The infinite mana system results in gameplay centred around the eight magickal elements -- combining and casting them with a series of keystrokes and mouse clicks.The game was released on Steam and GamersGate on January 25th, and according to the publisher, Paradox, features "thousands" of possible spells, 13 levels, and lets you "experience the parody and satire of a clichéd fantasy world." The XBLA version is yet to have a firm release date.Game ModesMagicka is currently a cooperative game that supports 1-4 players in two game modes: Adventure and Challenge. Competitive modes are scheduled to be added to the game on June 21, 2011.Cooperative ModesAdventure: explore the world of Midgård, and try to save it from destruction.Challenge: play against wave after wave of monsters for survival.Competitive Modes (To be added on June 21st, 2011)Deathmatch: Players battle each other until one reaches the score required for victory.Brawl: Players start with a set amount of lives. Last man standing wins.Kreitor: Named after a member of the game's modding community, this mode features a unique mechanic. At set intervals during the match, additional spells are unlocked for the players to use against one another.Magic / GameplayIn Magicka, magic is cast by selecting elements with keystrokes, which stack up in your spell bar (shown under the player), and then firing them off via middle-mouse (self-cast), right-mouse (cast forward), shift-right-mouse (cast area), or shift-left-mouse (cast on weapon). Different elements cause the magic to take different forms and have different effects.For example, to spray flame, you would simply tap the button for Fire, put one Fire element in your bar, then right click. To shoot a short lightning burst you would do the same with the Lightning element. But by combining Fire and Earth in your spell bar, you create a ball of fire. Or with Arcane plus Lightning, you fire a beam of swirling red lightning across the screen. With a single Shield element, you can put up a huge half-sphere shield and maintain it by tapping the space bar, or with Shield Earth, you could conjure a wall of rock in front of your character.The elements and their respective effects are as follow: Water (Spray)SoaksKnockbackHazardous to mix with Lightning Fire (Spray)Damage over timeCauses PanicOpposite to Cold LightningEffective vs. wet targetsEffective vs. armorHazardous to mix with WaterOpposite to Earth Earth (Projectile)High damageKnockdownOpposite to Lightning Cold (Spray)SlowsEffective vs. wet targetsOpposite to Fire ShieldProtective ShieldCan be boosted Arcane (Beam)Locks onExplosiveOpposite to Life Life (Beam)Locks onHealingOpposite to ArcaneCombination ElementsCombination Elements are not castable from one keystroke, but function the same as their single keystroke element counterparts. These elements, like normal elements, take up only one slot of the player's spell bar. Both Combination elements can be combined with the standard eight elements, though, Steam and Ice cannot be combined.Steam (Spray)Combination of Fire and WaterSoaksOpposite of ColdIce (Projectile)Combination of Cold and WaterShoots multiple Ice ShardsSlowsOpposite of FireMagicksMagicks are special, order dependent spells that the player can cast. Magicks are cast by queuing up the required elements in the correct order and pressing the space bar. The player can cycle through their list of known Magicks by using the scroll wheel. The name of the Magick and a transparent guide of the order of the elements needed to cast the Magick will then be shown in the player's spell bar. Nearly all of these are learned by finding spell books scattered through the game. Some of these Magicks are buffs, while others are offensive. Some will summon monsters to help you fight.Grease(Water, Earth, Life)Creates a semi-circle of slippery grease in front of the caster.Can be set on fire and burns longer and hurts more than normal fire.Smaller monsters tend to avoid a grease fire.Revive (Life, Lightning)Revives a fallen teammate.Haste (Lightning, Arcane, Fire)Increase player movement speed.Nullify (Arcane, Shield)Removes status effects from the caster.Cancels some area effect spells cast by enemies and other players.Rain (Water, Steam)Soaks all living units except those with a shield.Thunderbolt (Steam, Lightning, Arcane, Lightning)Creates a lightning bolt that hits the highest standing unit for massive damage.Tornado(Earth, Steam, Water, Steam)Creates a large tornado that flings everyone close to it in the air, causing damage.Conflagration (Steam, Fire, Steam, Fire, Steam)Creates a wave of fire from the front of the player dealing damage and setting targets on fire.Time Warp (Cold, Shield)Slows time for all players and enemiesDoes not affect the M60 weapon.Blizzard (Cold, Ice, Cold)Creates a large blizzard