Review – Viking: Battle for Asgard
The Norse goddess of death has resurrected an army of undead to conquer the Nordic lands. It’s up to a lone Viking warrior named Skarin to free troops and wage battle and revenge on the hordes of evil Legion soldiers.
Viking: Battle for Asgard for the Xbox 360 and PS3 is a hack and slash action-adventure game. Play as Skarin as he explores the land, mowing down any undead Vikings in his way. Players will scour the countryside looking for enemy encampments where they’ll defeat any bad guys before freeing Viking troops. Sometimes the leader of these troops will request another task of you before joining your army. Luckily a handy map and warp points are always available so you usually know exactly where to go.
Power up your attacks with runes that give your weapons elemental powers like ice, fire, and lightning. Gather amulets to summon dragons to help you in the climatic battles at the end of each world. These big skirmishes are the highlight of the game and feature hundreds of enemy and ally soldiers going after each other, leaving you to locate and defeat the leaders.
Graphics are decent enough, but unfortunately, Skarin is a rather lumbering, oafish Viking, making play control a little slower and less fluid than what it could be. Viking: Battle of Asgard isn’t necessarily a bad game, but it is pretty mindless and repetitive. Gamers who enjoyed other mythological quests like Fable and God of War may also appreciate this more Nordic adventure.
Kid Factor:
Not for kids! Not for kids! Not for kids! While not too terribly realistic, the M rating for violent blood and gore still stands as there are plenty of beheadings, limb removals, and red stuff. About the only redeeming factor is that it may encourage gamers to learn more about Norse mythology.
April 12th, 2008 at 10:05 am
What are you doing playing games like this Cary? Has your brother dragged you over the M section at last? What ever does this mean!
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Good job!
April 12th, 2008 at 10:42 am
I sent you an e-mail. Don’t worry, Eco-Creatures is next.
I know it seems weird for me to play an M rated game. It’s hard to believe…I sometimes wonder myself…but I am actually an adult and perfectly capable of playing and reviewing these kinds of games. 🙂 Would you believe that I actually reviewed Postal for the Dallas newspaper way back when?
Plus, I try to keep a pretty open mind and I am willing to try new things when it comes to games. Remember my blog about Rumble Roses XX?
Some M rated games certainly aren’t bad games at all and I’m not opposed to them. They’re just not my cup of tea and I just prefer lighthearted, family friendly “Nintendo-ey” kind of games.
I have to go ahead and defend Jeff a little, here. While he does tend to play more mature games than I do (like Call of Duty 4 and Halo), he is also very good about making smart choices himself when it comes to games and entertainment, and I am very proud of him for that. After playing a demo of BioShock, he said the game wasn’t for him because it was too dark and creepy. And when his friends invited him to another house to watch Team America after school, he declined the offer and said he didn’t need to be watching movies like that.
I didn’t put this in my review, but I would like to note that the main character in this game doesn’t really look much like a Viking. A Viking needs to have a helmet with horns on it, a bushy red beard with braids in it, a name like Olaf the Terrible, and…um…a boat with a big stripey sail on it. Aaaannnnddd…uh…he needs to say “YAAAAA! I’M A VIKING” a lot. Sadly, my knowledge of Vikings and Norse mythology only extends to what I know from Odin Sphere, The Lost Vikings, and Namco’s The Legend of Valkyrie. Isn’t that SAD? Speaking of which, Viking: Battle for Asgard could’ve used some Valkyries in it. Valkyries are cool, especially ones from Namco. –Cary
April 12th, 2008 at 10:54 am
You need to play Brian Bloodaxe
April 12th, 2008 at 11:05 am
Heh heh, that sounds interesting. The storyline reminds me of Garfield’s second life in the Garfield: His 9 Lives book. Anyone who thinks Garfield has always been stale and uncreative needs to read that book. –Cary
April 16th, 2008 at 6:39 pm
At least you’re not taking your Viking information from Lyle or Hagar. 😉
I’d heard mixed reviews on this one, so I’m glad to see your input.