Magicka

The game contains eight base elements (water, life, shield, cold, lightning, arcane, earth and fire) which can be mixed and combined to cast spells. Up to five elements can be chained together for this purpose, but certain elements cannot be combined together due to their opposing nature (for instance, fire and cold). Additionally, two other elements can be created by mixing two base elements: steam (water and fire) and ice (water and cold); these behave like base elements, that gives players access to ten elements to cast spells from.

Four players attack goblins in the co-op campaign, casting a mix of Arcane spells.

When casting a spell composed of multiple elements, there is a set hierarchy which determines the type of the spell cast. Shields take precedence over projectiles (earth and ice), which take precedence over beams (life and arcane), which take precedence over steam, which takes precedence over lightning, which takes precedence over sprays (water, fire and cold). For example, a spell consisting of pure fire would be a spray of flame. A spell of fire and earth would be a fireball projectile. A spell of fire and arcane would create a flaming beam. A spell of fire, arcane and earth would create a flaming, arcane rock projectile. A spell of fire, arcane, earth, and shield would result in a flaming arcane rock barrier. The order in which the component elements of a spell are summoned has no effect on the type or power of the spell, and does not matter, except when attempting to cast a "Magick" as opposed to a regular spell.[2]

Each spell can be cast in four different ways: as a ranged projectile or beam, as an area effect spell, as an enhancement in wielding the player's secondary weapon (normally a sword), or on the players' own bodies. All elements tend to cause damage, except Life, which heals (this is reversed for Undead enemies where Arcane heals them and Life damages them), and Shield, which creates barriers. This can also affect what spell is cast; for instance casting shield and arcane as an area of effect will create a circle of arcane mines around the caster; however, casting it on oneself will instead cause the caster to have an arcane invulnerability aura.

To cast a spell, the player first sequentially presses the associated buttons for the desired elements (for example: q, w, e, r, a, s, d, and f, respectively, when playing using a QWERTY PC keyboard) in order to "gather" them, which show up as icons on the screen as they are pressed. The player then chooses one of the four ways to cast the spell using different mouse buttons.

A physics system is included in the game: explosions can send players and monsters flying across the screen, wizards can use spray spells to push or knock back targets, etc.

Special spells called "Magicks" require specific combinations and produce unique effects, and also require the acquisition of the corresponding Spellbook in order to become available to the player. Spellbooks are placed throughout the campaign levels, but are also dropped by "Sapient Pearwood Luggage" (a low level enemy that resembles a chest) in Challenge and Versus (PvP) modes. Examples include "Haste", which temporarily allows the player to move faster, "Teleport", which instantaneously transports the player to a location of his or her choice, and "Time Warp", which slows down time.

To cast a Magick, the player must "follow the recipe" by conjuring the appropriate elements of the Magick in the correct order.

Though not the primary method of combat, players will always have a weapon in their right hand and a staff in their left. The player can use their current weapon by pressing Shift + Left Click. Weapons vary from regular swords with no special effects, to a magical mace that sets enemies ablaze with fire, to an M60 light machine-gun. Staves usually have some magical effect which can either be passive "always-on" abilities (such as an aura that heals nearby players) or active abilities which have a cooldown time and are used by clicking the Middle Mouse Button (for instance one staff summons a friendly tree monster, and another causes surrounding enemies to run away in terror).

The game is set in Midgård, a fictional land which is loosely based around Norse mythology. Castle Aldrheim is the home of the Order of Magick which trains wizards.

All characters speak a nonsense language with subtitles translating what is being said.

In the past Grimnir was a powerful wizard of the Order of Magick who wished to harness the power of all magick in order to help the Order bring about peace and prosperity to Midgård. However, his ambition and lust for knowledge scared the other wizards and so the Order banished Grimnir and his followers and imprisoned the powerful wizard at World's End.

One to four wizards from Castle Aldrheim (the players) are sent by their teacher, Vlad, to protect the city of Havindir from an increasing number of orc attacks who have all united under the leadership of a warlord named Khan. The Order throw the departing wizards a good bye party but during it they are accidentally dropped into the dungeon and have to find their way out, this acts as the game tutorial.

En route the wizards must save the village of Veiditorp by killing Jormungandr, a giant serpent. The wizards then hijack a goblin airship which after a short flight crash lands near the town of Dunderhaed. The town is being raided by beastman under the command of a chieften named Jotunn. The wizards must defeat Jotunn and his beastman in order to hitch a wagon ride to Havindir.

The wizards make it to Havindir and protect the city from the orc siege. They then proceed to the Khans Stronghold and kill the Khan. During this they learn that Grimnir is actually the force behind the orc attacks as he is seeking revenge for his banishment.

The wizards make their way to World's End and confront Grimnir. Vlad hangs back to act as a rear guard as the wizards go on to face Grimnir only to find out that he is being manipulated by a powerful deamon called Assatur who resides in the ethereal realm. Grimnir can't be beaten as Assatur constantly heals him. The only way to slay Assatur is to use a special magick to bring the deamon into the corporeal world. The wizards don't know the spell and so Vlad sends them back in time to learn the spell from the wizard Fafnir who has transformed into a dragon.

Future Vlad now acts as a ghostly guide as he sends the wizards to find someone called the Count in the Myrkur Swamps who will know of Fafnirs whereabouts. To get to the Swamps the wizards must travel through the goblin infested Járn Mines. Once the goblins are defeated and the mines cleared the wizards enter the swamp to find it full of undead creatures.

Fighting their way to the Count's Castle the wizards find the Count who reveals himself to be Vlad. This Vlad also reveals himself to be a vampire and fights the wizards who he believes to be 'imposters' as at this point in time the original wizards are defending Havindir. The wizards lack social skills and so can't explain the situation and the fact they have been sent back in time and are forced to fight Vlad until they lose and are sent to Niflheim, the home of the dead. The wizards have to find Death and defeat him in a fight in order to get passage back to Midgård. Death knows of Fafnirs location and sends the wizards to the Galdrhöll Mountains.

In the mountains the wizards must defeat a Dwarven army before they come across Fafnirs' lair. Fafnir believes the wizards have come to steal his treasure and fights them until Future Vlad arrives to tell him they are here to learn the magick to defeat Assatur. Fafnir teaches them the magick and transports them back to World's End in the present.

The wizards go to fight Grimir but find Vlad who hung back to protect the rear in the first battle against Grimnir and who fights them again believing them to be 'imposters' as the original wizards are currently battling Grimnir. The wizards defeat Vlad who then rushes to send the original wizards back in time just as the wizards arrive. Grimnir is confused and Vlad finally understands that the 'imposters' are actually the wizards he just sent back in time.

The wizards fight Grimnir and this time when Assatur appears to heal him Vlad gives the signal and the wizards cast the magick they learned from Fafnir and draw Assatur into Midgård. Assatur kills Grimnir and then fights the wizards.

The wizards destroy Assatur and are hailed as hero's as the Order throw a celebration party back at Castle Aldrheim.

It sold over 200,000 copies in its first 17 days on sale.[26] It had sold 1.3 million copies and 4 million DLC packs as of January 2012,[27] making it one of the most successful games published by Paradox Interactive and was credited with a 250% rise in profits for Paradox during 2012.[28] As of June 2014, it has sold 2.8 million copies on Steam.[29]