which slows all units.Teleport (Lightning, Arcane, Lightning)Teleports the player a short distance forward.Summon Phoenix (Life, Lightning, Fire)Summons a Phoenix at the caster's feet, that deals fire damage and revives all dead players.Thunderstorm (Steam, Steam, Lightning, Arcane, Lightning)Essentially a Rain and Thunderbolt hybrid.Soaks all units.Many Thunderbolts fall from the sky randomly.Raise Dead (Ice, Earth, Arcane, Ice)Summons a few ghouls to help you fight.Ghouls are healed by arcane and damage by life.Fear (Ice, Arcane, Shield)Nearby enemies run away from the caster in random directions.Charm (Life, Shield, Earth)Target creature fights by your sideCharmed monsters will having floating hearts over their body.Summon Death (Arcane, Cold, Ice, Cold, Arcane)Kills unit (friend or foe) with the lowest amount of health left.More or less useless.Summon Elemental (Arcane, Shield, Earth, Steam, Arcane)Summons an inactive elemental.Elemental will take the form of what ever element touches it first.Elemental is healed by its element.Corporealize (Arcane, Steam, Lightning, Shield, Arcane)Causes any ethereal daemons to materialize, something they do anyway when they attack.Essentially totally useless.Invisibility (Arcane, Shield, Steam, Arcane)Turns the caster Invisible.Enemies will not directly attack an invisible player.Invisibility ends after casting, attacking, taking damage or colliding with an enemy.Vortex (Ice, Arcane, Ice, Shield, Ice)Creates a large vortex that kills any unit that gets too close.Meteor Shower (Fire, Earth, Steam, Earth, Fire)Acquired from purchasing the game prior to February 1st or getting the Wizard Survival Kit DLC.Causes many meteors to fall from the sky, hitting random locations on the screen.WeaponsMeleeArcane SaberBlade of ChillBlade of SurtCaptian's AxeCrowbarExcaliburExotic BladeFrost CleaverGramGungnirM60Mace of the EarthMace of the Molten CoreMorgul BladeSeaward SpearSharp SwordSkyward SpearStungSword of The MastersThunderbladeTyrfingWarhammerStaffAristo-StaffDaemon ArmFrost StaffGnarled StaffGoblin StaffRighteous Rod of RunesRod of Emergency TeleportSceptre of the Troll KingStaff of MalevolenceShield StaffStaff +1Staff of DeflectionStaff of FireStaff of LifeStaff of the DeadStaff of InvisibilityStaff of the White WizardStaff of WarTesla StaffDLCParadox Interactive announced on March 1, 2011 that one of the DLC packs for the game would be Magicka: Vietnam, along with a trailer. The press release states that the main objective of the new content pack for the aspiring wizards will be to " try to do what so many 80’s action stars have done in the past: blow stuff up". Released on April 12, 2011 & offering a lengthy scenario as a Wizard GI going through the Goblin-Cong jungles. Also included are new weapons, a new challenge map & a new spell for summoning a napalm strike on your foes. Other DLC packs include the Party Robes pack, which allows players to take on specific roles within the party, and the Final Frontier pack, which adds a Star Trek-themed robe, staff, and weapon combo as well as a challenge mode map based on an episode of Star Trek.Full DLC List:NameRelease dateDescriptionMagicka: Mega Villain Robes24 Jul 2012Three extra robesMagicka: Aspiring Musician Robes24 Jul 2012Three extra robesMagicka: Peculiar Gadgets Item Pack24 Jul 201210 new itemsMagicka: Heirlooms Item Pack24 Jul 201210 new itemsMagicka: The Other Side of the Coin19 Jun 2012Take the role of Alucart the Vampire and his Necromancers to fight against the forces of good. Your mission is to thwart Vlad’s attempt to unite the humans, the dwarves and the elves.Magicka: Lonely Island Cruise16 Feb 2012New PvP map with lots of waterMagicka: The Stars Are Left30 Nov 2011new adventure including several levels steeped in Lovecraftian lore including new robes, maps, items, achievements, bossesMagicka: Holiday Spirit Item Pack30 Nov 2011Various items for use in multiplayer mode onlyMagicka: Horror Props Item Pack30 Nov 201112 items with a themeMagicka: Vietnam12 Apr 2011First mission DLC in the Goblin-Cong jungle of VietnamMagicka: Wizard's Survival Kit8 Mar 20114 items to equip your characterMagicka: Marshlands26 Apr 2011Slay hordes of undead in new challangesMagicka: Nippon1 Jun 2011A new robe, a new katana and a new staffMagicka: Final Frontier21 Jun 2011New Vulcanus Area map for multi player modesMagicka: The Watchtower21 Jun 2011New mapMagicka: Frozen Lake21 Jun 2011New map with frozen waterMagicka: Party Robes21 Jun 2011A few new robesMagicka: Gamer Bundle18 Sep 2011Three new robesPC System RequirementsOS: Windows XP/Vista/7 (32- or 64-bit)Processor: Pentium Core 2 Duo 2.0 GHz or equivalentRAM Memory: 1 GBGraphics Card: GeForce 7800 or equivalent video cardDirectX®: DirectX 9.0c or betterHard Drive Space: 1 GBSound Card: DirectX9-compatible sound card
