Lost: Via Domus

From Lostpedia

This information was revealed through the non-canon Lost video game
Lost: Via Domus

Game Guide • Xbox 360 Achievements • Locations

Characters:		Beady Eyes · Elliott Maslow · Lisa Gellhorn · Zoran Savo · Rico
Episodes:		Force Majeure · A New Day · Via Domus · Forty-Two · Hotel Persephone · Whatever It Takes · Worth A Thousand Words

"Via Domus"

Season

Episode

1-3

Aired

February 26, 2008

Flashback

Elliot Maslow

Days

1 - 67

Written by

John Meadows

Directed by

Gadi Pollack

Guest starring

Michael Emerson - Ben
Andrew Divoff - Mikhail
Henry Ian Cusick - Desmond
Emilie De Ravin - Claire
Yunjin Kim - Sun
M.C. Gainey - Tom

[[{{{transcript}}}|Episode transcript]]
[[{{{transcript2}}}|Part Two]]

Via Domus redirects here. For the episode, see Via Domus (game episode)

Lost: Via Domus (also known as Lost: The Video Game) is the first official game of the series for video game consoles and PCs. The game was developed by Ubisoft Montreal under the direction of producer Gadi Pollack. Announced on 22 May 2006, it was released on February 26, 2008 in the USA, February 28 in Australia and February 29 in the UK. The game is available on Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, and Windows PCs, using the YETI Game engine developed for the Ghost Recon: Advanced Warfighter, and Beowulf games. It was officially unveiled with a screening of its trailer during the Comic-Con 2007 panel. 'Via Domus' is Latin for what can be translated to "the road home".

The game follows a character new to the Lost universe, Elliot Maslow, a photojournalist with amnesia whose background is revealed over the course of the game through flashbacks. Elliot has not yet been featured in the show, but could possibly make the transition from game to screen. However, the producers have stated the game is not canon to the show.

1 Synopsis
2 Gameplay and change
3 System requirements
4 Rating
5 Trivia
6 Unanswered questions
7 See also
8 External links

Synopsis

Elliott is a passenger on Flight 815. After the crash, he has lost his memory. He initially searches the Island for his possessions. A man named Beady Eyes who was also a passenger threatens to kill him. Elliot eventually discovers the Swan station. While at the station, the other survivors review the content of a laptop computer he had on the plane and find it full of information on matters like chemical weapons. Elliot is briefly imprisoned at the Swan. After he escapes with Kate's help, he discovers the entrance to the walled-off portion of the Swan and blows open the door with dynamite from the Black Rock.

After Elliott shuts down a reactor at the Swan, he follows his compass to the fence around the Barracks where he meets Juliet. Juliet opens the fence for him and then he enters the underground portion of the Flame. He eventually reaches the surface structure of the Flame and finds Mikhail held captive by Beady Eyes. Elliott shoots Beady Eyes and is then captured by the Others.

Elliott is taken to the Hydra Station where he meets with Ben Linus and Juliet. Ben offers him a boat and a way home in exchange for luring Jack into a trap at the Black Rock. Elliott leads Kate and Jack into the trap. But then he has second thoughts and helps Jack/Kate to escape by firing a bullet into some dynamite. Elliott is left behind wounded by Jack and Kate. He is later found by Juliet and brought to some cliffs near the ocean. He then runs to the beach to grab the boat Ben offered before the Others destroy it. As the Others reach the boat, Locke appears and shoots the Others which saves the boat for Elliott. Locke then wishes Elliot well and allows him to sail away. However, at a later point at sea, the sound associated with the day the Swan implosion is heard. Elliott looks to the sky where Oceanic 815 is breaking up in mid-air, then he passes out. He wakes up at the crash site on Day 1. Everything seems to be repeating itself when suddenly Lisa stumbles out of the wreckage, covered in blood, and yells happily, "Elliott! Elliott! Oh my god, we made it. We're alive."

Flashbacks

Elliott is a photojournalist, romantically involved with his colleague Lisa. Lisa is writing an exposé on Zoran Savo, a shady character with ties to the Hanso Foundation and Thomas Mittelwerk. He wants the story for himself, and to that end he tips off Savo's bodyguards to Lisa's reporting. Savo orders her to be executed; Elliott escapes with photographs of the entire affair, but Savo finds out. He orders Beady Eyes, his bodyguard, to follow Elliott onto the plane and destroy the photographs.

Characters

Main article: Characters (Via Domus)

Locations

Main article: Locations (Via Domus)

Gameplay and change

A dialogue scene.

