The one unique trait ZV possesses is the ability to snag an enemy/head/chicken/whatever on the tip of your sword and throw it with the Circle button. This is not only the exclusive means to solve “puzzles,” but is also the only mechanic you can use during the largely one-note boss fights in order to mix things up. You might be battling an evil witch in a cauldron, so why not throw a few bombs her way? Fighting the actual ocean? Chuck another explosive into a water spout to knock him down so you can go wild on his face. It’s not exceptionally deep, but the game really isn’t trying too hard at being complex. In co-op, when a player dies their head falls off. You can use the same technique to snatch your buddy’s head and shoot a three pointer back onto their body to revive them, if that’s your wish.
Character customization is limited to a rune giving a passive bonus, and whatever weapon you select. The basic weapons don’t really have any special abilities, though the ones you claim in the games “side quests” (which are almost always solved by retrieving an item about twenty feet away from the quest giver), do confer special bonuses and attacks. They are largely timing based, however, so you have little control over when they actually go off.
The game drips charm, from the stylish, hand drawn visuals, to the excellent sound design and voice acting. While not every line of dialogue is a winner, it’s clear that a lot of heart went into the final product. I might be the only person alive who will appreciate multiple Norwegian levels set to ska music, but that speaks volumes of what this game is trying to accomplish.
I’m not one to fault someone on their preferred brand of comedy, but Zombie Vikings almost has a “quantity over quality” approach. A few gags got a grin or even a chuckle, but if you throw enough jokes into the air, one has got to stick. The majority of dialogue blew way past “cringe-inducing” to “ensuring a world-economy based entirely on cringes.” The reliance on cultural touchstones, scatalogical references, and video game tropes weren’t only unfunny, they were often a deterrent to going any further. With mediocre gameplay leading the charge, the often terrible jokes made me want to table the game and never look back.
Zombie Vikings is a frustrating game for me to talk about. It’s not so bad that it’s fun to bash, and there’s really nothing great about it that I’m excited to share. I almost hate the fact that the developers seemingly poured a lot of love into this game, only for it to come together as a painfully mediocre brawler. The story is (intentionally) dumb, the boss fights are exceptionally basic. The enemies aren’t particularly engaging. Yet, I love the hand-drawn look and the voice acting, even if the jokes are more duds than winners. Grabbing some friends and jumping in co-op is fine, but by no means does it make this a must-have.
Maybe the new characters and features in the Ragnarok Edition will straighten out some of the problems I had with the base game. As far as brawlers go, you could do better, but you could also do a lot worse. Zombie Vikings is a competent product that really doesn’t go much farther than that. The game did not cause hideous boils to spread over my body, but by no means was I excited to play more of it. If you have to play it, play with a friend or three. At least then you can all groan together as another joke falls totally dead right in front of you.
You can enjoy a video of us playing it, if you're into that.
Verdict
Co-Op Score
Overall
The Co-Op Experience: Choose among four different zombie vikings, each with his own story and special moves. There are many ways to play together and cooperate using lots of different moves, and at the same time use the fun in already being dead. Yes, being dead is actually a lot of fun! Getting your head chopped off in the game doesn�t mean you die.. instead your friends can use your vomiting head as a weapon (think Castle Crashers).
Co-Optimus game reviews focus on the cooperative experience of a game, our final score graphic represents this experience along with an average score for the game overall. For an explanation of our scores please check our Review Score Explanation Guide.