Review: Lost: The Video Game (360)

Out of all the TV shows Lost is probably the least likely youd expect to get turned into a game. Its not like a 24 or Alias where there are specific storylines for each episode/season. The Lost story expands throughout the entire show, making any video game attempt a difficult challenge without avoiding a tacked on feeling. Ubi Soft have stepped up to the plate and not surprisingly have made a complete hash of it.

It amazed us that it could turn out this bad and even Lost fans will be bemused by it all. The game takes place right at the start of the first episode with the plane crash, giving you control of the anonymous bloke who has lost his memory. This random person being a character that has neither been name checked or shown in the series at all. It does start off quite positive though with a nice cut scene showing the plane breaking apart before the Lost logo comes spiralling towards the screen. However, it’s not long before you start to realise that Lost: Via Domus may not be all that great. Landing in the jungle you meet the first major character Kate, who like the majority of the characters in the game are not voiced by the actual actor. The fake voice actors range from mediocre to absolutely awful. Brit rock star Charlie’s voice is so bad that it’s almost comedic.

It’s from the first meeting that you make your way to the plane crash by naturally following a dog. Here you meet and greet with the other survivors. Then, if you’re curious like we are, you’ll check your surroundings. We did and walked up to a turbine, which then out of nowhere exploded in our face. Okay, we thought, I’ll just get up and carry on. But then something inexplicable happened. The Game Over screen appeared. Note to game designers: instant deaths are never fun. No matter how they are implemented they’re a terrible design choice that need to be banned.

The game is riddled with moments where you die and are immediately left swearing at the screen. The most infuriating parts of Lost: Via Domus are when you need to explore the cave systems. Your standard lighter is useless, so you’ll need to trade items such as water and fruit for torches from the various survivors. The problem is it’s incredibly easy to get lost and with the torch having a short shelf life it means that if you’re not careful you’ll be scurrying around the dark like a blind man. What didn’t help this is that the caves are riddled with pitfalls, lose your footing and you’re right back to the start of the cave. The design of the island is nothing short of a disaster, from the caves to even the jungle. A lot of the areas you’re ferried down a specific path with no room to explore and the areas that do give you some breathing space will send you back to the beginning if you venture to far from the signposts you need to follow.

Not that there isn’t some decent things to be said about Lost. Each episode (of which thankfully there are only seven) is presented like part of the TV show. So each one starts and ends with the logo before the “previously on Lost” segment shows the best bits of the previous episode. It’s presented really well, which makes the disappointing gameplay even more crushing. The series’ trademark flashbacks even make an appearance. With these you need to use a camera to capture a specific moment during the flashback in order to remember a part of your past. They’re interestingly done though only last a few minutes before you’re thrown into a cut scene and then back to the island. Speaking of which the game is almost entirely made up of cut scenes with only around two hours of playtime the majority of which is spent doing the one and only puzzle.

That one and only puzzle is actually repeated around five times. In it you need to connect the fuses together, but also with each fuse you get it knocks down the electrical power. So you need to mix and math fuses so when they reach the other end they still have enough energy flowing through them to work the machine. They’re infuriating to complete during the latter stages of the game and do nothing but extend the already short longevity of the game.

What you’d expect Lost: Via Domus to do well is the story, and you’d be half right. It manages to be compelling and the ending is a classic Lost “WTF?!” moment. It’s all pointless though because the writers of the TV show have since said that this game doesn’t even take part in the official chronology, making this nothing more than glorified fan fiction. We’ve never felt so angry about wasting three hours of our lives. If you’re an enormous Lost fan then do yourself a favour and watch the YouTube videos of all the cut scenes because that way it’ll save you an awful lot of pain.

Rating: 2 / 10

Words by Adam Gulliver