Trolls vs Vikings: Reborn Review

Trolls vs Vikings started its life as a lane defence mobile game on iOS in 2014; it is now back as Trolls vs Vikings: Reborn and has now been brought to PC. If the look of Trolls vs Vikings looks familiar to you, that is because this title is a clone of another popular mobile game, Plants vs Zombies. But the story here includes a splash of Nordic folklore as Megapop is based in Norway. I am looking forward to seeing the other changes made to set this entry apart from other popular tower defence titles.

When we begin, we meet a Troll with bright-purple hair named Emma; she is ready to harvest the patch of “dazies” she planted in the forest. Once she gets there, she sees a Viking and a mysterious stranger in her forest and wonders what they are doing there. The stranger says that Trolls are hoarders, so that means that they must have more treasure than the Vikings can carry. All they need to do is breach all the trolls' defences, and they will be rich beyond their wildest dreams. The mysterious stranger creates a mist and slinks away while Emma heads back to the village to warn everyone.

You begin your quest in a grassy stage with some flower beds called Dreamwoods; at the end of the lawn, there is a row of sharpened logs called a Palisade, placed to slow down incoming enemy forces. The Vikings are advancing, so Emma will need to act quickly to stop them. A troll named Punk, with a nose ring and slingshot, asks to be placed on the battlefield where he can attack the incoming Viking enemy. The grass is divided like a grid, with six horizontal lanes and nine vertical, which gives you 54 blocks available to place units. When you set Punk on the battlefield, you can see the area that the weapon they are using can attack. Being able to see the exact range lets you be strategic when placing your fighters so you can be sure you have the full area covered.

Between stages, you view an overworld map of Midgard — where you see a few icons on the left side of the screen. The notebook lets you view the Vikings you have faced and profiles with stats (like cost to play and cooldown time for all the different Troll fighters, including the defence and attack meters, and what kind of attacks they do and special abilities). You can also learn more about the Trolls’ backstories. These other encyclopaedia-like entries you see are upgrades you can get along with a page on items.

Trolls vs Vikings: Reborn has 34 stages to complete. Before you jump into the next challenge, you will select the five different types of trolls you want on your team. There are a total of seven slots available, but two need to be unlocked before you can have a full roster. All the trolls shoot automatically at the Vikings in their path of attack, and some of the enemies, once defeated, will drop cards to unlock other trolls like the one named Hack. This troll is a miner who isn’t aggressive; instead, they are only there to gather Moonstone, which is a troll's favourite kind of snack, and it lets you recruit new fighters in this battle. You will have to strategise and figure out if it is better to use your Moonstone to recruit the cheaper units faster and get them fighting or save up for the stronger trolls that can deal more damage to the Viking enemy.

After completing the tutorial, you are given a special gift from Loki: a magic kit. I am sure he isn't the stranger behind all the fighting… though this kit gives you two different spells to use: Falling Rock and Scorch. Falling Rock drops a boulder on the enemy you select; if the Vikings are lined up, you can hit all the enemies on one tile. Scorch is a fire blast that can hit multiple enemies at the same time. The flames have a longer cooldown time than the Falling Rock does, so keep that in mind when you pick which spell would be most useful at that moment.

As you complete the stages, you will earn Shards. These are used to unlock different totems to recruit additional troll fighters to your team, like Rock, a large troll who sits in one spot blocking all enemy attacks, and Two-Shot, who uses a double slingshot to fire at the enemy Vikings. There are a variety of characters to select from, so check out their profiles and stats and see which member would be useful for your team.

The look of Trolls vs Vikings: Reborn is vibrant and cartoony. All the trolls have their own unique look and attacks to use against the waves of Vikings. Accompanying the fun look of the game is jovial music with banjos and twang sounds. The backgrounds of the stages you are fighting on are nice, but all the levels in that area look exactly the same. This game is based on a mobile title, so I'm not too surprised that there is some repetition, but switching it up a bit would have been nice. The only thing that changes is the type and number of Vikings attacking.

Trolls vs Vikings: Reborn is played using a keyboard and mouse, or, if you are playing on a Steam Deck, you can use the touch screen to move your trolls around the play area. Instead of a normal computer mouse cursor, you are moving a creepy troll hand around the screen. Click on the fighter that you wish to place and select the square where you want them to be stationed. If you don’t have enough Moonstones to afford that character or if you just placed one already, you won’t be able to select them. You will need to be patient and wait until you harvest enough of the stones to feed your troll or until the cooldown period is done. Once on the field, most of the trolls automatically fire at the enemy. However, there are a few exceptions, like Zap. This fighter can summon lightning strikes to hit any spot you want. It costs 175 Moonstones to use, so it’s a little pricey, but it does big damage, and you just have to click where you want to target.

If you want a break from the main game, there are 35 side quests available to be challenged, like ones called Day of the Dead, Moonstone Valley, and Mushroom Field. There is a lot of stuff to unlock in Trolls vs Vikings: Reborn, from new characters and achievements to strengthening the Trolls that are already on your team with special items like Mjolnir, who clears out all the enemies in a lane. I was impressed to see the number of fun items you could pick up!

Trolls vs Vikings: Reborn is a fun and challenging lane defence game that is full of personality. It doesn't take long to complete the game (around five hours for the base game), as there are only three bosses standing in your way. You may think the game is just a clone of Plants vs Zombies, but it manages to feel familiar yet unique at the same time. It is sure to be a good time for fans of the genre.