Sons of Valhalla

A potent blend of tactics and RPG possessed with raucous momentum, Sons of Valhalla is excellent. Then it's not for a bit. Then it's excellent again.

The one thing I was most excited about with Sons of Valhalla was the city-building aspect but sadly this ends up being a really shallow experience. As a fan of StarCraft, WarCraft and any number of games like that, I had hoped this would be similar but on a 2D plane. There is no real depth or strategy that takes place when building the city or training units. If you have a lot of big units, chances are you will prevail. I didn’t hate my time with Sons of Valhalla, I had just expected more from it.

Sons of Valhalla is an exceptional 2D side-scroller action game that challenges the player’s strategic approach and skills management.

Sons of Valhalla, which is pleasing to the eye with its pixel visuals and the Viking theme, appears as a game that does not fully utilize its potential and unfortunately drags itself into repetition.

Sons of Valhalla blends Viking themes with various genres, creating a unique and addictive game. The detailed pixel art and Norse mythology-inspired story add charm, though a repetitive horde mode and occasional frame drops slightly mar the game.

Sons of Valhalla has some ways to go. I’m hoping a couple of updates will ease some of the tedium of the city building and waiting for units. It felt like I was stuck through a lot of my playthrough, having to wait for something or another rather than forging ahead. I wouldn’t even mind waiting for tactical purposes, but there really isn’t much more to the game aside from clicking at enemies and watching your army take care of business. I died during 2 sieges. When I got back to the camp, my army had played the game without me and took them. It just feels a bit disconnected. With a little push, this game has something special. For now though, I’d recommend waiting some time.

Sons of Valhalla is fun but can become repetitive. Thorald is a good fighter, and the game makes him powerful enough, especially with a well-chosen set of runes on his belt, to tangle solo with big enemy groups. But teamwork and good use of the shield wall are crucial when taking on opponents hiding behind fortifications. But combat never evolves beyond that and the settlement development system is equally limited. The getting-back-the-kidnapped-princess narrative is decent but doesn’t do anything new. Sons of Valhalla is pleasant in short bursts but greater depth for all its mechanics are needed to make it engaging for long periods.

Sons of Valhalla offers an original look at Norse mythology, and mixes an action game with 2D strategy, all seasoned with a beautiful pixel art style. The atmosphere is great and the mix is appealing, but the experience is short and offers little variety.

Sons of Valhalla may have fallen short in a couple of categories but it made up in the ones that truly matter, particularly in the gameplay department. You can also complete the campaign in a little more than 8 hours. I’ll still take that over any bloated open-world collect-a-thon any day. If you like 2D action games with a hint of base management, you can’t go wrong with Sons of Valhalla.

Heavily inspired by the Kingdom games, Sons of Valhalla is great fun — if not a little too unforgiving at times. It's seriously rewarding though, and the sort of thing we can imagine jumping back into time and time again.