INTRODUCTION
Following the unprecedented success of Core's first Heimdall saga, the Derby-
STORYLINE
Our tale begins in the age of Ragnarok, the age of a thousand years, which ended with a battle between the Gods of Asgard and Loki the outcast.
The exiled Loki extracts his revange by stealing the sacred weapons of Thor, Odin and Frey. Heimdall (our hero), sacrifices his divinity to walk the land of mortals in search of the stolen weapons.
Completing his quest, Heimdall returns to Asgard to find peace. Meanwhile, Loki swears vengeance on Asgard's latest hero.
Two hundred years pass and the banished Loki, stripped of godly powers, roams Midgard, the land of humans.
Loki builds an army and starts attacking the villages. At first the villagers fight is strong, but as the attacks continue their will weakens.
The Gods, unable to do anything from Asgard, decide that Loki must be trapped in a manner that will stop him permanently. Odin tells them of a place he had visited many years ago when the world was still forming. It was the Hall of Worlds, a place which contains portals to parts of Midgard, Utgard, Niflheim, and other more bizarre parts of the universe.
While journeying through various terrestrial worlds, Odin finds a portal. He arrives in a strange land, and is greeted by a strange man.
The stranger offers him a talisman as a gift. Odin takes the talisman and suddenly finds himself back beside the gate in his own Hall of Worlds.
Odin discovers the talisman, freezes the wearer solid, and duly breaks it into four pieces and hurls them into the different portals.
On finishing his story, the Gods agree that restoring the amulet would put an end to Loki's mischief permanently.
Baldur was sent first, but met his death at the hands of Loki. The next volunteer was Heimdall, but the Gods insisted he must have some protection. So a young Valkyrie named Ursha volunteered to accompanying Heimdall.
ADDITIONAL INFO
Computer games are notorious, for Heimdall 2 quite accurately recreates the mythology of the Norse people in its play. Icelandic mythological poems reflect a strong interest in the creation of the worlds, and its ultimate destruction and re-creation. The earth is represented as a circle of land surrounded by ocean. In the ocean depths lies the World Serpent, while in the centre of the land is a mighty tree, the World Ash, Yggdrasil.
The tree's roots go down into the underworld, and beneath them bubbles a spring, the source of hidden wisdom. The tree is the guardian of the gods who hold their council beneath its canopy.
Two races of gods, the Aesir (sky gods) and the Vanir (earth gods), are said to dwell in Asgard, in the heavens. However, the Vanir also dwell in Vanaheim beneath the Earth.
Beneath the trees roots lies Jotunheim, land of the giants, and a realm of the dead ruled by Loki the trickster's daughter, Hel.
Loki, who plays an important part in Northern myths and Heimdall 2, is a trickster figure, a thief and a slanderer. He is a close companion to Odin and Thor, yet he gives birth to the monsters which will destroy them.
In Norse mythology, Loki eventually kills Baldur, and as a punishment is bound across three rocks, unable to break loose until the final great battle, Ragnarok.
SOUND
The music in Heimdall 2 is limited to the introduction sequence and the map sections where you select your next destionation. While limited, the music is extremely well orchestrated (almost a pun) and suits the style of the game totally.
During play there's no music, but the team have taken full advantage of sampled sound effects. While this approach isn't everyone's tankard of elk mead, surely some beefy sound samples are preferable to cheesy tunes that soon do your swede in (another pun?) after about five minutes.
78%GRAPHICS
As you might expect, Heimdall 2 employs the same style as its predecessor. The two characters you control, Heimdall and Ursha, are both well animated and look the part.
Heimdall 2 is another of a recent batch of 3-D isometric adventures that have appeared on the Amiga recently. However, it differs slightly from others in the respect that the style Core have opted for is (like the original Heimdall) very cartoon like.
The locations are plentiful and varied enough to keep the player interested and for the majority of times have some relevance to the overall plot.
Heimdall 2 is the kind of title that lures you in with its semi-
OPINION77%
Yes, there's been a glut of 3D isometric titles lately. Yes, it's been me whose had to look at them all, but no, I'm not cheesed off with them yet.
Heimdall 2 is a very cleverly-
Although you know the overall objective of the game, sub-plots that you don't think will be connected cleverly link into the overall scheme of things. The puzzles too are a clever element of Heimdall 2. Some are a touch difficult, but the majority are fairly logical, and neatly interwoven into the overall plot.
When it comes to accessing your characters' belongings, Heimdall 2 uses a similar system to Dungeon Master. As this is the universally acknowledged approach, it's very easy to handle and comes naturally to the user.
As with every adventure title of this type, magic and spells have to rear their cliched and very ugly heads at some point. Heimdall 2 again, takes some of its inspiration from Dungeon Master, using symbols, in the forms of runes, to construct your spells.
If I had to nit-
Generally though, there isn't a great deal wrong with Heimdall 2. It looks good, is interesting and compelling to play, and it's different enough from the original Heimdall, while still keeping the style and look in the same vein.