Northern Journey

Northern Journey is a game with a medieval fantasy theme set in a Northern country inspired by the nature of Norway. The player's character is rowing a boat along a coast when it is suddenly attacked from a distance, causing it to sink. The nameless protagonist has no choice but to swim to the shore and find out about the unknown land. A mysterious flute player soon appears and provides the main quest for the game. Three dimensional violators need to be found and they connect this world to another realm, causing strange creatures to appear. When the nearby town Deadwell is visited, the character gets to meet many different characters and various quests and tasks are offered to reach the main goal.

The game is played from a first-person perspective and puts a lot of emphasis on exploration and traversing the environment filled with nature. It has very little handholding or signposting. The player is expected to have a good orientation and to keep track of important locations. There is a journal where the current quests are described. It also shows the quest items that are currently carried. When new locations are discovered they are added to a map there as well, but the current position is never shown, only the names of the locations, their relative position and entrances to move between areas. There is no manual inventory system as important items are stored and used automatically. Locations are discovered gradually and because they are interconnected it is often needed to return to them to complete a specific quest, to locate an item or to use new means to move around or open new doors, with light metroidvania elements. There are for instance many rope lines, but it is not until a rope pulley is found that they can be used. While the first half of the game has this open approach, the second half becomes more linear.

There is a focus on combat with smaller enemies such as skeleton and spiders to large bosses. Various weapons are discovered along the way and up to four of them can be equipped at a single time. Ammo is limited. Almost all combat is ranged, with a stone sling, a handbow, various crossbows and throwable axes and swords. Some weapons are only available briefly for specific encounters, such as a staff that shoots lightning or one made with living snakes. The character often needs to use strategic and frantic movement to avoid attacks as many weapons have extensive reloading times and gravity needs to be taken into account when firing at a distance. There are both health and ammo pick-ups. Certain collectibles that are often hidden extend the maximum health or provide additional carrying capacity. There are a lot ledges, holes and small platforms that lead to instant death, so saving often is necessary.

Another large part of the game is spent solving puzzles. They often involve understanding the environment and picking up specific items to use elsewhere. There are no markers or signs, the player is often expected to search the environment carefully. Most of the environment is divided into several distinct areas that act as biomes with specific music, enemies and environmental elements. While there is a single, linear path to progress without side quests, there is still a large amount of freedom to explore the environment. Many areas have confusing, maze-like structures and long-winding paths. The developer was inspired by Skyrim, but did not like the many side quests that did not add to the main progress. The game has a distinct tone that mixes horror with the odd and bizarre, as well as whimsical, silly comedy.