Inspired by Norse mythology, Vilde throws you into the fray as a gun toting, spell slinging, and hammer crushing Nordic badass. Is it the favoured by the Gods or a testament to their failures?
To Valhalla!
Vilde is a typical roguelite, that has you fighting your way from one realm to another. Along the way you defeat foes, down bosses and grab some loot. Each run drops you in with nothing other than your bog standard assault rifle. Loot consits of more guns, spells, buffs and melee weapons. Along the way you’ll find shops and anvils to buy, sell and upgrade your setup. Surviving each run grants dew, which can be used to purchase character upgrades, making each run easier, allowing you to get longer more rewarding runs.
There’s not too much to speak of storywise. You play as an outcast from a Norse inspired village. Obsessed with the ruins of an ancient tree, your fellow villagers have become victims to its ancient power. With no word of a development of this origin, it’s safe to say Vilde is not meant to spin you a tale of much magnitude!
Ragnarok
The world of Vilde is, in a word, stale. There is a clear vision here that is weaved into each area you traverse here. From the misty magical forests, to the dark, dank and fiery depths of a delapitated Nordic fortress, you can see what this world is meant to be. However, this vision falls flat with its blocky and oddly proportioned terrain. I will admit that the first area (the afforemantioned misty forest), does give off a cool claustrophobic vibe with the narrow berms and tight corners. The charm is quickly lost when delving deeper into the frosty and fiery terrains. It feels like a Sea of Thieves server gone awry.
Furthermore, the sound design and music is just so odd. Booming metallic edgy rock abounds in combat, but is short lived, as it abrubtly ends in between each enemy. It felt less like a gauntlet of fearsome creatures and more a random path filled with blocky critters. Some monsters, such as the skeletal archers and berserkers are pretty intimidating and pack a small “OH SHITTT” factor. The same cannot be said of the rest of the roster. Bulky fireballs stacked to look like some sort of fire elemental, dense looking kamikaze faires, and friendly looking dragons make for a lack luster group of mobs.
To add to the audio woes, sound effects of each weapon feel so lacking. Rocket launchers just sound so overtly laboured, and lack gusto or impact when fired. The only highlight is the frostbite, an AK47 with a cold tinge. This is such a shame as some look genuinly cool.
Odin’s Trial
I’ve touched on the odd and almost friendly looking mobs you’ll encounter on each run, but it unfortunatly gets worse. Their attacks are slow, predictable and downright laggy at times. I will say that there’s a nice variety of enemies to face, and each encounter with an elite enemy (tougher mobs with better loot) is pretty challenging in the context of Vilde. Outside of the generic enemies, are the bosses you face at the end of each area. My God are they dull. Gigantic bullet sponges with 1 -3 different attacks, 2 of which are glorified arena hazards. The first 2 are almost identical if not for the varied attacks between them. They absorb an unnessecarily large number of hits before going down. An easy fix would be to have more attacks, less health and more enemy summons to keep you on your toes. Each boss is such a chore.
The gunplay is not much better either. Fairly mundane FPS gunplay with a sprinkling of crossbows and melee weapons to occasionally spice things up. I do enjoy the spell slinging though, it adds a lot of spice to a very dull combat system. You also are equiped with a handy dodge to get you out of tight spots which like spell slinging is a welcome addition. There’s just about enough weapons to make you feel like you have a good selection, but honestly, there’s only 2 -3 worth picking if you want a good run. Crossbows are strong but so lethargic (just like the aforementioned rocket launchers), melee weapons lack any umph, and the rilfes are just okay. Each weapon has a unique ability but don’t get too excited. They range from exploding pull aoe to firing an extra shot.
…and so the Saga ends.
Overall Vilde seems like a fantastic roguelike on the surface, but just barely below it is but a hollow promise. The janky and clunky gameplay just doesn’t really cut it, even with cool additions like dodging and spell casting. The landscapes are unimpressive and filled with very subpar enemies, particularly the bosses. For any die hard roguelike fans, I’d say give it a go, for anyone else best not to pick this one up!
Leave a Reply