Via Domus consists of several types of gameplay. Much of the game is spent in interactive conversation with other characters, while the rest consists of jungle exploration, wiring repair puzzles, rediscovering Elliot's past with the use of flashbacks, photography, and collecting important objects. Bonus content can be unlocked by taking photographs of objects that had importance in the show, such as Kate's plane, Charlie's guitar, Kelvin's DHARMA jumpsuit, and the book Turn of the Screw. These will also allow you to gain achievements on the Xbox 360 version of the game.

One of the many wiring puzzles.

The game's producers have taken artistic license with some of the show's continuity so as to include more action. For example the Others now stalk the jungle with rifles, willing to kill anyone who comes within range, as well as the Monster being much more active.

System requirements

The Windows version requires the following:

Windows XP or Vista
2.5GHz Core 2 Duo / Athlon 64 X (or 3.5GHz Pentium 4/Athlon)
1GB of RAM (2GB recommended)
at least a 128MB DirectX 9.0c-compliant shader 3.0-enabled video card (256MB recommended)
5 GB of hard disk space

The supported cards are

ATI RADEON X1300-1950 / HD 2000 series,
nVidia Geforce 6600, 6800, 7xxx and 8xxx series.

Rating

US NTSC Xbox 360 cover art

In Australia, the game is rated M (recommended for mature audiences) due to "moderate themes" and "moderate violence". [1]
In the US, it is rated T (for teen) for alcohol and tobacco, blood, mild language, and violence by the ESRB.
In Europe, the game is rated by PEGI as 16+.

Trivia

When the initial trailer was released, most people assumed the main character Elliott was Jack, because the trailer was short, of low quality and the only promotional material available at the time, Jack is the main character in Lost, Elliott and Jack look similar, and no other information had yet been released.
Elliott chases visions of Lisa around the Island in much the same way Jack pursued visions of Christian. ("White Rabbit")
Elliott escapes the Island in a small white boat on a compass bearing of 325. ("Live Together, Die Alone")
Once Juliet deactivates the sonar fence at the start of Episode 6, the player can pass through the fence and head right into a small clearing (rather than left into the Flame). Here one can find a capsule from the Pearl; picking it up will warp the player to the Pearl station, where they can access the Pearl's computer to check the status of the other stations on the Island.
There are a number of ways to kill yourself in this game. You can walk near a jet turbine at the crash site, not push the button while in the Swan, you could enter 77 into the Flame's computer, or you could walk in between the sonar fence pylons when they're turned on.

Recurring themes

Recurring themes in Lost
Black and white • Car accidents • Character connections • Deceptions and cons • Dreams • Eyes • Fate versus free will • Good and bad people • Imprisonment • Isolation • Life and death • Missing body parts • Nicknames • The Numbers • Parent issues • Pregnancies • Rain • Rebirth • Redemption • Relationships • Sacrifice • Secrets • Time

The first chapter opens on a shot of Elliott's eye. (Eyes)
A chess board and a backgammon board can be found amongst the wreckage. (Games) (Black and white)
Vincent leads Elliott to the wreckage. (Animals)
Elliott was in Rico's Shop the same time as Locke, which was 4pm. (Character connections) (The numbers)
Elliott was imprisoned by Jack and Sayid. (Imprisonment)
Sawyer gives Elliott various nicknames throughout the game such as Ansel, Casanova, Champ, and Columbo. (Nicknames)
Appearances of the Numbers are scattered across the beach: the bumper sticker "love 4 ever", the seashells in an 8 pattern, a piece of fuselage on the side of a hut to the far west 15, a food crate near Locke 16, an empty food tray near Hurley 23 and Texas dominos at Charlie's hut 42, etc. If those items are examined in sequence the Staff becomes available for exploration. (The numbers)
Zoran Savo stayed in Suite 42 at the Hotel Persephone. (The numbers)
After Elliott talks to Locke at the banyan trees in "A New Day", whispers can be heard in the jungle. (Whispers)

