The Lost Vikings

Last updated

The Lost Vikings
The Lost Vikings SNES cover.jpg
North American Super NES cover art
Developer(s) Silicon & Synapse
Publisher(s) Interplay Productions
T&E Soft (SFC)
Blizzard Entertainment (GBA)
Designer(s) Ron Millar
Composer(s) Charles Deenen
Allister Brimble (Amiga)
Matt Furniss (Genesis)
Platform(s) Super Nintendo, Genesis, Amiga, MS-DOS, Amiga CD32, Game Boy Advance, Windows, Switch, PlayStation 4, Xbox One
Release
April 29, 1993
  • SNES
    • NA: April 29, 1993
    • EU: October 28, 1993
    Genesis
    Amiga, DOS
    1993
    Amiga CD32
    Game Boy Advance
    March 2003
    Windows, Switch, PlayStation 4, Xbox One
    • WW: February 21, 2021 [3]
Genre(s) Puzzle-platform
Mode(s) Single-player, cooperative

The Lost Vikings is a puzzle-platform game developed by Silicon & Synapse (now Blizzard Entertainment) and published by Interplay. It was originally released for the Super NES in 1993, [4] then subsequently released for the Amiga, Amiga CD32, MS-DOS, and Mega Drive/Genesis systems; the Mega Drive/Genesis version contains five stages not present in any other version of the game, and can also be played by three players simultaneously. Blizzard re-released the game for the Game Boy Advance in 2003. In 2014, the game was added to Battle.net as a free download emulated through DOSBox. [5] In celebration of the company's 30th anniversary, The Lost Vikings was re-released for Microsoft Windows, Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4 and Xbox One as part of the Blizzard Arcade Collection in February 2021. [6]

Contents

In The Lost Vikings, the player controls three separate Vikings with different abilities. The three Vikings must work together to finish each level and find their way back home. A sequel, The Lost Vikings 2 , was released in 1997.

Plot

Three Vikings—Erik the Swift, Baleog the Fierce, and Olaf the Stout—get kidnapped by Tomator, emperor of the alien Croutonian empire, for an inter-galactic zoo. They are able to escape the ship, but get lost in various periods of time. They must traverse various bizarre locations, and eventually confront and defeat Tomator, to find their way home.

Gameplay

An in-game screenshot. In the main play area are the three playable characters (l-r): Olaf the Stout, Baleog the Fierce, and Erik the Swift. TheLostVikings.png
An in-game screenshot. In the main play area are the three playable characters (l-r): Olaf the Stout, Baleog the Fierce, and Erik the Swift.

The Lost Vikings is a side-scrolling platform adventure in which the player alternates control of the three Viking characters, guiding each of them one at a time (though control may be swapped from character to character at any point) from a designated start point in each level to the exit. Mega Drive/Genesis version of the game offers a two-player cooperative mode in which each player simultaneously controls one Viking and is allowed to change control to the third, unused Viking at any point. Every level is designed such that each Viking must contribute his unique skills to help the other two through to the end. Similarly, to finish the level, all three characters must reach the exit point. Every Viking has three health points that can be lost by getting hurt by enemies or by falling from great heights. Should any Viking run out of health points, he dies; gameplay will then continue with any remaining Vikings, but the level becomes unwinnable, and the player will eventually have to restart the level and try again. However, the game offers unlimited continues.

Each Viking has the ability to carry and use items such as keys, bombs, and food (which restores health points). These items can also be swapped between characters as long as they are close to each other. Each Viking also has a unique set of skills:

The game consists of 37 levels and 42 levels in Mega Drive/Genesis version.

Cameo appearances

Both Olaf and Baleog make an appearance in the 1993 game Rock n' Roll Racing ; Olaf can be unlocked as a hidden character, while Baleog appears on several billboards advertising "Viking Cola" on the planet Bogmire.

In the 32X version of Blackthorne , all three Vikings appear in a secret area in the second snow level.

