Jotunnslayer: Hordes of Hel Review (Now with Conan)
Summary: Jotunnslayer: Hordes of Hel is a chaotic battle royale with you against all the armies of darkness!
4
Battle royale!
Jotunnslayer: Hordes of Hel throws you into the role of a fallen warrior fighting through the bleak realms of Helheim and it brings a welcome twist to the survivor‑style formula. Instead of simply lasting until a timer runs out, most missions revolve around a tight fifteen‑minute structure where you’re smashing altars, gathering souls and forcing a towering Jotunn boss to appear. It leans into the fantasy of a damned hero blessed by gods such as Thor or Hel, carving through swarms of enemies while navigating a moody, atmospheric Norse world.
Also supporting the gameplay is the character roster which adds real variety. The Berserker delivers classic melee chaos, the Shield‑Maiden offers a more tactical defensive rhythm and the Warlock and Skald introduce trickier mechanics. The Warlock’s sacrificial abilities reward risk‑taking, while the Skald’s rhythmic, area‑based “song” attacks excel at enemy crowd control. Ranged players get solid options too, with the Seeress and Huntress providing more traditional distance‑focused builds.
However, what keeps things fresh is how each hero interacts with the god‑granted blessings. Thor’s lightning pairs beautifully with melee builds, while Hel’s frost abilities help fragile ranged characters keep enemies at bay. Switching characters genuinely changes how you approach a run, encouraging experimentation rather than letting you coast on a single overpowered setup. It does take some time to master these additional abilities with its card choice system but it adds to the overall formula.
Although a PC game, I played Jotunnslayer: Hordes of Hel on the Steam Deck that felt right at home. Controls are mapped intuitively to the Deck’s layout as nothing feels awkward and the run‑based structure suits handheld play perfectly. Performance is generally smooth, though the framerate can dip when the screen becomes a storm of enemies and particle effects. Oddly, pausing and unpausing often clears the slowdown, so it rarely becomes a major issue.
The difficulty curve, however, spikes sharply as you can spend an entire run building a strong character only to reach a Jotunn that wipes you out in seconds. Enemy health begins scaling faster than your damage output and when that happens, the power fantasy evaporates. Because so much hinges on early perk luck, you can often tell within minutes whether a run has real potential or is destined for a quick, frustrating end but I addictively persist.
However once you reach the tougher realms, the grind becomes far more noticeable. You’ll often find yourself replaying early levels simply to farm coins, because without those upgrades, later areas feel brutally unforgiving. Repeating the same stages because you ran out of time or lost your last sliver of health starts to chip away at the game’s pace and the repetition becomes harder to ignore. Then you have the Endless Mode that really pushes your limits and losing a promising attempt to something outside your control is deflating but even so, the game still draws you back.
Graphics & Audio
Visually, Jotunnslayer looks quite detailed and the gritty Norse aesthetic gives the game a unique identity. It feels like a blend of Gauntlet and Diablo, with enough atmosphere and variety to keep each realm from feeling like a simple palette swap. Even on the Steam Deck, the detailed environments look fantastic and more importantly plays well. Additionally, the soundtrack complements the action well as the music leans into an epic, heroic tone without overwhelming the gameplay and the sound effects help sell the chaos of battle.
Conan DLC & Major Update
The arrival of Conan the Barbarian adds a perfect addition to the character roster, including a substantial layer to the core experience, leaning directly into the game’s momentum‑driven combat. His Triumph mechanic fits perfectly within Jotunnslayer’s existing systems, rewarding aggression and letting you snowball into a near‑unstoppable force. Each of his three sub‑classes provides a slightly different and meaningful strategy on how you approach a run from the heavy cleaving power of the King of Aquilonia to the defensive scaling of the Stygian Gladiator and the evasive, dash‑heavy Zamorian Rogue. The new Stygia biome also stands out, offering harsher visibility, illusion‑based threats plus a memorable showdown with the Undead Jotunn that finally forces you to rethink your combat.
Also launching alongside the DLC is a major free update that introduces the God of Fate and full local co‑op. Fate’s risk‑reward blessing system injects unpredictability into runs, offering huge payoffs if you’re willing to gamble your momentum, while co‑op transforms the game into a more tactical, synergy‑driven experience without slowing its pace. Alternating level‑ups, shared progression and expanded build interactions make duo runs feel distinct rather than bolted on. Together, the Conan DLC and the accompanying updates don’t just add content, they add to the overall gaming mechanics core loop and give returning players a strong reason to dive back in.
Conan Gallery
.
Final Thoughts
Jotunnslayer: Hordes of Hel is not only brutally challenging but also very satisfying that is made for people who enjoy this genre and it plays remarkably well on the Steam Deck with responsive controls and only occasional performance hiccups. It’s not without frustrations as the difficulty spikes, reliance on RNG and late‑game grind can make the experience uneven once the early novelty wears off. But if you enjoy survivor‑style games and want something with a darker, more atmospheric twist, this is absolutely worth your time, so expect a mix of triumphant runs and the occasional boss that ends your hopes before you can blink.
Related Posts
Beep Beep…COYOTE VS ACME Trailer now available →
The ZX Spectrum that never was, until now – The Spectrum White Edition, launches today →
Oz Comic-Con Melbourne Returns This June with Avatar Star Gordon Cormier →
