Like Shadow of the Beast, I bought this
game when it was first released. Unlike Beast,
I hated it and returned it, and had to rebuy it years
later to complete my collection. Luckily it cost a lot
less the second time around.
Really this game isn't horrible. The graphics are ok,
maybe even a bit Nintendo-esque in the way they're rendered
kind of squat and squarish. The sound is actually pretty
good.
Where this game really falls down is in the playability
and control. This little Viking moves really slowly on
his squat little legs. It feels like most of the challenge
in the game is figuring out how to time the little guy
to make him do what you need when you need. You find yourself
saying things like, "Aw man, he should have been
able to make that jump" way too often.
Truth be told, with quite a bit of practice I got to the
point where I could play decently, but even then I didn't
think it was really worth the time spent. If you really
like platform games Viking Child is probably
worth it, if only because there aren't all that many of
these titles on the Lynx (and many are equally uninspiring).
But I would not call this a must have title.
2008 ben langberg, all rights reserved.