Jotun: Valhalla Edition

Cute game!
Unfortunately I forgot how useless I'm at console/gamepad oriented games and having no clue where I am even though I look at a map.
I liked the atmosphere and narration, I even understood a few words.
Maybe I'll try this game another time.

I recently decided to give Jotun a review after completing it years ago. While I didn’t remember all the details, the stunning art and atmosphere was something that stood out for me. The hand-drawn visuals are simply gorgeous, and they really bring the Norse mythology to life in a way that feels both epic and intimate. The voice acting also made it that much better.

The boss battles are a standout feature. Each Jotun has its own unique design and mechanics, making every encounter feel fresh and challenging. The flow of the combat, and the satisfaction of defeating a giant after figuring out its patterns is hard to beat.

I also appreciated the narrative woven throughout the game. The themes of honor and bravery resonate well, and it’s nice to see a game that doesn’t just rely on action but also tells a meaningful story.

If you’re looking for a game that combines beautiful art, engaging gameplay, and a compelling story, Jotun is definitely worth your time. Even after all these years, it’s a magical experience that holds up incredibly well. Don’t miss out on this gem!

TLDR: This is a good exploration game, that features 6 major boss fights. It's not terribly long, and it's chill apart from having to deal with a some clunky features in the battle system.
I enjoy this game- it's relatively chill, up until you hit the different area bosses. You can complete each area in any order, so if you want to farm all the health and ability upgrades before doing the bosses, you can. The levels are neat, with some lore spread throughout. The music and voice over are really good, and I appreciate that they decided to record the dialogue in Icelandic. The art is interesting, and I appreciate that they tried to do something unique with it- it really shines with the bosses and creatures, and some of the environments are genuinely lovely. The boss fights are fun, and the the patterns are well telegraphed- I really enjoyed the Ice Jotun, and the Sky Jotun. That doesn't keep it from being frustrating though at times.
Your character moves slow, the arena maps are large, and the giants have long steps (as they would be expected to have). You spend a lot of time chasing the giants around the arena, for a few hits, before they move again. The god abilities are frustrating to use, as they're on a bar that you cycle through. It's distracting to go from one ability to the next, and you have to watch what ability you have selected, which draws your attention away from the boss. It's easy to overshoot the ability you want, and you can't rearrange the skills to make it easier to get to the skills you need quickly. The selection does cycle from the end , back to the beginning, but that just once again means you sometimes roll past the thing you need. It would have felt more smooth to be able to assign the abilities to key/button presses in order to make better use of muscle memory, and it's hard not to feel like a fair number of deaths are because of this clunky feature. I would use all the abilities more often, if I didn't feel like I had to be on the most helpful skills, all the time, just in case.
I've gotten Odin down to 20% of his health a few times now, and am not sure I will complete the game due to this. I may just youtube the end of the game instead, but it was still enjoyable to try the game overall.
I will say for completionists, there is one persistent bug for the Northern Sky map which does not register you collecting the Mimir check point. This bug has been in the game since at least mid 2023, and hasn't been fixed. In order to get the achievement for completion, you need to change the game file to an older build through steam, and collect it using that version of the game.
Go to "Properties -> Betas" and in the "Beta participation" drop down menu select "oldversion - oldversion"; the save files are apparently compatible.

An interesting way to learn about mythology.
1 hour in and the gameplay is a bit dry though. But it's compensated by very nice music and voice acting.
---{ Graphics }---
☐ You forget what reality is
☐ Beautiful
☐ Good
☑ Decent
☐ Bad
☐ Don‘t look too long at it
☐ MS-DOS
---{ Gameplay }---
☐ Very good
☐ Good
☐ It's just gameplay
☑ Mehh
☐ Watch paint dry instead
☐ Just don't
---{ Audio }---
☐ Eargasm
☑ Very good
☐ Good
☐ Not too bad
☐ Bad
☐ I'm now deaf
---{ Audience }---
☐ Kids
☑ Teens
☑ Adults
☐ Grandma
---{ PC Requirements }---
☑ Check if you can run paint
☐ Potato
☐ Decent
☐ Fast
☐ Rich boi
☐ Ask NASA if they have a spare computer
---{ Game Size }---
☐ Floppy Disk
☑ Old Fashioned
☐ Workable
☐ Big
☐ Will eat 10% of your 1TB hard drive
☐ You will want an entire hard drive to hold it
☐ You will need to invest in a black hole to hold all the data
---{ Difficulty }---
☐ Just press 'W'
☐ Easy
☐ Easy to learn / Hard to master
☑ Significant brain usage
☐ Difficult
☐ Dark Souls
---{ Grind }---
☑ Nothing to grind
☐ Only if u care about leaderboards/ranks
☐ Isn't necessary to progress
☐ Average grind level
☐ Too much grind
☐ You'll need a second life for grinding
---{ Story }---
☐ No Story
☐ Some lore
☐ Average
☐ Good
☑ Lovely
☐ It'll replace your life
---{ Game Time }---
☐ Long enough for a cup of coffee
☑ Short
☐ Average
☐ Long
☐ To infinity and beyond
---{ Price }---
☐ It's free!
☐ Worth the price
☑ If it's on sale
☐ If u have some spare money left
☐ Not recommended
☐ You could also just burn your money
---{ Bugs }---
☑ Never heard of
☐ Minor bugs
☐ Can get annoying
☐ ARK: Survival Evolved
☐ The game itself is a big terrarium for bugs
---{ ? / 10 }---
☐ 1
☐ 2
☐ 3
☐ 4
☐ 5
☑ 6
☐ 7
☐ 8
☐ 9
☐ 10

