Icebreaker: A Viking Voyage

For the subpage containing most images related to the iOS/Android Icebreaker game, please see Ice Breaker: A Viking Voyage/Gallery

Icebreaker: A Viking Voyage, alternatively known as Ice Breaker iOS (when it was going to only be on the iPhone/Apple platform), is a puzzle physics game released for iOS devices on June 20, 2013 and published by Rovio. The game is also the fourth installment of the Ice Breaker series, retaining its core gameplay.

On May 14, 2013, Nitrome published an article, where Rovio, a Finnish entertainment company, announced that they were going to help Nitrome publish their iOS game, Ice Breaker A Viking Voyage by featuring it in their new mobile game publishing initiative, Rovio Stars.

Ice Breaker A Viking Voyage was released a day early in the Finish app store (June 19th), for the purpose of checking for bugs. Upon the worldwide release of Ice Breaker A Viking Voyage, the site was updated with a new skin - Icebreaker.

Nitrome has officially announced an Android port of the game, and have not declined the possibility of a PC/Mac port , although they have declined the possibility of making a free flash/HTML5 version of the game. They have also announced that the game is in development for the Kindle Fire and the Kindle Fire HD, on the Amazon app store.

Controls
Drag Finger - Slice. Drag a viking (when "Finger of the Gods" God Power is active)

Double finger tap - Zoom in on screen.

Tilt device Tilts level (when "Gravity of the Gods" God Power is active)

Plot
Ice Breaker A Viking Voyage begins with the player taking part in the annual Hammerfest competition, when a cold icy wind blows all the Vikings away, save for the player and the Viking chief.

Gameplay
The objective of each level of Icebreaker A Viking Voyage is to rescue all the Vikings by safely bringing them back to the Drakkar. Scattered throughout levels are coins, which can be paid to a Gate Keeper on the overworld map in order to access other levels.

Some levels contain certain interactive objects that appear only in that level - called "Set Pieces". Along with levels mostly comprising of ice, the player has to make use of other objects in the level in order to get the Vikings safely to the Drakkar. Each level of Icebreaker contains a par number. If the player completes the level with a certain number of cuts that is equal or less than the par number, they achieve par, pars going towards accessing new levels in the Hammerfest level pack.

Level navigation
Level selection will be done on an explorable map, with a boat icon as a marker for the player's selection. Tapping a location on the map causes the boat to make its way towards the selected location. Tapping the same area or the "Play" button initiates the start of the level. When a level is accessed, the name of the level is displayed along with a few indicators below.

The map is designed to be integrated into the Icebreaker gaming experience, based off map systems from 16-bit platformers such as the Super Mario Games.

Completion
If a level is locked, its icon blends in with the background of the map as a drawing. It is coloured in only when the player completes the level corresponding to that icon.

Completion of a level unlocks the level on the current path that comes after the completed level. Some paths of the map split into two separate paths that will unlock two levels simultaneously.

Completing sidequests gives a golden puzzle piece, granting access to another part of the map that is attached to that level. This part of the map is only accessible through the completion of this part of the sidequest.

Level packs
Nitrome revealed in their first Developer Diary that Ice Breaker iOS/Android will consists of level packs, each pack containing levels for the player to play. Three packs were included with the first release of the game, with more free level packs to come.

When a level is selected, the screen will transition to show the name of the level and its "indicators".

There are currently three available level packs, these being:
 * Hammerfest
 * Troll Marsh
 * Under Dwell

Upcoming level pack
Nitrome confirmed on August 8 2013 that an additional level pack will be added to the game. This level pack will take place inside of a giant sea beast, after the Vikings are consumed by it in a prior cutscene. The inside of the sea beast's body will be made spongy-like real flesh via various types of body physics. The walls and organs will be able to bend and stretch when the player pushes against them as well. Various organs will also be included in the levels, such as the heart, stomach, and intestines.

Sidequests
Some levels have multiple objectives, called sidequests. These levels will not only have the objective of getting the Vikings back to a longboat, but also secondary objectives, such as also getting a Goat Herder's lost goats back to the Goat Herder's longboat. Completing the sidequest is not necessary to proceed to the next level, however, a golden puzzle piece will be awarded if the sidequest's alternate objective (the actual sidequest).

