Medieval Vikings in the 21st Century As a Laurier student in ML103 - Digital Valhallas, I couldn’t be happier. I’ve had a great time advancing my knowledge of medievalism as it relates to vikings and video games. I want to give you, the reader, a window into my awesome class by teaching you a bit about why vikings are so popular nowadays in video game culture. I’ll help you develop an understanding of the basics of my class along with some interesting insights using my lectures.Now, what is medievalism? In our first lecture, Medievalism: the basics, the term medievalism is described in a complex quote that can be deconstructed and stated simply as the use of the culture of the Middle Ages in inspiring any form of art, entertainment or literature. The typical view of vikings in popular culture today is a simplified interpretation of a very complex people through many different ages. Along with the general public, artists interpret and represent medievalism in various ways that some may find misrepresentitive. Two simple examples of common medieval tropes are aslo found in the lecture Medievalism: the basics, romantic medievalism and grotesque medievalism. Firstly, when talking about romantic medievalism I want to clarify that I was taught in this course that there is more to romanticism than just relationships when it comes to vikings. Romantic medievalism is taking the better side of the middle ages and playing it out, emphasizing themes like intense romance, unyielding bravery, traditional chivalry and a cooperative, humane living environment. This aspect of medievalism is appealing for practical reasons, people love a strong spirit and romantisized medieval vikings fullfil that role in a way that feels real and meaningful. Remember that when talking about medievalism in the modern setting with your average Joe, it won’t be about the full reality of the vikings and will instead be only the interesting or interpreted facets of a full culture. That being said, in the 21st century people want to be entertained! That means for every author needing a main character or movie needing a lead, there is the romantisization of medieval vikings. Video games follow the same principle. When playing a good game, people want to be able to care about the story, yet escape from reality. Romantisized medieval vikings maintain common relatable themes to the average person’s life such as romance or chivalry with a setting that starkly contrasts our own. That is what inspires games in the modern industry. Another thing that is appealing to people about medieval vikings is the grotesque medievalism we see in pop culture. grotesque medievalism encomasses essentially the opposite of romantic medievalism in that it showcases vikings as terrible, gruesome warriors who lack the chivalry needed to be seen as human in the eyes of civillized society. It focusses more on the warrior, the bloodshed and the horrible nature of the so-called “Dark Ages''. As it turns out, there is a term for a similar form of medievalism that encompasses the “Dark Ages” and more. Found in the lecture Neomedievalism and northern medievalism, Vikings warrior culture was interpreted in a cold and real, yet fantastical sense. Northern medievalism focusses Northern Europe in late antiquity and also the early Middle Ages. It also typically involves noble warrior culture along with mythical undertones. This fantastic window into the worLd of vikings doesn’t allow for as much relatability as the previous, but it has other ways of appealing to the 21st century audience. Vikings have been gaining popularity recently as mentioned in our lecture The Fantasy North - Skyrim and God of War, due to the thrill of gruesome combat and the realistic atmosphere. It's clear to see from recent games such as God of War, that Northern medievalism has a huge role to play in inspiring the industry. Both Norhern and Romantic medievalism are obviously appealing themes for the video gaming industry, but those themes tie in to one overarching theme popularized in modern depictions of medieval viking culture. I’m talking about Neomedievalism, where the values and concepts of medieval culture are purposely rewritten into narratives that encompass the feeling of the culture in a completely fictional setting. Neomedievalism allows for more playful interpretations and unlimited creative licensing in story building. A perfect example of this is found in the lecture Exploring the world tree: depicting Scandinavian cosmology. We can see in the game Assassin’s Creed: Valhalla that there was a creative license taken over the interpretation of the world tree, or Yggdrasil. It is interpreted to be a supercomputer in the game that is shaped like a futuristic, metallic tree that functions as the connection between our protagonist’s world and genetic memories of the past. When video games run with already exciting nordic mythological ideas and integrate them into their game, it creates a more fluid experience of the culture they’re representing along with the atmosphere they are trying to set. That unlimited potential is a huge reason inspiration is drawn from this era. From reading the previous three features I think it’s easy to understand why games featuring vikings are such a popular phenomena in the 21st century. Featuring relatable plotlines full of adventure and kinship or even bloody trials to forge a battle-hardened warrior, there’s nothing not to like about vikings as a player. A great example from our lecture Authenticity and the apocalypse: Ragnarok in Skyrim versus God of War is the final battle in Skyrim where the player faces off against the gigantic dragon Alduin. Putting the mythological connections aside, what becomes immediately apparent to a player in scenes like this is oveerwhealming scale. The sheer size of both your foe and the battle taking place is enough to emerce a player easily in a fantasy greater than themselves. Amazing plot points such as these are what not only keep vikings relevant in the 21st century to players, but keep them coming back for more after they’ve gotten a taste of the truly epic genre. Finally, possibly the most important aspect of the gaming community is the developers that put together the incredible games we all know and love. Assassin’s Creed: Valhalla, Skyrim and God of War all share the common theme of having a fantastic world for their story to take place in. Each world bends the laws of nature to incorporate a mystical depiction of Scandinavian cosmology in some way or another. I learned from our lecture Exploring the world tree: depicting Scandinavian cosmology, the basics of the cosmic environment developers find themselves deriving inspiration from and let me say there is a lot to work with. There is great conflict and kinnships, fantastical storys of creation and bloodshed, and intrinsic messages that can be derived from the storys. There is a seemingly endless tap of characters and settings alike on Scandinavian cosmology making world building fun and engaging for developers. This keeps developers passionate in their endevours and helps creative ideas flow much more easily. All of this keeps developers looking to vikings in the 21st century for more inspiration, keeping them more relevantthan ever!