It's a solid 6-7 outta 10. Wouldn't rate it higher.
Gorgeous game visually and musically, and the animators very obviously put in work, but the gameplay can be a little tedious at times. While it's short enough that it never gets repetitive or dull, I was starting to feel a bit tired of the game towards the end of my run.
Thora's slow movement and slow attacks are great in it's own context, but when those are the only two things you are doing besides pressing space to roll for most of the games run time it leaves a bit to be desired. Given her slow movespeed (beyond a limited god power you can find later) the game doesn't give nearly enough for you to do or look at around each of the game's five areas to make traversal worth it. A lot of the game's run time really is just moving around, rather than truly engaging gameplay. While yes, it is a game about exploration of Norse myth at it's core, as stated the areas themselves really just don't offer enough, in puzzles or things look at- things to explore FOR.
As a boss rush game, with not much in the way of enemy variety and very light puzzle solving, the game relies on it's spectacle and it's boss design. In terms of spectacle it does nail that part. Gorgeous vistas, paired with explanations of Norse mythology- in Icelandic no less! and Thora herself is a fine enough character to explain it all too us. The boss and enemy designs are also competently done.
However in terms of actual gameplay, it feels just a tad too easy to be truly rewarding. The Ice Giant and Odin are by far the worst offenders here. Both are pushovers- Odin in particular, being the final boss, feels like he should just do more than floating around occasionally chucking spears and summoning very easily dodged ghosts of our previous boss encounters. It feels a little trite and very underwhelming. The Fire Giant by contrast felt like the game's best boss by far. It was cinematic and challenging without being overbearing, and the boss interacted with the environment with his attacks in interesting ways. His design and introduction was also the best imo, with the eyes lighting up through the smoke- great stuff.
Ultimately Jotun is a fine game for it's price, and the runtime is short enough that it's not a big loss if it's your cup of tea. 6.5 out of 10, worth playing once but not beyond that

How would you guys feel about a Viking (Norse Mythology) style Souls game?)))

Now, I'm joking, of course, it's not that simple.

But if уоu Ііkеd Нуреr Lіght Drіftеr, thеn thіs gаmе wіІІ fееd thаt hungеr. ВеаutіfuІІу crаftеd Ііkе а fіnе mеаd, оr hоnеу wіnе. Yоu cаn еіthеr рІау іn bіg guІрs оr tаkе іt іn nісе аn sІооооооw (І fееІ sоrrу fоr Mу nearly 24 hours playthrough).

- Sеttіng
Іn my vеry fіrst mоmеnts оf “JОTUN”, І wаs іmmеdіаtеІy оvеrtаkеn by thе wоndrоus mооd оf Thundеr Lоtus Gаmеs’ іmprеssіvе wоrІd. Thіs jоurnеy thrоugh thе Іеgеnds оf Nоrsе mythоІоgy іs suppоrtеd by uttеrІy bеаutіfuІ hаnd-drаwn аnіmаtіоn аnd а rоusіng sоundtrаck thаt аІІ cоmеs tоgеthеr tо crеаtе а pІаcе stееpеd іn mystіcіsm аnd rеvеrеncе.

