Edit: 13/04/21 – The Blizzard Arcade Collection has now been updated to include a couple more games, making this an even better collection. You’ll now also find The Lost Vikings 2 and RPM Racing included for the same price. What’s not to like. Details of each as follows:
- Lost Vikings® 2 (LV2): The three Vikings and their new friends, Fang and Scorch, need your help again to get home.
- RPM Racing™ (RPMR): Return to the racetracks with all the classic features you love and plenty of vehicular mayhem.
Original article below:
30 years is a long time, and anyone sticking around in the gaming industry for three decades needs some kind of medal. But that’s what Blizzard Entertainment have done and to celebrate the fact they have dropped a couple of brand new Collections to Xbox, PlayStation, Switch and PC, ensuring that there is always a place for nostalgia in the hearts of a gamer.
Available to purchase and download right now are both The Blizzard 30-Year Celebration Collection and that of the Blizzard Arcade Collection. And whether you are a fan of Blizzard themselves or are just looking to expand your gaming horizons a little, both deserve a little look.
We’ll take the Blizzard Arcade Collection first and for £16.99 you’ll really get to see how Blizzard have defined the nostalgic beast. You see it is this which has brought together three of Blizzard’s earliest creations – The Lost Vikings, Rock N Roll Racing and Blackthorne – making them playable on modern day systems.
Present for Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S, PS4, PS5, Nintendo Switch and PC players, the Blizzard Arcade Collection is pretty much a full on celebration of old-school gaming, with all three titles coming not just in their original forms, but in upgraded Definitive Editions too. Throw in the ability to rewind for 10 seconds in order to get yourself out of trouble, and to custom map your keys and buttons and you’re good to go.
Further, the very original versions of both The Lost Vikings and Blackthorne also provide a new ‘watch mode’ which allows you the chance to watch the game being played, before jumping in to take control. There is also the chance to save your progress at any point in all three games, plus a ton of bonus material that include game arts, developmental assets, unused content, lore, interviews and more.
Game details of each as follows:
- The Lost Vikings – In The Lost Vikings, players assume the roles of Erik the Swift, Olaf the Stout, and Baelog the Fierce, three intrepid Vikings who must use their abilities cooperatively to solve hundreds of puzzles, defeat their enemies, and navigate a treacherous voyage back home. The Definitive Edition of The Lost Vikings brings together the best aspects of the different original console versions of the game, combining the superior audio and visual experience of the first release with the extra stages and cutscenes, and support for up to three players in local co-op, that were added in a subsequent version.
- Rock N Roll Racing – Featuring a series of booby-trapped racetracks and an epic rock-and-metal soundtrack, Rock N Roll Racing puts players behind the wheel in an over-the-top demolition-racing experience. Players choose from a selection of drivers with different talents and take their pick from a set of customizable cars—each equipped with an upgradeable arsenal designed to help them outmaneuver, and literally destroy, the competition. The Definitive Edition adds environmental effects, such as snow and rain, and lets up to four players, compared to two in the Original Edition, compete in local multiplayer. It also ups the racetrack count to 384 variations, supports 16:9 resolution, and adds actual recordings of songs from the game’s classic soundtrack—as well as new songs and new “Loudmouth Larry” voiceover clips for players to tear up the tracks to.
- Blackthorne – Blackthorne centers on the story of Kyle “Blackthorne” Vlaros, a lethal commando equipped with brute strength, animal cunning, a mysterious past—and an increasingly powerful shotgun. As the eponymous lead character, players must fight to claim their destiny, dodging and blasting their way through a futuristic 2D alien world overrun by mutant monsters and goblin hordes, in a fierce effort to liberate its people. The Definitive Edition of the game includes a “fog of war” map that uncovers as players explore each level.
You’ll find the Blizzard Arcade Collection on Xbox, PlayStation and Nintendo digital stores, whilst the Windows PC version is only available as part of The Celebration Collection on battle.net.
But that’s not all that Blizzard are dropping our way and if you are more of a modern day player will find that the 30-Year Celebration Collection is possibly more for you. This will set you back £24.99, but does include the previously mentioned Blizzard Arcade Collection as standard, but also throws in a host of in-game content for both Overwatch and Diablo III. In fact, you’ll find the iconic Jim Raynor from StarCraft dropping in to Overwatch as the Raynhardt Legendary skin for Reinhardt, bringing with him a supply drop of Classic Loot Boxes, Golden Loot Boxes (which include a guaranteed Legendary), along with a commemorative 30th anniversary icon and spray. In Diablo III the Dark Wanderer again seeks the east, seeing you adopting the guise of Tristram’s fallen warrior in Diablo III with a terrifyingly familiar transmog set, wings, pet, and portrait.
Honestly, Blizzard have knocked it out of the park here with their new content drops. Be sure to keep an eye out for our full review of the Blizzard Arcade Collection on Xbox in the days ahead. But for now head to your favoured digital store and nail the new content on the format of your choice.
Let us know which you pick up too.