The Lost Vikings have also had cameo appearances in Interplay's ClayFighter games: Olaf appeared in Helga's ending in the first ClayFighter , Helga being his girlfriend, but she later dumped him for Tiny; Erik and Baleog's faces appear as animated sculptures in the stage "Clay Keep" (Tiny's stage) in ClayFighter 2: Judgment Clay ; in some interviews, Interplay designers hinted one of them would have appeared in the then upcoming ClayFighter III , but that never happened.

They have also appeared as NPCs in MMORPG World of Warcraft in the dungeon Uldaman. One of the quests in Uldaman also requires the player to collect the Shaft of Tsol and Amulet of Gni'Kiv, which spell out "Lost" and "Vik'ing" when read backwards. The shaft and amulet are combined to form the Staff of Prehistoria, which fits the theme of Uldaman and also is an area in The Lost Vikings. In the World of Warcraft: Cataclysm expansion, they feature prominently in a quest line for the Alliance faction in the Badlands area of Eastern Kingdoms. In World of Warcraft: Warlords of Draenor , Olaf can appear as one of the random daily quest NPCs if the players have the Frostwolf Tavern/Lunarfall Inn as a building in their Garrison. In World of Warcraft: Dragonflight , the three brothers come back to a new version of the Uldaman dungon: "Uldaman: Legacy of Tyr". This time, they are the first enemy boss to defeat, as their prolonged stay in the Titan underground complex maddened them.

In the Warcraft III: The Frozen Throne 's "Monolith" scenario, the names for the Dark Troll Commando hero are the same as those for the Lost Vikings: Erik the Swift, Baleog the Fierce and Olaf the Stout.

A flying unit in StarCraft II is called the Viking, and there is a picture of the unit on their website, subtitled The Lost Vikings. In addition to this, repeatedly selecting the Viking unit in StarCraft II makes the Viking pilot mention Erik, Baleog, and Olaf getting lost, as he tries to contact them. He also sets in co-ordinates for Norse by Norse-west. There is also an arcade console in the Cantina of Battleship Hyperion in StarCraft II called The Lost Viking, which is a mini playable vertically scrolling shooter game featuring the Viking unit in StarCraft II.

The Lost Vikings reprised their role as playable characters in the crossover multiplayer online battle arena video game Heroes of the Storm . [7] [8] Unlike other heroes in the game, who are played as a single unit, selecting the Lost Vikings as a hero gives the player control over all three Vikings, allowing them to control them as individuals or to issue commands to all three at once. Erik is faster than most other heroes, and attacks from range with a slingshot. Baleog has the greatest attack power of the three, and throws swords from a medium range, dealing area damage to enemies near his target. Olaf has the highest health pool, and recovers quickly when out of combat.

Reception

Computer Gaming World in 1993 called The Lost Vikings "a clever blend of comedy and role playing". The magazine concluded that "the game is a unique puzzle solving adventure, great for people who enjoy using their cerebral cortex along with their eye to hand coordination". [42] Zach Meston of VideoGames & Computer Entertainment praised the difficult puzzles, humor, distinctive visual style, personable character animation, and upbeat music. He summarized the game as "funny, fresh and challenging enough to keep you playing for hours on end". [40]

Electronic Gaming Monthly in 1994 remarked of the Genesis version that "the music doesn't have the kick of the Super NES version (or the truly colorful graphics)", but that it is generally a well done conversion of "a really good puzzle game". [20] AllGame stated that it was "methodically paced and intelligently designed" and that "the nice graphics combined with the funny (and sometimes helpful) dialogue gives The Lost Vikings more personality than most other video games. To top it off, the controls are sharp, and the level of challenge is high without being frustrating". [9] Super Gamer magazine gave the SNES version a score of 92%, writing: "A huge variety of puzzles to this Lemmings game. Funny, fun and completely addictive". [43]

