Norse by Norse West: The Return of the Lost Vikings (Game) - Giant Bomb (2024)

Overview

Norse by Norse West: The Return of the Lost Vikings is a puzzle-platformer game and sequel to The Lost Vikings. It adds a bunch of new abilities for the original crew of Vikings, and also throws two new characters into the mix: Fang and Scorch.

The game was originally released on SNES and later ported to the PlayStation, Saturn and PC platforms. The original SNES version is simply named Lost Vikings 2 in North America, while the European version and the ports that followed use the punny "Norse by Norsewest" as either the main title or subtitle.

Gameplay

Players switch between the active party in order to make progress in the levels using each of the Vikings' special abilities to remove obstacles and clear the way for their allies. The entire group must make it to the exit in order to continue.

Character Abilities

All Versions:

• Erik the Swift has the ability to double jump due to his rocket boots, which allows him to not only break walls in front of him, but also above him. On top of this, he now has the ability to swim.
• Baleog the Fierce now has a robotic arm, rather than a bow and arrow as in the previous game. It allows him to grab things from a distance, as well as swing from special orbs.
• Olaf the Stout is given the ability to shrink to a much smaller size, allowing him to get into much smaller spaces. He is also given the ability to fart, which allows him to break through blocks underneath him, as well as give him extra lift and speed while he is parachuting with his shield.
• Fang, a werewolf, can run and jump, attack enemies with his claws, and cling onto walls.
• Scorch, a dragon, has the ability to fly for short periods of time, glide in the air similarly to Olaf, and shoot fire projectiles.

SNES Only:

In the SNES version of the game, more abilities can be unlocked at the beginning of the game by killing Erik on the first level by double jumping off of Olaf's shield and falling to his death. This gives the following abilities only found in the SNES version:

• Erik can now shoot sparks from his hands.
• Baleog can slide across the ground while slashing his sword, making him temporarily invincible.
• Olaf can attack enemies by teleporting into them.
• Fang can "electrify" himself while he's standing still, allowing him to become temporarily invincible.
• Scorch can fly indefinitely.