One of the most successful games to date from Games Farm and Grindstone in Slovakia is Jotunnslayer: Hordes of Hel. This roguelite horde survival game is set in Norse mythology and boasts a multitude of build options.
Jotunnslayer: Hordes of Hel is a roguelite survival game in the style of Vampire Survivors, Halls of Torment and Deep Rock Galactic Survivor, where players must survive hordes of enemies. In this single-player game, the player controls a character on a battlefield while numerous enemies rush towards them in large numbers. During these short runs, which usually last a couple of minutes, players can level up, acquire new abilities and grow stronger. Most of these abilities are used automatically, depending on when the cooldown ends. As the name suggests, the game is based on Norse mythology, featuring its gods and creatures. For this genre, the game features surprisingly elaborate and high-quality graphics.
Jotunnslayer: Hordes of Hel © Games Farm and Grindstone
But beyond the graphics, Jotunnslayer: Hordes of Hel has some notable strengths, particularly in terms of build variety and skills. The seven classes (with more subclasses) offer distinctly different play styles that can be enhanced through a skill tree after each run. The same applies to the gods, who differ greatly and provide players with new abilities during runs. For example, Thor gives players lightning abilities, Loki offers poison abilities, and Nerthus unleashes earthquakes, floods, living forests, and summoned beasts. There are also different weapons (each with one active ability), allowing for enormous build diversity and rewarding experimentation. In addition, there are variable difficulty levels and optional modifiers that can be used to make runs easier or harder. The runs are fast and there is a lot to unlock, but this also involves grinding. Additionally, there are mini-tasks throughout the six main levels, as well as boss fights which are quite extensive for the genre — in particular, many of the enemies' skills are easy to read.
Nevertheless, the game feels somewhat generic and does not quite reach the top of its genre. It lacks the unique features that set other games apart, such as the mining elements in Deep Rock Galactic Survivor or the co-op multiplayer in The Spell Brigade. Additionally, despite the screen-filling effects, many abilities seem weak and not very powerful, notably in terms of their physical impact on opponents.
Jotunnslayer: Hordes of Hel © Games Farm and Grindstone
The game was developed by Games Farm and ARTillery, and published by Grindstone. Games Farm is an independent game development studio headquartered in Košice, Slovakia. It has a team of over 50 people. The company specialises in developing premium cross-platform titles for PC and consoles, and has released over 20 titles to date, including Shadows: Heretic Kingdoms and Vikings: Wolves of Midgard. Grindstone is a video game production and publishing company based in Slovakia. It was founded as a spin-off from Games Farm to create new opportunities and support game developers.
Jotunnslayer: Hordes of Hel has been released on PC (Steam and Epic), as well as on PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X|S. September 2025, priced at €14.99. The game was released on Early Access in February 2025 and sold over 100,000 copies within two weeks. The Fall of Alfheim update was released on 4 December 2025. It features a new battlefield, the Ruins of Alfheim, and the goddess Nerthus as a new playable deity. There is also a new class, the Archmage, with four subclasses. The update is free, but cosmetic DLC is available to purchase.
Jotunnslayer: Hordes of Hel - The Fall of Alfheim update© Games Farm and Grindstone
Jotunnslayer: Hordes of Hel is a good roguelite survival game set in a fantasy world inspired by Norse mythology. It really shines thanks to its build experimentation options and fast-paced runs. Nevertheless, it doesn't quite manage to come out on top in its genre.