Accolades

Nintendo Power ranked The Lost Vikings the seventh-best SNES game of 1993. They lauded the gameplay calling it "deep and compelling" and praised the graphics and sound. [44] Mega placed the game at number 22 in their Top Mega Drive Games of All Time. [45] In 1995, Total! placed the game 52nd on its Top 100 SNES Games. [46] In 1996, Super Play awarded the game 94th in its Top 100 SNES Games of All Time. [47] IGN listed The Lost Vikings 30th in their "Top 100 SNES Games of All Time. They praised the game calling it a "Masterpiece" and praised the "nearly perfect" puzzle dynamics. [48] In 2018, Complex rated The Lost Vikings 93rd on their "The Best Super Nintendo Games of All Time". [49]

See also

Notes

Related Research Articles

<i>Lemmings</i> (video game) 1991 video game

Lemmings is a puzzle–strategy video game originally developed by DMA Design and published by Psygnosis for the Amiga in 1991 and later ported for numerous other platforms. The game was programmed by Russell Kay, Mike Dailly and David Jones, and was inspired by a simple animation that Dailly created while experimenting with Deluxe Paint.

<i>Rock n Roll Racing</i> 1993 video game

Rock n' Roll Racing is a vehicular combat-based racing video game developed by Silicon & Synapse and published by Interplay Productions for the Super Nintendo Entertainment System in 1993 and the Mega Drive/Genesis in 1994. The game prominently features a number of popular heavy metal and rock songs in its soundtrack, hence the game's title. The game was ported to the Game Boy Advance in 2003. In celebration of the company's 30th anniversary, Rock n' Roll Racing was re-released for Microsoft Windows, Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4 and Xbox One as part of the Blizzard Arcade Collection in February 2021.

<i>Flashback</i> (1992 video game) 1992 video game

Flashback, released as Flashback: The Quest for Identity in the United States, is a 1992 science fiction cinematic platform game developed by Delphine Software of France and published by U.S. Gold in the United States and Europe, and Sunsoft in Japan.

<i>Last Action Hero</i> (video game) 1994 video game

Last Action Hero is a series of action video games based on the 1993 film of the same name. Versions were released for the NES, Super NES, Sega Genesis, Game Boy, Game Gear, and MS-DOS. Versions were also planned for the Sega CD and Master System, but ultimately were not released.

<i>Equinox</i> (1993 video game) 1993 video game

Equinox is an action adventure puzzle video game developed by Software Creations and published by Sony Imagesoft for the Super NES. A sequel to Solstice (1990) for the Nintendo Entertainment System, Equinox depicts Glendaal saving his father Shadax, the previous game's playable character, from the imprisonment of Sonia, Shadax's apprentice. The player acts as Glendaal, exploring 458 rooms in eight underground dungeons. The player collects 12 blue orb tokens while solving puzzles, killing enemies, collecting keys, navigating platforms and blocks, and battling bosses. It continues Solstice's isometric puzzle game style, with greater emphasis on action adventure and Mode 7 overworld map.

<i>Cool Spot</i> 1993 video game

Cool Spot is a 1993 platform game developed by Virgin Games USA for the Mega Drive/Genesis, Super Nintendo Entertainment System, Master System, Game Gear, Game Boy, Amiga, and MS-DOS. The title character is Cool Spot, a mascot for the soft drink brand 7 Up. Cool Spot's appearance in his own video game came at a time when other brand mascots were appearing in their own video games.

<i>Krustys Fun House</i> 1992 video game

Krusty's Fun House is a puzzle video game based on the animated sitcom The Simpsons.

<i>Terminator 2: Judgment Day</i> (arcade game) 1991 video game

Terminator 2: Judgment Day or T2 is a light gun shooter based on the film of the same name, produced by Midway Manufacturing Company as an arcade video game in 1991. Developed in tandem with the movie, several actors from the film reprise their roles for the game and are featured as part of the game's photorealistic digitized graphics. The game's plot largely follows that of the film, casting up to two players as the T-800 "terminator" cyborg from the film, sent back in time to protect John Connor from assassination by the T-1000 terminator. A success in arcades, home conversions of the game were released by Acclaim Entertainment for various platforms under the title of T2: The Arcade Game to avoid confusion with the numerous tie-in games also based on the movie.