Bloopers and continuity errors

Main article: Bloopers and continuity errors

'Via Domus' is not grammatically correct in Latin, however. It should actually read 'Via Domum' (nominative VS accusative case).
The game opens with Elliot talking on the phone moments before the crash. However, in the show we know that the plane, six hours after leaving the airport, lost any kind of communication with the outside world. ("Pilot, Part 1")
Shortly before the crash, a voice asks passengers to sit down while Cindy chases Charlie to the bathroom. However, in the show it is Cindy herself who announces this. ("Pilot, Part 2")
The day after the crash, Elliott witnesses Jack, Kate and Charlie coming running out of the jungle, chased by the Monster, even though they were able to walk back to the beach camp without further encounters with the monster. ("Pilot, Part 2")
The Monster can apparently travel around the island in areas it has never been seen on the show, it appears in the caves and very close to the beach. In addition, Locke tells Elliott to hide in the bamboo groves if the Monster attacks, yet at this point in the timeline Locke had never been attacked by the Monster (though he had peacefully encountered it). ("Walkabout")
Michael is shown collecting wood for the raft on day 2, when he really starts building it weeks later. ("Special")
- He also gives a lighter with a DHARMA logo on it, but they discovered the Hatch three weeks later. ("Orientation")
The ladder in the hatch is shown to descend all the way down, but we know that the ladder barely descended a few feet because it was broken. ("Man of Science, Man of Faith")
Hurley mentions his encounter with Dave on Day 45, although in the show Dave was not seen on the Island until Day 62. ("Dave")
The DHARMA van is seen in the Dark Territory, when it is really located near the Mesa. ("Tricia Tanaka Is Dead")
- The DHARMA van is seen on all four wheels, but it was really tipped over on its side. ("Tricia Tanaka Is Dead")
Although Episode 6 clearly takes place prior to the end of Season 2, checking the Flame computer will reveal that the satellite and sonar communications are already inoperative, prior to the discharge that supposedly caused this. ("Not in Portland")
The Flame is depicted as being within the bounds of the sonar fence, yet we know it wasn't. However, the underground tunnel could have led beneath the fence. ("Enter 77") ("Par Avion")
In episode 7, Ben tells Elliott he can leave the island if he just brings him Jack. However, we know that Ben had planned to take Jack, as well as Kate and Sawyer to convince him to do the operation. ("Exposé")
There is a typo in the help pamphlet on page 2 (XBOX 360-game controls) where the B button is labeled X and vice versa.

Cultural references

Cultural references in Lost (direct references only)
Art • Books • Cars • Games • Movies and TV • Music • Philosophy • Religion and ideologies • Science

Gilligan's Island: Charlie says that Sayid is off making a "radio out of coconuts", a reference to The Professor from Gilligan's Island.
Grimm's Fairy Tales: Sawyer can be seen reading this classic in "Worth A Thousand Words".
Lord of the Flies: Sawyer tells Elliott that he should school up on his Lord of the Flies, as he doesn't believe rescue is coming.
Monopoly: When Charlie sees Elliott out of the gun vault, he asks "Did you get a get-out-of-jail-free card?"
Star Wars: In "Via Domus", Elliott asks what is in the cave. Locke answers with, "Only what you take with you". This is the same answer Yoda gives to Luke Skywalker in Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back.

In "Whatever It Takes" Mikhail tells Beady Eyes: "You are as stupid as you are clumsy". In Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back Darth Vader says about Admiral Ozzel: "He is as clumsy as he is stupid".

The Wizard of Oz: During the final episode, Ben sarcastically says that a tornado came and blew his house to the Island, another one of Ben's references to The Wizard of Oz.
MacGyver: When you show Sawyer your coconuts and fuse from episode one, he snidely asks you to fix the plane with them, and calls you MacGyver, a character from the show of the same name, famous for making ingenious inventions out of common, everyday items.

Unanswered questions

Unanswered questions
Do not answer the questions here. Keep the questions open-ended and neutral: do not suggest an answer. More details...

For fan theories about these unanswered questions, see: Lost: Via Domus/Theories

Why didn't Juliet and her crew simply tranquilize Beady Eyes and capture him on Day 65?
How did the time loop cause Lisa to be alive, and a passenger of Flight 815?
Why is there a Swan logo on the back entrance to the Flame station?
What was Beady Eyes doing between days 1 and 65?
What was Eko doing at Hotel Persephone?
What was Michael doing at Hotel Persephone?
Why were many of the Others stationed in the jungle and shooting people on sight?
What was Jin doing in the jungle at nighttime in "Via Domus"?
Who was Elliott talking to on the phone in the opening scene of "Force Majeure"?

External links

Official Website
DarkUFO - Via Domus
LOST -Via Domus - The Unofficial Fan site
IGN.Com - "Lost finds its way to video games" - May 23, 2006
Ubisoft - May 23, 2006 - Press release - "Ubisoft and Touchstone Team Up to Create Lost Video Game"
Vancouver Film School - Interview with John Meadows, writer on Lost: The Video Game
TV.com Interview - Interview with Gadi Pollack, Producer on Lost: The Video Game with VIDEO
PC World - February 7, 2008 - Interview with Lost: Via Domus game producer, Gadi Pollack