On foreign shores
At first, looking at Jotun screenshots, I could not understand what this game. Frames resembled cartoon, but if it rolls, it looks like the gameplay? And if the gameplay – then where on the screen the hero? Only monsters Scandinavian type silently grinned with screenshots.
Now I know. Won the vegetable monster in the picture below – Jotun, the boss of the first level. A spot under the feet of the giant does not stain, and our hero Thor. Well, and the heroine, because Jews are not to blame here. Just emancipation reached up to Valhalla.
There are games like of Uncharted, which is primarily about the aesthetic whole, a rich picture. Jotun just such, and its main advantage – hand drawn and animated world.
Describe it can be one word – “huge.” Everything here is great: the trees and animals, mountains and plains. One of the characteristic aspects of Thor comes to the shore of the winter sea and the camera starts to move away. Screen distributed breadth shortly character becomes the size of a stone, and then a grain of sand.
But even when the distance will seem distant outlines of the islands, and on top of the same dawned cold, all around the sun – and then still it would seem that the camera slowly, millimeter by millimeter drives off into the distance.
Jotun setting is based on mythology, in which it can be compared with Never Alone. But the last quite seriously acquainted with the beliefs of Aboriginal people in Alaska, including, among other things, a small documentary series. Jotun is like a picture book filled with images of amazing places and only occasionally – sparse comments.
The game does not tell and show their world, but so that he seems to living their own lives. And when, going down to the roots of the World Tree, you can see a glimpse of the dragon Nidhogg gnawing them, you realize that it is not an ally or obstacle in the way of character, but simply one of the constants of the universe, incomparably superior to scale her personal quest. The essence of which – to earn the right to enter Valhalla, one by one, beating the mighty Giants.
The emphasis on the boss fights, contrasting with each other levels, each with their own obstacles, Jotun bring together a remarkable fighter Furi. Still, the distance between them of great size, and it’s not just the visual style. Just «boss rush» – is even better, but the smaller the duration of the game.
Basically it takes a “walker”, and in the truest sense. Well, that is, if you take any “Zelda” throw open world, the majority of ordinary enemies and puzzles, you get a game where the only remains that roam.
It will just be Jotun. And the problem is that, in addition to battles with the bosses, the gameplay in the game, in fact, not. But she disagrees, and persistently tries to convince us otherwise.
We go through the level and from time to time on top of falling stones. Well, or a huge bird flies and it is necessary to escape from it. Or hide behind stones from the violent gusts of wind. Over and over again to kill the same enemies. Or even something as trivial, devoid of any development pace, and simply unnecessary, disturbing to enjoy the pictures. Jotun is beautiful, it would be desirable to look at, but she stubbornly and awkwardly trying to play with us.
In the time between Furi bosses filled much more elegant, do not second-class gameplay dosypaya “weight”, but simply allowing the player in such moments include the autopilot and play as a spectator. But Jotun then passes to one and a half hours instead of four, so we still have to get huge, but little-filled levels, each of which should definitely get you access to enemy rune.
And as far as possible at the same time find increases the maximum health of the apple and the statue of one of the gods, the donee with his master’s shoulder with a new spell. In this case, a dozen levels interested in playing on the strength of two or three.
Other business – fights with Jotun. Suppose, in the last two bosses are not particularly strong, but the epic battles set, so that every perceived event. One of the giants in the Torah sends hordes of minions-gnomes, other causes of twins, the third had to fight furiously on the ice in the middle of a raging storm.
