Magicka is an action-adventure video game based on Norse mythology and developed by independent developer Arrowhead Game Studios. It was released via Steam for Microsoft Windows on January 25, 2011. A free demo was also made available for download. The game was developed by eight students at Luleå University of Technology in Skellefteå, Sweden[3] and sold over 200,000 copies in its first 17 days on sale.[4]

In Magicka, four mages of a sacred order travel to fight against an evil sorcerer and his creations. The game world is based loosely on Norse mythology, drawing inspiration from other fantasy games like Warhammer and Diablo, and features in-game references to various other media titles including Star Wars, Star Trek, World of Warcraft, Neverwinter Nights, 300, Lord of the Rings, The Colour of Magic, Castlevania, Highlander, Platoon, Indiana Jones, Tron: Legacy, and Monty Python and the Holy Grail. Its achievements provide further references to Fullmetal Alchemist, South Park, Unreal Tournament, Harry Potter, and Metal Gear. The game also takes liberties when it comes to the classic fantasy setting, at one point supplying the players with an M60 machine gun, which the game itself notes to be "far too advanced to be part of a fantasy game".