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Pardon the dust! This page includes some jargon that hasn't been added to the site's glossary yet. I'll be around to fix this later, but sorry for the inconvenience in the meantime. |
Review: Ragnarock
At a Glance
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How to Save and Pause:Scores are recorded when a track is complete. You cannot save during a song, though this usually isn't an issue. To pause the game, press the menu button on your Oculus controller. I wouldn't recommend this though, as it'll throw off your rhythm and ruin the current attempt. Time needed per session:Definitely plan to play for at least twenty minutes at a time, as you'll likely want to play more than one song every session. Of course, the longest song available so far is over 13 minutes long, so you'll want to set aside more time for that one.
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Does this game pose issues for Christian players?
 | Some players may have concerns While the game itself doesn't show anything violent, some of the included songs do contain profanity and references to heavy drinking. |
Screenshots
![[view screenshot]](../images/screenshots/ragnarock_0.jpg)
![[view screenshot]](../images/screenshots/ragnarock_1.jpg)
![[view screenshot]](../images/screenshots/ragnarock_2.jpg)
Game Overview
In Norse mythology, Ragnarok is the name given to the gigantic final battle that will come about at the end of the world. Many gods and so-called immortals will perish during this climatic conflict, leaving the universe ready for what's to come next. Ragnarock, on the other hand, is a virtual reality game that's a mixture of Guitar Hero and Viking-themed heavy metal.
In this game, players take on the role of the drummer aboard a Viking longship. The better you play the drums, the more inspire the crew becomes, and the faster the ship sails. Thus, your score is simply the distance your longship has travelled during that song, and the ultimate goal of the game is to earn higher and higher scores. This also means that multiplayer games are races without a finish line - whoever covers the most distance during the song is the winner.
To play, you first need to select the song you want to use. Songs are rated with a "hammer" system - the more hammers, the harder the stage will be. At first, you'll want to play easier songs - ones with the blue 1, 2, and 3 hammer difficulty icons - but once you've had some practice, there are plenty of trickier variations to try. For comparison, songs can be rated anywhere from 1 to 10 hammers - and only the best and most nimble players will be able to handle the insanity of a 10 hammer song.
Once you've made your selection, it's time to make some final adjustments before you play the song. Since your exact position in the virtual space is going to be a little different each time you play, it's a good idea to take a moment and adjust the position and orientation of your drums, shields, and hammers at least once a session. This option is only provided when a song is loaded, so now's the time to use it. Otherwise, you'll need to pause the game to make any changes, and since you'll probably need to restart the song afterwards, that's just wasting your time.
All preparations made, select the "Begin Song" button and stand ready. As the music plays, tiles carrying runes will come down the ship towards you. To play the notes, you'll use your hammers to smash the runes as they pass over the drums. There are just two things to keep in mind. Firstly, tiles with different runes are not meant to be hit together - only tiles with the same runes are struck on the same beat. Secondly, there are only four "lanes" that the runes will come down. These "lanes" correspond with your four drums.
As long as you don't miss a rune, a combo meter will build up every time you strike a rune. This can be seen on your hammers, as they have some sort of meter as part of their decorations. Once enough combo energy has accumulated, you'll gain a "combo level". This causes your hammers to spark and glow (blue for one level, yellow for two). To use a combo level, strike one of the shields on the left or right of the ship. The crew on that side will shout and pump the air as lightning shoots through the ship and supercharges everyone for a brief moment, inspiring the entire ship to go much faster while the effect lasts.
The big catch with combos is that it's a gamble: a level 2 combo is much more effective than a level 1 combo, but you'll lose all of your combo energy and levels if you miss a single rune. Only go for a level 2 combo if you think you can make it. If not, use your level 1 combo while you can.
Ragnarock's premise is very simple, but it works incredibly well and it's easily my favorite VR game so far. It's also quite a workout, as you'll need to move your entire body to get those higher scores. Unfortunately, I cannot recommend this game for younger players, as some of the songs it comes with contain explicit lyrics or references to inappropriate topics. All of them are also very catchy, bordering on earworm bait, and I can see that encouraging younger players to sing them often.
In this game, players take on the role of the drummer aboard a Viking longship. The better you play the drums, the more inspire the crew becomes, and the faster the ship sails. Thus, your score is simply the distance your longship has travelled during that song, and the ultimate goal of the game is to earn higher and higher scores. This also means that multiplayer games are races without a finish line - whoever covers the most distance during the song is the winner.
To play, you first need to select the song you want to use. Songs are rated with a "hammer" system - the more hammers, the harder the stage will be. At first, you'll want to play easier songs - ones with the blue 1, 2, and 3 hammer difficulty icons - but once you've had some practice, there are plenty of trickier variations to try. For comparison, songs can be rated anywhere from 1 to 10 hammers - and only the best and most nimble players will be able to handle the insanity of a 10 hammer song.
Once you've made your selection, it's time to make some final adjustments before you play the song. Since your exact position in the virtual space is going to be a little different each time you play, it's a good idea to take a moment and adjust the position and orientation of your drums, shields, and hammers at least once a session. This option is only provided when a song is loaded, so now's the time to use it. Otherwise, you'll need to pause the game to make any changes, and since you'll probably need to restart the song afterwards, that's just wasting your time.
All preparations made, select the "Begin Song" button and stand ready. As the music plays, tiles carrying runes will come down the ship towards you. To play the notes, you'll use your hammers to smash the runes as they pass over the drums. There are just two things to keep in mind. Firstly, tiles with different runes are not meant to be hit together - only tiles with the same runes are struck on the same beat. Secondly, there are only four "lanes" that the runes will come down. These "lanes" correspond with your four drums.
