More Guts, More Glory, Less Retro Purism
HIGH Deftly balances difficulty and offers well-designed levels.
LOW Being unable to change jump direction in mid-air should have died in the ’80s
WTF The breathy way Valkyries whisper “impressive”…
Since its debut over ten years ago, Völgarr the Viking has garnered a reputation for being an unapologetically brutal retro platformer, reflecting the difficulty, aesthetics and mechanics of ’80s games like Ghosts ‘n’ Goblins and Rastan, while still bringing new ideas to the table. This sequel delivers the same great action, now with a dose of modernization.
In the original, Völgarr was dwelling in Valhalla, mortally wounded following his quest for vengeance against the Lizardmen until he was brought back to life in order to slay the dragon Fafnir. Having fulfilled his duties, he returned to Midgard only to find his home destroyed by the forces of a lich named Frakkus — and this is where Völgarr the Viking II picks up.
But let’s be honest — none of that exposition matters when the player gets to control a hulking Viking in a 2D action-platform adventure, sending enemies flying across the map with an enchanted spear or making them burst into bits with a swing of his mighty sword.
At first, it would seem that the player is fairly limited in terms of their arsenal and moveset, but as the player advances, gathering more powerups along the way (which do not carry over after death, much like a roguelite) and expanding the strength and range of their attacks, they should soon feel empowered enough to destroy enemies unimpeded before reaching their next checkpoint.
I love a good classic haunted forest level, and the one in Völgarr II is a great one, reminding me of some long-ago classics like Castlevania II‘s festering swamps crawling with zombies that grow in numbers and strength as darkness descends — truly “a horrible night to have a curse” — but it features many new obstacles such as creature-spawning trees and fields of confusion, altering the player’s controls. Other areas feature intricate grids of lightning rods and teleporting enemies, not to mention Doom Knights that took seven hits to kill, and Frankenstein-like Skoobies that came back to life while constantly threatening to whack me into pools of acid between increasingly-narrow and difficult-to-reach platforms.
It’s not all about the combat, though. Compared to the first, Völgarr the Viking II is far more nuanced as there are many puzzle elements that call for unconventional solutions. For example, in the second world the player must reorient their understanding of the physics to navigate watery levels and cut down people who are being mind-controlled by mysterious tentacle creatures latched onto their heads. In the fourth world, the player must tactfully descend into quicksand and walk underneath wind turbines without sinking so deep as to fall off the map.
There are also some new options that make the experience more accessible and, therefore, more enjoyable. When they die, players have the option to continue as Völgarr but in zombie form. Choosing to continue as an undead grants three lives and invincibility when taking damage — it does not, however, prevent fall deaths. The downside to being a zombie is that players must give up whatever treasure they had amassed up to that point in whichever world they’re currently playing — and some might say their dignity, as well.
Obviously, avoiding such an outcome is crucial for speedrunners, but for those who just want to experience the game, the inclusion of an option to continue by becoming undead is a thoughtful gesture on the part of the developers. Until I discovered this feature, I was tempted to quit before I had even reached the first boss, but opting for “zombie mode” allowed me to enjoy myself again as I focused less on combat and more on platforming, which made everything seem far more achievable. That said, even though I had every right to finish the game as an undead, it made me feel as though I had somehow cheated — but I won’t let gamer guilt color my overall experience.
Another support that the developers introduced was the addition of Valkyries who show up every now and then to grant the player power-ups and simultaneously whisper “impressive” in a curiously sultry voice before they fly back up to Valhalla. As with the original Völgarr, the best power up is easily the flame sword which does twice as much damage and is twice as fast as the default blade.
However, while the developers have obviously taken steps to move the series forward, there are still some fundamental issues carried over from the original Völgarr — especially the overall difficulty and controls that make it feel not like it’s evoking a bygone era of gaming, but more that it’s stuck in it.
The most frustrating elements were tied to Völgarr‘s stubborn commitment to replicating not only the aesthetic aspects that make players nostalgic, but also the considerable limitations of retro platformers that the developers clearly grew up with. For example, the inability to change direction mid-jump may have been the norm for titles in the ‘80s, but it’s an obnoxious bit of game design now, and we’ve come a long way since then.
Unlike the first Völgarr (which, frankly, put me at risk of transforming into Völgarr himself, shouting “GRAH!” and wanting to throw my Switch on the floor to stomp on it) I found myself blissfully unaware of time as I played through Völgarr the Viking II over the course of several flights. Those who enjoyed the first Völgarr or other hardcore action-platformers similar to it will find Völgarr the Viking II to be a nice shot in the arm. However, without more fundamental improvements, the end result is an experience that feels more like DLC than a proper sequel.
Rating: 6.5 out of 10
Disclosures: This game was developed by Crazy Viking Studios and published by Digital Eclipse. It is currently available on PC, XBX/S, Switch and PS4/5. Code was obtained from the publisher and reviewed on Switch. Approximately 5 hours were devoted to the campaign and the game was completed. There are no multiplayer modes.
Parents: This game is rated T for Blood and Gore, Partial Nudity and Violence. Players will often die horribly such as melting after falling in acid and they can dispatch their foes in gory detail, watching as they explode into blood and bones after Völgarr’s spear or sword finds purchase.
Colorblind Modes: There are no colorblind modes available.
Deaf & Hard of Hearing Gamers: This game has no dialogue. There is some text that appears during the introduction and the ending, but it cannot be altered and/or resized. Sometimes, players will be attacked from off-screen without any warning besides an audio cue. The game therefore is not fully accessible.
Remappable controls: The controls can be remapped.
- Dead Of Darkness Review - August 17, 2025
- Vessels Of Decay Review - July 23, 2025
- Tainted Grail Review - July 6, 2025