About this project
Jotun
CA$ 64,265
2,299
The campaign is over, but you can still support us through Paypal & Amazon Payments thanks to our friends at Humble Bundle:
Every one hundred backers, we’ll post a new image of a Norse God (drawn by the incredible Jo-Annie Gauthier!). For each God, we want you to answer this question:
If this God was to help you on your journey through Purgatory, what buff or gameplay advantage would they give you?
Tell us in the comments!
- Baldr, the God of light, purity, joy and innocence!
- Freyja, the God of love, beauty, fertility, war and death!
- Loki, the treacherous God of fire and mischief!
- Tyr, the brave and courageous God of law and heroic glory!
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Hel, daughter of Loki and lord of Helheimr, the resting place for those who have died of disease and old age!
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Freyr, God of virility, prosperity, holy judgement and sacred kingship!
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Bragi, the Norse God of poetry, wisdom, bards and the power of speech!
- Heimdallr stands on the burning rainbow bridge that leads to Asgard, protecting the Gods from the jotun. His mighty horn, Gjallarhorn, signals Ragnarök and the death of the Gods!
- Njörd is an ancient God of the Vanir, father of Freyja and Frejr. He is God of the wind, of the sea and of wealth!
- Thor is the slayer of giants and wielder of Mjölnir. He is the mighty God of thunder, oak trees, strength and the protector of mankind!
- Frigg, Queen of Asgard, is the prescient God of motherhood, childbirth and constellations!
- Odin is the God of war, battle, victory, death, wisdom, poetry and magic. He is the Allfather, patriarch of the Gods and ruler of the nine worlds!
Thank you for sharing your gameplay ideas and we'll see you in purgatory!
You can download all the Norse Gods here!
In Jotun, you play Thora, a Norse warrior who has died an inglorious death and must face the challenges of Viking purgatory to prove herself to the Gods and enter Valhalla.
Jotun's core loop revolves around collecting Runes to summon and fight the jotun, gigantic Norse elementals. The game focuses on the balance between atmospheric exploration and ferocious combat. Imagine the mysterious romantic mood of Journey mixed with the scale of the boss fights in Shadow of the Colossus in top-down 2D.
The world is randomly-generated and filled with different areas to explore and environmental puzzles to solve. Traveling to the far reaches of Purgatory is key to finding Runes, Shrines to the Gods and many more Viking mysteries.
The combat in Jotun is fast-paced and brutally hard. Using only your massive two-handed axe, you take on foes that are hundreds of times your size. Every hit from a jotun's attack will take out a huge chunk of your health.
Features:
- Beautiful 2D hand-drawn art style
- Epic boss fights against the mighty jotun
- A vast and mysterious randomly-generated world to explore filled with environmental puzzles based in Viking culture and mythology
- An overarching story to discover for both Thora and Purgatory itself
- Shrines to the Viking Gods
- An amazing musical score, specifically composed for every gameplay moment
WOW, we were Greenlit in under 6 days!!!
Which means we'll be on:
Jotun's gameplay is a love letter to classic games such as The Legend of Zelda. It has simple controls, action-packed boss fights and a mythic Viking world to discover. Jotun is not a "hack-and-slash" RPG. We prefer to avoid numbers and text when possible: there are no experience points and few stats. Like the Vikings, you must prove your valor to the Gods using only your wits and your skill in combat.
Controls
Jotun can be played with a keyboard or a gamepad. Your basic actions are attack, move and dodge. You control Thora from a top-down perspective and can explore the world in any direction. Thora has both a fast and a "charge-up" attack; the attack's power is determined by how long you hold the attack button. Dodging is crucial to avoiding traps and incoming attacks from the mighty jotun.
Combat
Inspired by the mechanics of The Legend of Zelda and Dark Souls, the combat in Jotun is fast-paced and organic. Fighting the jotun requires the ability to dodge projectiles, use proper positioning and attack at the right moment. The jotun have several attacks and defenses. Recognizing them is key to executing your strategy. When in combat, the camera zooms out to give you a full view of the battlefield.
More details on combat:
Jotun's music is core to the game's experience. Every gameplay moment is accompanied by an appropriate piece. Whether it's a fight against the mighty Frost Jotun or a peaceful contemplation of a beautiful vista, the music is an integral part of Jotun's mood, atmosphere and experience.
"When the prospect of writing the music for Jotun came along, I was filled with excitement at the idea of putting the vast universe Thora will explore during her journey into song. The characters, landscapes and story behind Jotun have already inspired many musical themes that I can't wait to bring to life!" - Max LL
We chose Kickstarter because we want to involve you in the development process. We want your feedback, comments and critiques. Whether you love or hate Jotun, we want to know why. We want to build a community of passionate people all rooting for the same cause. We want you on board with us for the entire journey!
Jotun was born from our love of mythology and epic literature. From Greek mythology to Beowulf, we've always had a fascination for centuries-old stories. Jotun is a tribute to Viking mythology and to classic, honest gaming. We are a passionate and experienced team who can bring the game to fruition. We hope that you'll join us, connect with the game and that you'll enjoy your time with the Jotun family!
From left to right:
- William Dubé - Design, business, code - http://willdube.com/
- Alexandre Boyer - Animation, art - http://vimeo.com/user8478050
- Max LL - Music - https://soundcloud.com/max-ll
We will be adding another full-time programmer to our team when the campaign is successful!
Collaborators:
From left to right:
- Jo-Annie Gauthier - 2D artist - http://www.jo-annie.net/
- Annejulie Painchaud - 2D artist - http://antilamon.carbonmade.com/
- Darnell Lysius-Dicette - 2D artist - http://glitch-this1.tumblr.com/
- Marianne Vincent - Logo design - https://www.behance.net/mariannevincent
Video Team:
- Maude Plante-Husaruk - Director, editor - http://husaruk.com/
- James Dubé - Camera man
Our goal is to reach alpha within six months, beta within nine months and full launch within twelve months. Therefore Jotun will be released in September 2015.
Risks and challenges
There is inherent risk in backing a project in its infancy. Jotun is no longer a helpless new-born baby, but it needs your help to mature into a walking, talking entity. This is not a "fund our last month of development before we release the game anyways" project. This campaign is an "all or nothing" shot at making something that we think is great. We want you there with us from the start to influence the game's content and design.
Ultimately, video game development is extremely complex. The key to surviving this process is experience, proper scope and hard work. We know that, with your support, we can make Jotun truly great.
Learn about accountability on KickstarterFAQ
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We are building Jotun in Unity.
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I can't confirm anything right now. It depends on the stretch goals we reach.
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I can't confirm a language other than English for now. It depends on the stretch goals we reach.
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Yes!
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Sorry! I made the video before finding this out, but I also don't want to confuse English-speaking people with different pronunciations!
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The cost of living and rent in Montreal is much lower than a place like San Francisco. $50,000 is basically survival money. We have different revenue-sharing agreements for the team.