As long as you don't miss a rune, a combo meter will build up every time you strike a rune. This can be seen on your hammers, as they have some sort of meter as part of their decorations. Once enough combo energy has accumulated, you'll gain a "combo level". This causes your hammers to spark and glow (blue for one level, yellow for two). To use a combo level, strike one of the shields on the left or right of the ship. The crew on that side will shout and pump the air as lightning shoots through the ship and supercharges everyone for a brief moment, inspiring the entire ship to go much faster while the effect lasts.
The big catch with combos is that it's a gamble: a level 2 combo is much more effective than a level 1 combo, but you'll lose all of your combo energy and levels if you miss a single rune. Only go for a level 2 combo if you think you can make it. If not, use your level 1 combo while you can.
Ragnarock's premise is very simple, but it works incredibly well and it's easily my favorite VR game so far. It's also quite a workout, as you'll need to move your entire body to get those higher scores. Unfortunately, I cannot recommend this game for younger players, as some of the songs it comes with contain explicit lyrics or references to inappropriate topics. All of them are also very catchy, bordering on earworm bait, and I can see that encouraging younger players to sing them often.
Points of Interest
34 Viking Metal Songs
The base game features a total of 34 songs from heavy metal bands like AleStorm, GloryHammer, Saltatio Mortis, and Wind Rose. This already impressive list can be expanded further with the GloryHammer RAID DLC, which adds another seven songs about glorious Dundee and the heroes who fight to protect it.
Custom song support
While no in-game level editor currently exists, it is one of the features the developers say they are working on for a future release. In the meantime, a fan going by the name PKBeam has released a free level editor
, and fans have set up websites like RangaSong and RagnaCustoms to share custom levels. All you need to do to install them is place them in the correct directory for your VR headset and the game will display them in their own menu like the other songs.
, and fans have set up websites like RangaSong and RagnaCustoms to share custom levels. All you need to do to install them is place them in the correct directory for your VR headset and the game will display them in their own menu like the other songs.
Excellent hit detection
Virtual reality games sometimes have trouble mapping the player's movements into the virtual space, leading to poor hit detection and frustrating gameplay. Ragnarock compensates for these problems in several ways, such as giving the first and fourth drum an exaggerated hitbox. You can also adjust the drum and hammer positions before starting a song, and I'd recommend doing that.
That said, a lot of people do have trouble hitting the drums properly, and I suspect this comes from misunderstanding how the game detects a hit. As stated in the game's online FAQ, the face of your hammer needs to enter and exit the top of the drum in order for the hit to count. If you aren't raising the hammers enough between blows, it won't count the hit and you'll be penalized for missing the rune.
That said, a lot of people do have trouble hitting the drums properly, and I suspect this comes from misunderstanding how the game detects a hit. As stated in the game's online FAQ, the face of your hammer needs to enter and exit the top of the drum in order for the hit to count. If you aren't raising the hammers enough between blows, it won't count the hit and you'll be penalized for missing the rune.
Achievements
Both the Steam and Oculus Quest releases offer 11 achievements for players to earn on their way to Valhalla. In addition to giving you an award for your performance, each achievement also unlocks a new set of hammers for you to use in-game. These are mainly cosmetic, as they don't have any unique powers, but some designs do make it harder or easier to see when you're striking the drums.
Also, several achievements can be earned in more than one way. This allows everyone a fair chance at earning them and unlocking every fancy hammer.
Also, several achievements can be earned in more than one way. This allows everyone a fair chance at earning them and unlocking every fancy hammer.
More to come!
The developers are clearly enthusiastic about their game, and they've published a road map for its future. Planned features include a "campaign" system, more free songs, more regions to travel through, more unlockable hammers, the aforementioned song editor, and additional DLC music packs. Most of this is planned to come out later in 2022, so it's a lot to look forward to!
Concerns and Issues
Norse Mythology
It's a Viking-themed game, so references to their gods and mythology is pretty much expected. There are songs that talk about Loki and Odin, and players travel pilot their longships through six of the nine realms. It's a little important to keep this context in mind, as Muspelheim, a burning world filled with lava and boiling rock, can be mistaken for a depiction of the Christian Hell. It doesn't help that the demonic-looking fire giant Surtur makes an appearance, saluting your ship as it passes.
Drinking
Vikings are famously fond of ale, so it's not too surprising to see it in a Viking themed game. Aside from the occasional reference to alcohol in the music (the song Drunken Dwarves being the obvious example), there's also a tankard of ale that the player can "drink" from in the main menu. Drinking booze has no effect on gameplay, but there is a somewhat hidden achievement tied to it.
Fantasy worlds and subjects
Aside from the game being themed around Norse mythology, many of the songs talk about fantasy creatures or characters. This is especially true of the songs performed by GloryHammer, as their music is about the magical realm of Dundee. Blurring the line between science fiction and fantasy, their songs talk about things like unicorns, sorcerers, dragons, and thermonuclear weapons.
Explicit content
Most of the songs that come with this game are tame despite their aggressiveness, but a few do contain swear words or sexual references. Several tracks also talk about piracy (the "yo ho ho and a bottle of rum" kind, not illegal downloads), violence, and one song mentions a type of sordidly sexual entertainment that, according to rumor, used to be found in the nastier districts of certain countries.