LOST: Via Domus

April 30, 2008

There’s no denying that LOST is a television phenomenon. The characters are well-written, the story is intriguing, and at the end of each episode the viewer is given enough new information to see prior episodes in a new light and wonder what’s coming down the pipe next week. If ever a piece of intellectual property was ripe for the adventure game treatment it is LOST. Explore your surroundings? Check. Pick up every little thing you find? Check. Work toward solving a mystery without a focus on combat? Check. How, then, did Ubisoft manage to create such a poor excuse for a game? They ignored LOST’s strongest point (the characters and dialog) and replaced it with uninspired puzzles and frustrating mechanics.

LOST: Via Domus covers the first three seasons of the television show as told from the point of view of a new character. All your favorite characters and locales are present and accounted for. There’s the beach, the Swan Station, and your own flashbacks to explore. Along the way you’ll have brief conversations with Jack, Kate, Sawyer, Hurley, and Locke. It is, however, immediately obvious that the majority of the actors didn’t lend their voices to the game. The dialog also isn’t as sharp as that found in LOST’s weekly episodes. Sure, characters mention appropriate things, but they’re just as likely to say A

Score: 1/5

Questions? Check out our review guide.