Some levels themselves are sidequests, though they are not presented on the map with this title. The only way the player would be able to complete the "sidequest" is to experiment with the game's given environment and "[solve] puzzles that might not initially be apparent"

Achievements
Nitrome announced on August 7 2013 that achievements would soon be added to Icebreaker: A Viking Voyage. Achievements are earned by completing challenges set by a new character, the Watcher. The watcher sets challenges by placing sign posts that are scattered throughout the levels. The signs have a balloon on them and, when sliced, will reveal a ringing bell and a new challenge. This system can be used across multiple levels, or in one level alone.

The achievements will be recorded in Game Center (iOS) or Google Play Games (Android), but they are also integrated into the game. This means they will still function even if Game Center or Google Play Games is not used. The achievements will be recorded in the game by the Watcher, who operates an airship the player can visit at any time during the game and check on the list of achievements they have earned and ones they have not yet earned.

Set Pieces
Set Pieces are placed within levels as a sometimes crucial part of the game. These are essentially a type of interactive object designed for use in a single level.

Due to the word choice, there was some misunderstanding of the words' definition. Nitrome said that in the fourth update, set pieces demonstrate their ability to make puzzles more engaging to players with the use of graphics designed specifically for each stage.

Bosses
Ice Breaker: A Viking Voyage will feature bosses found at the end of each map pack. Bosses will roam a level, and have to be defeated in order to complete the level, as the level is usually configured in such a way that the rescue of a Viking is tied to the defeat of the boss.

The Mountain Troll is the boss of Troll Marsh, while the Serpent is the boss of Under Dwell.

God Powers

 * Main article: God Powers

God Powers are a premium feature of Ice Breaker A Viking Voyage that allows the player to manipulate levels in unnatural way. They can be bought as an in-app purchase (referred to as IAP by Nitrome) from the Shopkeeper with monetary value. Currently, three gods powers are known: Finger of the Gods, Magnet of the Gods, and Gravity of the Gods.

Interactive objects
This is a list of all the currently known interactive objects in Icebreaker A Viking Voyage.


 * Troll snot - an object that debuts in Ice Breaker A Viking Voyage. Troll snot is a slimy object that attaches itself to ice. Ice that passes this will cause a gooey strand of the snot to attach to the ice, this strand being able to be cut
 * Cannons - objects that fire spherical objects that come in contact with it - including Vikings. Two types of cannons exist, although it isn't apparent what is different between the two
 * Chains - holds on to objects
 * Goats - does absolutely nothing, but dies if exposed to hazardous objects. Goats can be returned to the Goat Herder's Longboat in order to complete a sidequest
 * Crows - holds up objects
 * Gondolas - objects for a Viking to sit in. These structures are sometimes used by the player for traversal, and sometimes held up by crows
 * Ice bombs - explode when cut, can kill Trolls and destroy some structures
 * Pressurized stone - causes actions proportional to how much weight is on the stone
 * Chicken eggs - although probably no use to the player, chicken eggs will kill Trolls upon impacting them

Hazards
This is a list of known hazards in Ice Breaker: A Viking Voyage.
 * Fist blocks - spiked blocks that punch down and can kill Vikings via this move. Fist blocks are operated by chains
 * Runes - deadly ground that kills a Viking on contact
 * Giant head - giant faces cut out of rocks that are capable of opening their mouths.
 * Spiked objects - objects that have spikes on them. These objects are harmful to the player and kill a Viking on contact.

Enemies

 * Trolls - stationary enemies that kill Vikings on contact. Trolls can be killed via being caught in the blast of an ice bomb, crushed to death, or by chicken eggs
 * Cave Trolls - Enemies with the ability to move and fly

Publishing opportunities
Nitrome was working with Rovio on Ice Breaker A Viking Voyage since January 2013. Although several other publishers were previously interested in publishing, Nitrome did not wish to have a publisher of the game at the time. They later settled on Rovio because of Rovio's already widespread audience.

Nitrome later highlighted on their May 15 2013 blog post that on the App store, being noticed by people other than the developer's fanbase is hard due to recognition on the App store being mainly through getting up on "charts". Due to games on the App store being generally considerably cheap, a profit is made once a substantial amount of copies of the game being sold are sold. At the same time this was announced, the Rovio trailer for Icebreaker iOS was released.

In app purchases
The only known in-app purchases are God Powers, which cost money outside of the game. They can either be bought in a single pack with a certain number of one type of God Power to use, or in a pack with a certain number of all three god powers.