<i>Hook</i> (video game) Video game based on the eponymous 1991 film

There have been several video games based on the 1991 film Hook. A side-scrolling platform game for the Nintendo Entertainment System (NES) and Game Boy was released in the United States in February 1992. Subsequent side-scrolling platform games were released for the Commodore 64 and the Super Nintendo Entertainment System (SNES), and an arcade beat ‘em up by Irem later in 1992, followed by versions for the Sega CD, Sega Genesis, and Sega's handheld Game Gear console in 1993.

<i>ClayFighter</i> (video game) 1993 video game

ClayFighter is a fighting game released for the Super NES in November 1993 and ported to Sega Genesis in June 1994. The game is a parody of Street Fighter. In 2009, the Genesis version was re-released on the Wii Virtual Console.

<i>Joe & Mac</i> 1991 video game

Joe & Mac, also known as Caveman Ninja and Caveman Ninja: Joe & Mac, is a 1991 run and gun platform game released for arcades by Data East. It was later adapted for the Super NES, Mega Drive/Genesis, Nintendo Entertainment System, Game Boy, Amiga, Zeebo, Nintendo Switch, and PC.

<i>The Lion King</i> (video game) 1994 video game

The Lion King is a platform game based on Disney's 1994 animated film The Lion King. The game was developed by Westwood Studios and published by Virgin Interactive Entertainment for the Super NES and Genesis in 1994, and was ported to MS-DOS, Amiga, Game Gear, Master System, and Nintendo Entertainment System. The Amiga, Master System, and NES versions were only released in the PAL region. It is the final licensed NES game worldwide. The game follows Simba's journey from a young cub to the battle with his uncle Scar as an adult.

<i>Alien 3</i> (video game) 1992 video game

Alien 3 is a run and gun game based on the 1992 film of the same name. It was released for the Genesis and Amiga in 1992, then for the Commodore 64, Game Boy, Game Gear, Nintendo Entertainment System, Super Nintendo Entertainment System, and Master System.

<i>The Addams Family</i> (video game) 1992 video game

The Addams Family is a platform game based on the 1991 film of the same name and developed and published by Ocean Software. It was released for home consoles such as the Super Nintendo Entertainment System, computers such as the Amiga, and handheld consoles like the Game Boy.

<i>Goof Troop</i> (video game) 1993 video game

Goof Troop is an action-adventure video game for the Super Nintendo Entertainment System developed and released by Capcom in North America in July 1993, in Europe on November 25, 1993, and in Japan on July 22, 1994, and based on the animated television series of the same name. The game can be played in both single-player and multiplayer mode, wherein one player controls Goofy and the other Max.

<i>Super Turrican</i> (1993 video game) 1993 video game

Super Turrican is a run and gun video game and the fifth game in the Turrican series. It was released for the Super Nintendo Entertainment System in 1993. Super Turrican was released on the Virtual Console in Europe and Australia on February 29, 2008, and in North America on March 3, 2008.

<i>Mr. Nutz</i> 1994 video game

Mr. Nutz is a 2D side-scrolling platform game published by Ocean Software. It was released for the Super Nintendo Entertainment System in late 1993 in Europe and in North America and Japan in 1994. In 1994, it was released for the Mega Drive as Ocean's first Sega game, and on the Game Boy. It was also released on the Sega Channel in 1995, the Game Boy Color in 1999, and remade for the Game Boy Advance in 2001.

<i>The Lost Vikings 2</i> 1997 video game

Lost Vikings 2 is a 1997 puzzle-platform game developed by Beam Software and published by Interplay. All versions of the game, except the SNES release, were titled Lost Vikings 2: Norse by Norsewest. The sequel to The Lost Vikings, it features the original three characters plus two new playable characters: Fang the werewolf and Scorch the dragon. The gameplay remains largely the same, though the three Viking characters all have new or modified abilities.