Аs Thоrа, thе bаttІе-hаrdеnеd vіkіng wаrrіоr whо uncеrеmоnіоusІy drоwns оnе stоrmy nіght аt sеа, yоu’rе gіvеn а sеcоnd chаncе tо prоvе yоur cоurаgе tо thе gоds. аnd еvеn whіІе thе Іаrgеr stоry оf а bаttІе аgаіnst еІеmеntаІ gіаnts cаІІеd “JОTUN” unfоІds, Thоrа’s bаckstоry аnd wаrrіоr pеrsоnаІіty shіnе thrоugh іn hеr nаrrаtіоn, fаntаstіcаІІy dеІіvеrеd іn hеr strоng vоіcе аnd nаtіvе Іаnguаgе.

- GаmерІау
We’ll have to engage lightning-pylon puzzles in the clouds to recreate constellations and connect sky bridges of light. Slide down the roots and climb the branches of “YGGDRASIL”, the world-connecting TREE. Then travel through vignettes to learn the Norse myth of creation, and evade attacks from Jormungar (“JОTUN”s), the colossal sea serpent that encircles the entire world.

And though actually moving through these levels isn’t particularly difficult, exploring them for hidden items like the life-bar extending Apples of Ithunn, braving the occasional enemy, and collecting the runes from each region never felt boring or UNengaging (maybe a little after 23+ hours of boss-fighting). “JОTUN” is a slow experience, to be sure, but it’s roughly 10 hours are best appreciated and savoured for its artistry complеtіоn.

But, І wаs quіtе put оf by thе sІоw mоvіng spееd оf Thоrа, thе sІоw аttаck spееd оf mу аttаcks аnd sоmе vіsuаІ аnnоyаncеs (Ііkе WАY tоо mаny cІоsе-ups аnd іt's hаrd tо sее whеrе yоu аrе whеn yоu'rе bеhіnd sоmе structurеs аnd bеhіnd cеrtаіn “JОTUN”s). АІsо sоmе bоss bаttІеs fеІt а bіt strеcthеd оut, еspеcіаІІy іf еаch tіmе yоu dіе yоu hаvе tо wоrk yоursеІf thrоugh thе еаsіеr phаsеs оf thе bоss bаttІе. Hоwеvеr, оncе І gоt usеd tо thеsе Ііmіtаtіоns І stаrtеd tо Ііkе thе gаmе аnd аctuаІІy wіshеd fоr mоrе cоntеnts аnd mоrе nоrsе mythоІоgy. Іt аctuаІІy fееІs fuІfіІІіng tо dеfеаt thе “JОTUN”.

- Vеrdіct
Аt thе еnd оf Мy jоurnеy thrоugh “JОTUN”, І wаs Іеft wаntіng mоrе оf thе еxcеІІеnt mythоІоgіcаІ wоrІd tо еxpІоrе аnd еxpеrіеncе. Dеspіtе vеry mіnоr frаmе rаtе dіps аnd thе оccаsіоnаІ gІіtchy еІеmеnt (аgаіn аІmоst 24 hours of boss-fighting), thе bеаuty аnd wоndеr оf “JОTUN” unfоІds Ііkе а stоrybооk аnd dеsеrvеs ОUR аttеntіоn.

I do recommend this game on sale--though if Steam allowed for a 'meh' option I would give it a solid 'meh'--but with a few caveats.
This is a game that does not hold your hand. There is no tutorial. You immediately have to go into the pause menu to check out the controls just to see what you're capable of (I got no prompt about how to use the first ability you get, so I went looking for how to use it). You have to sense your way around the map (which is also only viewable via pausing) and are not told where you are on it, though once you complete an area the first time, you will get some visual cues on said map about things you missed if you want to go get a few extra health or ability upgrades.
This is a proto-boss rush game where you have to go around collecting runes in order to get to said bosses, and there's even a mode after you beat it that appeared to be exactly a boss rush game. The areas you go around in weirdly feel fairly sparse, but also never particularly overstay their welcome as they are each relatively small and neither are the puzzles contained within those areas very difficult if you're paying the slightest bit of attention.
It's also by no means a hard game, and Thora/the story is very cool, but the gameplay is pretty methodical. You're never going to get to Hades level of hack-and-slash and neither do you have Curse of the Dead God's parry or anything. You're a lorge viking lady who swings her huge axe at the same speed that she recovers from her short dodge: slowly. Not to mention the fact that you're literally fighting giants, so you appropriately are chipping away at their ankles as they make a big telegraph for their next move.
That being said, the sound design/VOs and music is pretty fabulous and the hand-drawn aspects are beautiful.
Is it worth $15? I'm gonna say no. After putting it down a while back barely an hour into it, I downloaded it again and started over to beat it basically in one sitting in less than 5 hours (paused it periodically to get food etc) and I feel absolutely no desire to go through and get all the achievements because this is not a game that makes me want to play it more/keep playing it.