In order for all Nitromians to test out the God Powers, a level in the game for each God Power has been created, with the option of testing out the given power for free.

Purchasable God Powers

 * Main article: Shoppe

Free downloadable content
Nitrome has stated that they will be able to release free content for players of Ice Breaker A Viking Voyage, if they get enough money from sales of the game. Nitrome has stated that this "free content" will be extra level packs, more achievements (which have not yet been revealed), and "any other cool stuff we [Nitrome] can think of".

Versions
Icebreaker A Viking Voyage is available on both iPhone and Android.

iPhone version
The iPhone version of Icebreaker A Viking Voyage was the version that Nitrome is currently building the game around, and also the platform Nitrome started developing Icebreaker for in the first place. This version was released on June 20th 2013, and was released in two versions: a regular version, and an HD version.

The regular version is with iPhones and iPod Touch's, compatible with iPhone 5, iPhone 4S, iPhone 4, iPhone 3GS, and also and iPod Touch 5th Generation, iPod Touch 4th Generation, and iPod Touch 3rd Generation. The HD version is meant for iPads, and compatible with iPad 1, iPad 2, and the New iPad.

The differences between each version is only the price. Achievements for the game are connected to Game Center.

Version 1.0.0
Version 1.0 is the first version of Icebreaker A Viking Voyage, this version released on June 20th 2013 (the day the game was released for iPhone). This version contains the game's first three maps (Hammerfest, Troll Marsh, and Under Dwell), and ninety five levels.

Version 1.1.0
Released on October 15th 2013, this version adds Achievements to the game. Along with this, during start of level or end of level dialogue, the skip button completely skips all dialogue for that part of the level.

Android version
The Android version of Icebreaker A Viking Voyage is a port of the iPhone version, this version compatible with a large array of Android devices. Nitrome has not specified a release date, and development on porting the game is ongoing. As of October 11th 2013, Nitrome has sorted out all problems with the screen size of the game

The game's achievements will be connected to Google Play Games.

Compatibility
In order for the Android version of Icebreaker A Viking Voyage to run, the Android device that runs it has to have three things. These specifications were spoken about by Nitrome in a blog post on the Nitrome blog. These specifications are: Icebreaker A Viking Voyage will work on the following devices, and has been tested by Nitrome to work on the following devices:
 * The device has to have a screen resolution of 480 x 320 pixels . A device with smaller dimensions than this will not be able to run Icebreaker A Viking Voyage.
 * The device has to have an Arm7 processor. A device that does not have this will not be able to run Icebreaker A Viking Voyage.
 * The device has to have Android version 2.3 (Gingerbread). A device that does not have this will be unable to run Icebreaker A Viking Voyage.
 * LG E610
 * Samsung Galaxy s2+
 * Samsung Galaxy s2
 * Samsung Galaxy s3
 * Samsung Galaxy s3 Mini
 * Samsung Galaxy s4
 * Nook HD
 * Nook HD+
 * Kindle Fire
 * Kindle Fire HD
 * Nexus 4
 * Nexus 7 (2012)
 * Nexus 7 (2013)
 * Nexus 10

Version 1.0.0
This version will be the version all Android versions of Icebreaker A Viking Voyage will have. It will contain the map packs Hammerfest, Troll Marsh, and Under Dwell, along with achievements.

Release
On June 20th, Icebreaker A Viking Voyage was released. When players first went onto the Nitrome site that day, a message would pop up in the middle of the screen and turn the rest of the site dark. The message was labeled "Special Announcement." In the announcement was a picture of many of the game characters, and then the Icebreaker A Viking Voyage logo above them. On the top-left corner of the announcement was a golden ribbon with a seal that said "Out Now!". On the right side were two buttons, made to look like wood. One button said "Watch the Trailer," and would transform the announcement box into a Youtube video player when clicked. The video player would play the. The second button read "Visit the Website," and when clicked on, would take the player to the Icebreaker iOS website.

Below the picture were three more golden/golden-brown buttons in a row. The first button said "No Thanks," and would close the special announcement permanently. The second button said "Remind me later," and would close the special announcement, but would have it pop back up later. The third button, which read "Get it Now!", would make the three buttons disappear, and replace them with two options to download the iPhone/iPod Touch version, or the HD iPad version. Both choices showed the Icebreaker A Viking Voyage logo, and a list of which iOS devices would be compatible to download. Clicking on wither choice would link the clicker to the iTunes site for purchase and download.

