Lost vikings

[Amiga1992]

What is it with people and blurry graphics? Personally I hate that red color smudging all over the screen . I preffer my graphics to be RGB. Nice non-smudgy colors with scanlines that smooth everything out

[Drake1009]

Yes the red color smearing out is annoying, but I still prefer the TV for output rather than what the Amiga emulation would show on my monitor.

[Amiga1992]

I Agree with you there. Emulation cannot simulate scanlines properly, so it fudges up everything

[Shatterhand]

I prefer the Amiga version of LV than the SNES or PC versions.. (And I have all 3 versions), but just because of small details, as all versions play the same

Akira already told the problems with the Snes version (Shitty resolution and stuff), and the PC version just doesn't look as hot as the Amiga version, for some weird reason..... and I don't think it has something to do with monitors and TVs, as playing the 3 versions in a PC (Using emulators), I stiil think the PC versions has something wrong in the graphics department..

or maybe I just hate PCs..

[Drake1009]

I think this game is a commonly converted game like so many other games. Just like Flashback which was also a great game, that was also converted to both Nintendo's console as well as the Sega console, PC and I'm guessing it also existed on the ST.

Great games were usually converted to make as much profit as possible. Of course some sh*t games were also converted, what one audience might find appealing another audience would probably love. At least around here there was a very big gap in the mentality of the Console people and the Computer people.

[Fred the Fop]

Yes and for truth sakes, the gap between vintage computer gaming conneseurs and romzzzz kids is wide, but lets take into consideration my case. When I was consoling, I'd buy many genres. If a game was not available on my Atari St, then i'd console it. Great adult games such as the incredible RTS Warrior of Rome 2 or Master of Monsters, or PowerMonger, i played on my
Sega. LV never made it to the Atari St, so I played it on my SNES and Sega. Still do, actually Emulation, tho.
So, yes, there is a gap, but many consolers loved the more mentally challenging games as well.

[Nova]

i actually only know this game from the amiga side and was not aware of it's snes origin. since it exists for many platforms, what do you think is the best version in general?

[Haywire]

Norse By NorseWest on the original PlayStation.

[Predseda]

Originally Posted by Nova

i actually only know this game from the amiga side and was not aware of it's snes origin. since it exists for many platforms, what do you think is the best version in general?

Best version is this one:


[ Show youtube player ]

[Nova]

@predseda: unleashed?

[lilalurl]

Originally Posted by Haywire

Norse By NorseWest on the original PlayStation.

But that's The Lost Vikings 2. And with ugly pre-rendered graphics (like the 32X version of BlackThorne )


For both games, I'd advise the SNES versions. For TLV2, be sure to use the patches, especially the "faster rom" patch:
https://www.romhacking.net/?page=hac...&hacksearch=Go

[Nova]

Originally Posted by lilalurl

For both games, I'd advise the SNES versions.

you are probably right. looking at several versions over at yt, snes seems to be king. cd32 version is a bit disappointing for being the last release-candidate, in my eyes. dos version is probably not so bad after all. has fullscreen, good, speedy graphics (no blur! ) and music but the controls might be inferior in comparison to snes joypads?

[lilalurl]

Originally Posted by Nova

but the controls might be inferior in comparison to snes joypads?

I don't think I ever tried the DOS version.
The control scheme seems to be close to the one used in DOS Blackthorne, which is pretty good, so I guess it is more than adequate:
https://strategywiki.org/wiki/The_Lost_Vikings/Controls

But switching between Vikings with shoulders buttons (SNES pads or other pad if you emulate) is very neat.

[Nova]

Originally Posted by lilalurl

But switching between Vikings with shoulders buttons (SNES pads or other pad if you emulate) is very neat.

yes, that is a big plus, so i am going to put up with the blurry graphics i guess

speaking of blackthorne, i remember seeing the dos version at a friend's house. really liked that type of game.

again there is several ports - which one stands out, x32? - is it really that bad.

[lilalurl]

Originally Posted by Nova

speaking of blackthorne, i remember seeing the dos version at a friend's house. really liked that type of game.

again there is several ports - which one stands out, x32? - is it really that bad.

I favour the DOS version mostly because of the music. It was the first version of the game I played so it could be a factor, but I believe that overall it is much better than the other versions.

The OPL version of the tunes is already pretty good, but, if you are into that, you can also go with using a custom soundfont through General MIDI. Here is an example (intro + first level music) that I recorded using Dosbox + Coolsoft VirtualMIDISynth + FluidR3 SoundFont:
[ Show youtube player ]

The keyboard controls are pretty good: arrow keys to move, ESDF for shooting (forward and backward), running and using items, PgUp and PgDn to scroll through items.


The SNES version is pretty good. I find the music a bit weird, but it is OK to listen to. Unlike the DOS version, the item bar is not visible all the time, if that is the kind of thing that distract you when playing. The resolution is a bit different though.


The 32X, well as stated about TLV, has pre-rendered graphics. Check a gampelay video to see if you consider it OK or not. But when compared with the DOS/SNES versions the game loses a lot of charm I believe. The music sound like the SNES version but with some weird instrumentation here and there.

The 32X version has some additional levels though.

I advise you try DOS or SNES first and then if you really like and finish the game, give the 32X version a try to get more content. If, like me, you don't like the 32X music, you can play the game on an emulator while playing a recording of the DOS music (or anything else you like) on a music player.

[DamienD]

Without actually trying the 32X version, it sounds like it's similar to MAC version i.e. pre-rendered graphics; and quite different to the SNES version, which is the platform on which I first played this game.

[Nova]

@lilalurl: nice video, i wished i would be more into this dosbox thingy, so to set it all up accordingly. there is plenty of tutorials, but they never worked well for me (in terms of music & fx). surely has to do with finding the right db version.

regarding the pre-rendered graphics of bt: i think i figured out what's bugging you - the characters all appear very plastic whereas the background is rather flat. also it seems to be missing the blinking gems effects in the cave passages. a shame

[rygar]

Originally Posted by lilalurl

I favour the DOS version mostly because of the music. It was the first version of the game I played so it could be a factor, but I believe that overall it is much better than the other versions.

IIRC DOS version have also great audio tracks in a CD version.

[Nova]

Originally Posted by rygar

IIRC DOS version have also great audio tracks in a CD version.

that would make things a lot easier.

btw, the search for the best possible version of a game would probably make a good new thread?

maybe something like: recommended // alternative:

ghouls 'n ghosts - arcade // supergrafx // amiga (awesome soundtrack)
lure of the temptress - dos
ruff 'n tumble - amiga only (yeah!)
shadow of the beast II - amiga // fm-towns (alt intro + cutscenes, cd soundtrack)
turrican - amiga // c-64
twinworld - amiga // acorn archimedes

well, maybe too much potential for conflicts in the end

[Misclegend]

the best lost vikings is the SNES version because have backgrounds is the nicest
The Amiga and PCDOS versions do not have backgrounds, just a black screen in all levels

The megadrive version also have backgrounds but the SNES version is better