<i>Spindizzy Worlds</i> 1992 video game

Spindizzy Worlds is a puzzle video game published by Activision, released on the Amiga and Atari ST in 1990. It was later released on the Super Famicom in 1992 and the Super Nintendo Entertainment System in 1993 by Ascii Entertainment and on the Sharp X68000 and the NEC PC-9801 in 1992 by Arsys Software as Spindizzy II. The game is a sequel to the 1986 video game Spindizzy. Like its predecessor it uses an isometric view, and the player controls a spinning top-like robotic device named GERALD, a Geographical Environmental Reconnaissance And LandMapping Device, that is tasked with exploring and mapping a star system before it is destroyed.

References

  1. ↑ "GamePro #55 pg. 50". Sega Retro. February 1994. Retrieved March 25, 2016.
  2. ↑ "Mega #20 pg. 79". Sega Retro. May 1994. Retrieved July 7, 2016.
  3. ↑ "Relive the Legacy: Announcing the Blizzard Arcade Collection". Blizzard Entertainment. February 20, 2021.
  4. ↑ "Classic Games". Blizzard Entertainment. Archived from the original on April 27, 2017. Retrieved April 25, 2017.
  5. ↑ Wawro, Alex (May 2, 2014). "Rock n' Roll Racing, The Lost Vikings now free on Battle.net". Gamasutra . Think Services. Retrieved May 2, 2014.
  6. ↑ McWhertor, Michael (February 19, 2021). "Three classic Blizzard games come to PC, PS4, Switch, and Xbox One today". Polygon. Retrieved February 24, 2021.
  7. ↑ Kuchera, Ben (February 16, 2015). "The Lost Vikings have come to Heroes of the Storm, and things are getting weird". Polygon. Retrieved January 7, 2021.
  8. ↑ "The Lost Vikings are back as playable hero in Heroes of the Storm". Blizzard Entertainment. Retrieved July 16, 2018.
  9. 1 2 Weiss, Brett Alan. "The Lost Vikings". AllGame. Archived from the original on December 12, 2014. Retrieved May 26, 2017.
  10. ↑ Weiss, Brett Alan. "The Lost Vikings". AllGame . Archived from the original on December 12, 2014. Retrieved May 26, 2017.
  11. ↑ "Walhall im All". Aktueller Software Markt (in German). September 1993. pp. 8–10. Retrieved September 2, 2021.
  12. ↑ "The Lost Vikings". Aktueller Software Markt (in German). September 1994. p. 125. Retrieved September 2, 2021.
  13. ↑ "Long lives CD32". Aktueller Software Markt (in German). September 1994. pp. 80–81. Retrieved September 2, 2021.
  14. ↑ Clays, Simon (September 1993). "The Lost Vikings". Amiga Computing . No. 64. pp. 108–109. Retrieved September 2, 2021.
  15. ↑ Lord, Gary (August 1993). "The Lost Vikings". Amiga Format . No. 49. pp. 72–73. Retrieved September 2, 2021.
  16. ↑ Mead, Rob (July 1994). "The Lost Vikings". Amiga Format . No. 61. p. 73. Retrieved September 2, 2021.
  17. ↑ Tucker, Tim (July 1993). "The Lost Vikings". Amiga Power . No. 27. pp. 28–30. Retrieved September 2, 2021.
  18. ↑ Lord, Gary (February 1994). "The Lost Vikings". Computer and Video Games . No. 147. p. 44. Retrieved September 2, 2021.
  19. ↑ Rand, Paul; Anglin, Paul (May 1993). "The Lost Vikings". Computer and Video Games . No. 141. pp. 76–77. Retrieved September 2, 2021.
  20. 1 2 "Review Crew: The Lost Vikings". Electronic Gaming Monthly . No. 54. January 1994. p. 46. Retrieved September 2, 2021.
  21. ↑ Harris, Steve; Semrad, Ed; Alessi, Marin; Sushi-X (May 1993). "The Lost Vikings". Electronic Gaming Monthly . Vol. 6, no. 5. p. 26. Retrieved September 2, 2021.
