Jotunnslayer: Hordes of Hel Switch 2 Review

Jotunnslayer: Hordes of Hel Switch 2 Review
Version Reviewed: Nintendo Switch 2

If there’s one thing long-time readers know, it’s that I love Vampire Survivors… and just about every survivor-like game that has followed in its footsteps. So what happens when you take that addictive formula, drape it in Norse mythology, and give it a Diablo-inspired 3D presentation? You get Jotunnslayer: Hordes of Hel by developer Game Farm, a horde arena survival game that pits you against thousands of mythical adversaries. What’s It Like? Sharpen your axe, choose your patron god, and prepare for Hel as we review Jotunnslayer: Hordes of Hel on Nintendo Switch 2.

Jotunnslayer: Hordes of Hel has a fairly light narrative setup. You choose a fallen hero who must undergo the trials of the gods, and should you succeed, you’ll earn the title of Jotunnslayer… That’s about it. While the story itself takes a back seat, the game is deeply rooted in Norse mythology, with adventures spanning the Nine Realms and patron gods like Odin and Loki offering their favour throughout your journey. Like most survivor-likes, Jotunnslayer focuses on movement rather than attacking, with your character automatically striking nearby enemies as you weave through the ever-growing hordes. If you’d rather take direct control, though, an optional twin-stick aiming mode lets you manually direct your attacks. I found the default Smart Targeting mode, which automatically faces your character towards the nearest enemy, worked brilliantly throughout my playthrough.

The game begins with just a single playable hero: a barbarian-style warrior who can harness rage to regenerate health and increase his damage output. As you progress, you’ll unlock the Revenant, an archer who excels at ranged combat; the Flame Sister, a fire-bound rogue; the Valkyrie, who quickly became my personal favourite; a sturdy dwarven tank; a spell-casting High Elf; and the mystical Seeress. Each hero also has multiple weapons to unlock, altering their stats and special moves that encourage different playstyles even within the same class. You’ll also begin unlocking patron gods, each bringing their own unique abilities and passive bonuses into battle. This is where Jotunnslayer really starts to set itself apart. While it follows the familiar survivor-like formula of defeating enemies and levelling up, every level presents a meaningful decision. You can choose to improve your hero with class skills or invest in the blessings of your chosen god, and your success often comes down to building synergies between the two.

I learned this lesson the hard way. During one of my later runs, I invested too heavily in defensive and health regeneration abilities, thinking I could simply outlast the hordes. Instead, I became completely overwhelmed as enemies surrounded me faster than I could recover. On my next attempt, I focused on increasing my area-of-effect attacks to create openings I could dodge through, and the difference was night and day. Moments like these are what make Jotunnslayer so enjoyable. Beneath the randomness of each run lies a surprising amount of strategy, rewarding experimentation and smart decision-making just as much as quick reflexes.

Another area where the game distinguishes itself is its mission-based structure. Rather than simply surviving for a set amount of time, each run initially gives you 15 minutes to complete a series of objectives scattered throughout the arena. Only after finishing these tasks can you awaken the Jotunn, bringing the run to a close with a spectacular boss battle. This objective-driven approach gives every run a real sense of purpose while creating a constant feeling of urgency. You’re always weighing up whether to chase another objective, grab that nearby treasure chest, or squeeze in one more level before time runs out. Thankfully, once the Jotunn is summoned, the timer stops, allowing you to fully enjoy… or dread the climactic encounter without feeling rushed.

Completing a realm unlocks the next stage, while also opening up modifiers, additional difficulty levels, and an Endless Mode for that realm. It’s a rewarding progression system that continually gives you something new to work towards. Outside of each run, the currency you collect is converted into skill points that permanently strengthen your heroes. Every character has its own dedicated skill tree, while each patron god also features a separate progression path. One feature I particularly appreciated was the freedom to respec these trees without any penalty. When I decided to try a new hero, I simply refunded my existing skill points, invested them into my new character, and then allocated the remaining points to whichever patron gods best suited that build. Jotunnslayer: Hordes of Hel is filled with thoughtful quality-of-life decisions like this. Rather than punishing experimentation, it actively encourages you to try new heroes, new builds, and new combinations without worrying about making permanent mistakes. That flexibility makes every run feel inviting and keeps the gameplay fresh long after you’ve unlocked the game’s initial roster.

All of this is brought to life with excellent 3D visuals that reminded me somewhat of Diablo IV’s art direction. There are plenty of small touches that elevate the presentation, from the glow cast by spell effects to the reflections of battle shimmering across solid ice. I also loved little character flourishes, like how the Archmage teleports out of danger instead of performing a traditional dodge roll. It’s these kinds of details that give Jotunnslayer an immersive and captivating aesthetic. The heroes and enemies are all visually distinct, and each realm introduces its own unique atmosphere and identity. Without venturing too far into spoiler territory, while most stages are contained within large arena-style battlefields, the game isn’t afraid to experiment with its mission structure and arena layouts to keep each realm feeling fresh.

On Nintendo Switch 2, Jotunnslayer targets 30 frames per second and, for the most part, achieves that goal consistently. There are occasional dips during the most chaotic encounters, particularly when the screen is filled with enemies, particle effects, and overlapping abilities, but these moments are relatively infrequent and rarely detract from the overall experience. In terms of polish, I only encountered a single bug during my time with the game. While powering through one of the later realms, I levelled up, but the skill selection screen became unresponsive, preventing me from choosing my next upgrade and forcing me to close the game and return to the Home Menu. Thankfully, this only happened once during my entire playthrough, so while it was frustrating at the time, it wasn’t representative of the overall experience.

For my slayers looking into accessibility, Jotunnslayer: Hordes of Hel includes a healthy selection of options to make your journey through Hel more enjoyable. These include a range of interface tweaks, such as toggling damage numbers and status text, adjusting the map’s size and opacity, changing the game’s font, disabling screen shake, reducing damage flash intensity, tweaking various visual effects for improved clarity, and several colourblind modes. It’s fantastic to see such a comprehensive range of accessibility options included here, and kudos to Game Farm for giving players plenty of ways to tailor the experience to their preferences.

At $30 AUD, Jotunnslayer: Hordes of Hel offers excellent value for fans of the survivor-like genre. Between its diverse roster of heroes, multiple weapon variations, patron gods, permanent progression systems, difficulty modifiers, and Endless Mode, there’s plenty of content to keep you coming back for just one more run. If the core gameplay loop clicks with you, and I suspect it will, you’ll easily get your money’s worth battling through the Nine Realms time and time again.

Jotunnslayer: Hordes of Hel is a fantastic horde arena survival game that follows the successful survivor-like formula while adding its own unique spin through its mission-based structure and rewarding hero and patron god skill systems. It’s an addictive gameplay loop that’s hard to put down, made even more compelling by the steady stream of unlocks and modifiers that extend its longevity. Sure, the framerate may have moments where it falters, but it doesn’t dampen the Hel of a great time you’ll have fighting for your freedom. Once the gods get their hooks into you, it’s incredibly difficult to put the controller down.

So, What’s it Like? Jotunnslayer Hordes of Hel is like Vampire Survivors, crossed with Diablo 4.

In the Interest of full disclosure, a review copy was provided by the publisher, but this doesn’t influence my score.

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