rising this month, having said that, come April 29th, it will be: R.I.P Viking Battle For Asgard. That is the sad reality of it all.
Submitted by callan5
07/04/2008
16
Join MyPS3 to vote for your favourite story!
More Info:
Viking: battle for Asgard
Other Reviews:
Related News: