Anyone who saw the BlizzConline opening ceremony was in for a surprise in the form of a trio of Blizzard classics. The Blizzard Arcade Collection dusts off three forgotten gems from the pre-Warcraft days: The Lost Vikings, Blackthorne, and Rock N Roll Racing. It’s been many years since some of these games were released, so it’s exciting to see them again in any form.
But how are these games maintained? These three games are not only different from anything Blizzard has today, they are also unlike any game that was released during its heyday. Let’s take a look at each of these games individually and at the same time judge the entire batch as a collection.
The lost vikings
There is a cult following around The Lost Vikings, both in the game and in the main characters. The characters are Nordic warriors who were abducted by aliens and had to escape captivity combining their unique abilities. In a company known for its recognizable characters, The Lost Vikings were one of Blizzard’s first known heroes. There’s good reason for that, because the game that bears his name is a puzzle platformer unlike anything seen at the time or released since.
The Lost Vikings requires players to use the different abilities of each of the three characters to solve different puzzles. Erik can run and jump, Baleog can fight, and Olaf can defend himself with his shield. Players can only control one character at a time and should be aware that the other two Vikings are vulnerable when not in use. That makes these puzzles incredibly tricky, because all three characters must get to the end of each room safely. If one dies, the whole exercise is ruined and the room needs to be reset. In that sense, the game shows its age, because there is no way …
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