Noita is a single-player video game in which the player character is a witch who finds, collects, and casts spells in a procedurally generated, 8-bit, 2D world where every pixel is physically simulated. Noita has permadeath, and the player fights enemies, including creatures named after Finnish mythological beings such as Hiisi and Iku-Turso. The story opens with a cutscene that references the Karelian and Finnish national epic Kalevala, and one of the goals is seeking out the Sampo. The actual gameplay starts when the player takes control of the player character at the opening of a cave.
Gameplay Features
- Pixel-based Physics: Every pixel in the world is simulated. Burn, explode, or melt anything. Swim in the blood of your foes! Enter a simulated world that is more interactive than anything you’ve seen before.
- Your Own Magic: Combine spells to create your own magic as you delve deeper into the caverns. Use magic to crush your enemies and manipulate the world around you.
- Procedurally Generated World: Explore a unique world every time you play. Discover new environments as you adventure deeper.
- Biomes: The game consists of biomes, or unique areas within the game, which contain various new enemies, objects, spells, wands, and biome-specific topography. Each biome has a name displayed on the screen upon entering it for the first time in a given run. The main path of the game consists of eight biomes stacked on top of one another, descending deeper into the cave as the player progresses. The biomes in order are: Mines, Coal Pits, Snowy Depths, Hiisi Base, Underground Jungle, The Vault, Temple of the Art, and The Laboratory. In the final biome resides the main boss of the game, Kolmisilmä. Upon defeating the boss, the player is rewarded with the Sampo, which can be used to finish the main path and complete the main game.
- Action Roguelite: Death is permanent and always a looming threat. When you die, don’t despair, use what you’ve learned to get further on your next adventure.
- Additional Content: Noita also consists of various bosses, mini-bosses, secret biomes, in-game achievements, challenges, and endings that are either hidden or not a direct part of the main game and its progression. It also contains a viewer participation feature that lets Twitch livestream viewers vote about in-game events.
Developers
Noita is being developed by Nolla Games, a company set up by three indie developers, all of whom have worked on their own projects in the past.
- Petri Purho: Petri is best known as the creator of Crayon Physics Deluxe. In his youth, he also made a lot of tiny freeware games. He has also made a bunch of board games, but he hasn’t told anyone about it. So please, keep it a secret.
- Olli Harjola: Olli is known for the award-winning, mind-bending sci-fi puzzler The Swapper. Besides indie games, he also dabbles in music, live visuals, and making programming languages.
- Arvi Teikari: Arvi, also known as Hempuli, has released a lot of tiny experimental games over the years, so many, in fact, that he is unaware of all of them. One of the games he remembers making is Baba Is You.
That’s all, folks! Happy gaming and take care!
Noita is a chaotic, magical sandbox where every pixel is simulated – it’s a wild ride of experimentation and discovery that keeps you coming back for more.