Underneath the buttons, in fine print, were the words "Unless you click "remind me", we will not show you this message again."

Previews
"Main article: Ice Breaker iOS website"

Throughout the course of Icebreaker A Viking Voyage' development, Nitrome has revealed various features as well as screenshots through entries on their site specifically created for A Viking Voyage. Each of these are logged in two categories: Developer Diaries and Updates.

Previewed levels
The levels showcased in the two trailers for Icebreaker are the following:

Hammerfest (Nitrome trailer)

 * Cinematic 1 - 0:05
 * Level 4: Mind the Gap - 1:04

Hammerfest (Rovio Stars trailer)

 * Level 5: The Cutting Master - 0:24
 * Level P3: Between the Lines - 0:27

Troll Marsh (Nitrome trailer)

 * Level 18: Checking In - 0:19, 0:53
 * Level 1: Troll Cave - 0:22
 * Level 6: Do the Barrel Roll - 0:24
 * Level 13B: Crow's Nest - 0:25
 * Level 5: Cliffhanger - 0:26
 * Level 4: The Big Sneeze - 0:28
 * Level 15: Big Boned - 0:32
 * Level 21B: Skywire - 0:40
 * Level 23: The Chicken Coop - 0:43
 * Level 3: Chip off the Old Block - 0:49
 * Level S1 The Secret Path - 0:50
 * Level 16: The Sacrifice - 0:58
 * Level 24: The Mountain Troll - 0:59
 * Level S3: Afterparty - 1:01
 * Level 11: Cutting Master Returns - 1:02
 * Level 20B: Boulderdash - 1:02
 * Level 9: Swingers - 1:04
 * Level G4: The Wicker Goat - 1:12

Troll Marsh (Rovio Stars trailer)

 * Level 7: Isle of the Goat - 0:25
 * Level 16: The Sacrifice - 0:37
 * Level 23: Chicken Coop - 0:47
 * Level 24: The Mountain Troll - 0:49

Under Dwell (Nitrome trailer)

 * Level 19: Da Bomb - 0:34
 * Level 16: A Link to the Blast - 0:35, 0:56
 * Level 7C: Hot Air Joyride - 0:37
 * Level 9: Sounds of the Sea - 0:42
 * Level 10: Power Up - 0:47
 * Level 7B: Love Triangle - 0:52
 * Level 15: Troll Nest - 0:54
 * Level 22: Squash Blocks - 0:55
 * Level T2: The Fortress - 0:57
 * Level 13B: Kill a Troll - 1:00
 * Level 17: Ready the Cannons - 1:01

Under Dwell (Rovio Stars trailer)

 * Level 7C: Hot Air Joyride - 0:29
 * Level 1: My First Cannon - 0:32
 * Level 19: Da Bomb - 0:35
 * Level 22: Squash Blocks - 0:39
 * Level T2: The Fortress - 0:42
 * Level 16: A Link to the Blast - 0:44

Differences from the Flash series
Nitrome revealed in Update 6 on the Ice Breaker iOS website the transitions they had to make from the flash series to the mobile Icebreaker game. Changes include:
 * The ice breaker in Icebreaker A Viking Voyage holding the hammer end in his left hand instead of in his right hand
 * The noticeable difference in graphics, mainly due to Martin Wörister handling the game's graphics instead of Markus Heinel
 * Sprites given more detail, such as the helmet of certain Vikings appearing more shiny
 * The classic Rat being replaced with a Troll
 * The addition of more background objects
 * The game's levels navigated via a map instead of a level select screen
 * A Viking Voyage features green water instead of the blue water found in the flash Ice Breaker series

Graphics
In terms of graphics, Ice Breaker A Viking Voyage features graphics superior to that of regular Nitrome games.

Resolution
As covered in update 3, the resolution of the game differs from Apple tablet used. iPhone 4, iPhone 4S, iPod Touch 4th Generation, iPad 1, iPad 2, and iPad 3 all have retina display.

Older iPhones will not support retina display, and neither will the older iPhone 3S and iPhone 3rd Generation.

The iPhone's with retina display (iPhone 4, iPhone 4s, iPod Touch 4th Generation, iPod Touch 5th Generation, iPad 1, iPad 2, and iPad 3 ) will display detailed sprites for characters and images, and shows sprites at 1 to 1 pixel ratio. The iPad's considerably larger screen allows for more of the screen to be seen.