  22. ↑ Manny LaMancha (February 1994). "The Lost Vikings". GamePro . No. 55. p. 50. Retrieved September 2, 2021.
  23. ↑ Lowe, Andy (May 1993). "The Lost Vikings". GamesMaster . No. 5. pp. 54–56. Retrieved September 2, 2021.
  24. ↑ Provo, Frank (April 10, 2003). "The Lost Vikings Review for Game Boy Advance". GameSpot . Archived from the original on June 22, 2003. Retrieved September 2, 2021.
  25. ↑ Bedigian, Louis (April 24, 2003). "The Lost vikings". GameZone. Archived from the original on April 30, 2003. Retrieved September 2, 2021.
  26. ↑ Fahs, Travis (July 25, 2008). "Lost Vikings SNES Review". IGN . Archived from the original on July 29, 2008. Retrieved September 2, 2021.
  27. ↑ Harris, Craig (April 2, 2003). "The Lost Vikings". IGN . Archived from the original on June 4, 2004. Retrieved September 2, 2021.
  28. ↑ Anfalmyr (January 21, 2010). "Test de The Lost Vikings sur PC". Jeuxvideo.com (in French). Retrieved September 2, 2021.
  29. ↑ Anfalmyr (January 21, 2010). "Test de The Lost Vikings sur Amiga". Jeuxvideo.com (in French). Retrieved September 2, 2021.
  30. ↑ Anfalmyr (January 21, 2010). "Test de The Lost Vikings sur MD". Jeuxvideo.com (in French). Retrieved September 2, 2021.
  31. ↑ Anfalmyr (January 21, 2010). "Test de The Lost Vikings sur SNES". Jeuxvideo.com (in French). Retrieved September 2, 2021.
  32. ↑ Logan (April 7, 2003). "Test de The Lost Vikings sur GBA". Jeuxvideo.com (in French). Retrieved September 2, 2021.
  33. ↑ Gus; Paul (January 1994). "The Lost Vikings". Mean Machines Sega . No. 15. pp. 68–70. Retrieved September 2, 2021.
  34. ↑ Sandrie; Philipp (July 1993). "The Lost Vikings". Mega Fun (in German). p. 74. Retrieved September 2, 2021.
  35. ↑ Sandrie (May 1994). "The Lost Vikings". Mega Fun . p. 104. Retrieved September 2, 2021.
  36. ↑ "Now Playing". Nintendo Power . Vol. 48. May 1993. pp. 102–107. Retrieved September 2, 2021.
  37. ↑ Steve (May 1993). "The Lost Vikings". Total! . No. 13. pp. 24–26. Retrieved September 2, 2021.
  38. ↑ "The Lost Vikings". Video Games (in German). April 1994. p. 88. Retrieved September 2, 2021.
  39. ↑ "The Lost Vikings". Video Games (in German). April 1993. p. 45. Retrieved September 2, 2021.
  40. 1 2 Meston, Zach (May 1993). "The Lost Vikings". VideoGames & Computer Entertainment . No. 52. L.F.P., Inc. p. 48.
  41. ↑ Upchurch, David (June 1993). "The Lost Vikings". The One . No. 57. pp. 82–85. Retrieved September 2, 2021.
  42. ↑ Wilson, David (December 1993). "Vikings Just Wanna Have Fun". Computer Gaming World. p. 222. Retrieved March 31, 2016.
  43. ↑ "The Lost Vikings Review". Super Gamer. United Kingdom: Paragon Publishing (2): 123. May 1994. Retrieved March 9, 2021.
  44. ↑ "The Top Titles of 1993". Nintendo Power . Vol. 56. January 1994. pp. 2–5. Retrieved September 2, 2021.
  45. ↑ Mega magazine issue 26, page 74, Maverick Magazines, November 1994
  46. ↑ "Top 100 SNES Games". Total! (43): 46. July 1995. Retrieved March 1, 2022.
  47. ↑ "The Super Play All-time top 100 SNES games". Super Play . No. 42. Future Publishing. April 1996.
  48. ↑ Top 100 SNES Games of All Time - IGN.com , retrieved September 8, 2022
  49. ↑ Knight, Rich (April 30, 2018). "The Best Super Nintendo Games of All Time". Complex. Retrieved January 23, 2022.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.