The game's levels are viewed in landscape mode when played on the iPhone 5 and iPod Touch 5.

The iPhone's lacking retina display (older iPhones, iPhone 3s and iPhone 3rd Generation) will show the game with the less detailed sprites than the retina supporting versions (sprites such as scenery, characters, etc.). These sprites will be scaled down for the non-retina iPhones. As some sprites did not look very good scaled, Nitrome has "purposely redrawn" some of the sprites for the scaled down tablets.

The sprites used for the "scale down" tablets are used on the map of the game, regardless of what Apple tablet is is played on. This is because smaller sprites are needed for the map icons.

Art
Ice Breaker A Viking Voyage features much greater art than the previous three games in the series. The art is noticeably more detailed and shaded, and introduces elements such as shiny helmets. Update 6 on the Ice Breaker iOS website was about the transition Nitrome made. Nitrome talked about they first tried to develop an art style that was based off the existing Ice Breaker game (Ice Breaker, Red Clan, Gathering).

Nitromes early on aimed at trying to make characters and objects a certain size as to not affect the gameplay and environment, as these sprites would eventually make it into the game, where they may be go through tight areas. Along with this, they tried to keep the sprites interesting without becoming distracting.

As seen from concept art of the game, some objects went through many iterations, while others only a few. Notably the skull bird creature went through many different designs, evolving from a horned rock shaped beast to a Cave Troll.

Despite Nitrome's attempt to use all the characters they converted from their flash version to the mobile Icebreaker version, some characters that were converted were not able to make it into the game. An example is the Valkyrie, who, although being given a new look, was cut from the game.

Beta elements
"Main article: Beta elements (Ice Breaker: A Viking Voyage)" Ice Breaker A Viking Voyage contains an enormous amount of content that did not make it into the final game. Most of this is usually content relating to early images of a level, although sometimes complete characters were renamed, unused, or taken out of the game.

Reviews
Icebreaker A Viking Voyage has received universal acclaim, reviewers praising the game's graphics, humour, diversity, and level design. John Bardinelli of Jay is Games described the game as "polished and easy to play" and "an absolute juggernaut of a game", praising the game's dialogue, art, and level diversity.

Rob Rich of 148 Apps awarded the game an "Editor's Choice" award, also praising the game's humour and art, along with the diverse gameplay and clever level design, awarding the game an overall score of 4.5 out of 5, concluding his review stating "I’m not entirely sure that I could be any happier with Icebreaker. It’s an incredibly fun, incredibly diverse, and incredibly clever physics puzzler."

Criticism of the game has been mainly aimed at the two finger scrolling, Nadia Oxford of Gamezebo calling it "very awkward at times" and Rob Rich of 148 apps stating that it was "problematic at times" when trying to avoid going over par.

Icebreaker A Viking Voyage has an average "Critic Score" (average score determined by several professional reviews) of eighty-eight, with an average user score of one hundred (the highest possible score a game can get).
 * Jay is Games review
 * 148 Apps review
 * Pocketgamer Review
 * Appgoer review
 * Gamezebo review
 * Metacritic page

Sales
Icebreaker A Viking Voyage was the #1 iPhone app in the US and UK on June 20th 2013, along with the #1 iPad app in the UK, and #2 iPad app in the US, along with being the #1 app in many other territories.

In-game advertisements
One criticism of Icebreaker A Viking Voyage was the advertisements that appeared in the pause menu of the game. When pausing the game, to the right of the pause menu would be two advertisements. Nitrome has stated that their "comments about their being no ads" meant that there would be no "content unrelated to any party making the game" (Nitrome's definitions of ads ), and that what was considered "ads" by fans are actually "promotions".

Nitrome has also implied that they have allowed these promotions in the game in exchange for promotions (called by fans as "ads") in the iOS game Angry Birds.

Trivia

 * Many level names are a reference to other types of media, such as:
 * The Hammerfest level Bridge Too Far is a reference to the movie A Bridge Too Far
 * The Under Dwell level "A Link To the Blast" is a reference to The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past.

Media articles

 * Icebreaker dev Nitrome almost 'sold up and packed it all in' - Pocket Gamer
 * Breaking the ice: Nitrome, a studio profile - Pocket Gamer
 * Riding with Rovio: The making of Icebreaker: A Viking Voyage - Pocket Gamer