Discussion - Hellblade 2: Senua's Saga - Review Thread (2024)

Hello,

I've had the previledge of reviewing this title. The embargo is about to lift, we will be posting our review here as well as others and the rest of opencritic/metacritic. Please do note that Gaming Instincts is also part of www.opencritic.com, so you will see our score play a part as well!

Gaming Instincts - (Mine)​

Score 7/10​

OpenCritic - ​

WellPlayed - James Wood - 6 / 10

Senua's Saga: Hellblade II is an achievement in visual fidelity but fails to define itself amid clumsy retreads and unengaging new ideas.

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Worth Playing - Chris "Atom" DeAngelus - 7 / 10

Senua's Saga: Hellblade II is a beautiful but ultimately hollow game. The fantastic presentation props up a story that is less personal and engaging than in the first game, and the gameplay feels like an afterthought. It was great to see Senua again and to see her outside of the grief-misery she was enveloped in during the first game, but beyond that, there's not much to Hellblade II. It's a short and less memorable experience that shows off Ninja Theory's visual craft to its fullest - but it achieves little else.

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Xbox Achievements - Dan Webb - 90%

While Senua’s Saga: Hellblade 2 might not set any new standards with its simplistic gameplay mechanics, from an audio-visual experience standpoint, it's frankly quite a stunning experience. Hellblade 2 is as close to playing the leading role in a big budget movie as you’re likely to get, and Ninja Theory’s continued coverage on the complexities of severe mental health issues deserves to be commended once more. Bravo, Ninja Theory. Bravo.

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XboxEra - Jon Clarke - 10 / 10

Despite the backing of a company as large and as well-funded as Microsoft, Ninja Theory have, in my opinion, nurtured their independent spirit and kept it well and truly alive in every facet of Senua's Saga: Hellblade II. It's brutal. It's breath-taking. It's brilliant. If this is “Independent AAA”?
Sign me up for more.

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Stevivor - Jay Ball - 9.5 / 10

Senua’s Saga Hellblade 2 is a video game only on its surface. Scratch that away and you’ll see that it’s a deep, thought-provoking, interactive experience proving games are an art form that demands skill and talent. Ninja Theory should be very proud.

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TechRaptor - Robert Scarpinito - 7.5 / 10

Senua’s Saga: Hellblade II features intense audio, beautiful graphics, and wonderful camera work, creating a powerful presentation that’s worth experiencing. However, the narrative doesn’t quite stick the landing.

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But Why Tho? - Mick Abrahamson - 7.5 / 10

Senua’s Saga: Hellblade II won’t be for everyone. But if you are looking for a brutal continuation of a fantastic story that feels like you’re actually playing a movie, you’ll have a great time here.

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CGMagazine - Justin Wood - 7 / 10

Senua's Saga: Hellblade 2 starts incredibly strong in the first half, but after certain revelations, the story speeds up to a point where the conclusion feels rushed and half-baked.

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COGconnected - Mark Steighner - 95 / 100

It has been a very long time since I played a game as assured, polished, and emotionally affecting as Senua’s Saga: Hellblade 2.

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Eurogamer - Johnny Chiodini - 5 / 5

Hellblade 2 continues Senua's story with grace, confidence, surprising brutality and thundering conviction.

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Game Informer - Marcus Stewart - 9 / 10

Senua’s Saga: Hellblade II’s conclusion ends on another strong note, and despite my initial reservations about continuing Senua’s story, I walked away happy to see her conquer new monsters, both literal and metaphorical.

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GamingTrend - Cassie Peterson - 95 / 100

Senua's Saga: Hellblade II is a stunning and immersive storytelling experience that really puts the player into the mind of its titular character. It's even more narratively-focused than the first game (not to its detriment), with a bigger emphasis on how Senua sees and interacts with the world around her. The whole experience from start to finish has been beyond memorable.

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IGN - Tristan Ogilvie - 8 / 10

Senua’s Saga: Hellblade II is another Viking-worthy feast for the senses that meets the high bar set by its predecessor, even if it never really manages to clear it.

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EightC said:

I just finished the game and overall I enjoyed it more than I thought I would. Visually the game is stunning I loved pretty much every area I visited. Combat was ok but felt a little lackluster however I did feel like the overall presentation of the fights were neat a kind of dynamic which I liked. I also wished the puzzles were a little more interesting because there was only like 2 different kinds and they weren't really challenging just kind of tedious. Story wise it was alright and the overall theme was interesting but I kind of wish there was a little more to it each major arc kind of went the same way. I'm glad I played it and I ended up finishing the game in about 4h 52m in total.

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Did you purchase it or played through game pass?

Elder Legend said:

Did you purchase it or played through game pass?

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I played it through game pass on PC. I don't have the best PC but it ran really well. I do need to go back to chapter select and clean up the last two achievements though lol.

EightC said:

I played it through game pass on PC. I don't have the best PC but it ran really well. I do need to go back to chapter select and clean up the last two achievements though lol.

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Ahh gotcha. I played it on PC with a 4090 RTX , it's def a looker. I think it's one of the better games that shows off capablities of UE5 quite , especially with meta human stuff too.

But to be quite frank, I am not really impressed by amazing visuals anymore. Tech has gotten so advanced now that we just naturally expect any game release to look good/great.

If you asked me what I think is the best looking game that's coming out in the near future it is Death Stranding 2, Monster Hunter Wilds and GTA 6 strictly when we are talking about visuals/graphics fidelity imo.

EightC said:

I feel the same way about visuals in a way I mean I really liked looking at the pretty environments in this game but I agree it can't come at the sacrifice of game play. This game is really divisive for sure and I can't blame people who are disappointed with the game play and overall game it did have this weird hype to it that it could never meet and the marketing for it didn't really help. Personally I went into this expecting a short experience and I got that and for what it was I enjoyed it but I would have liked to have seen a bit more game play wise. Fine game for a Game Pass but other than that it does come up a little short.

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In my opinion Hellblade 2 should of been a game that came out in 2022 when UE5 was all the hype. Now in 2024, it's the current new standard and it's not that impressive anymore.

Too little gameplay as you said, and there plenty of games with still amazing visuals that actually have gameplay in them. We are at a point where creating glorified tech demos with "gameplay" is a thing of the past. Tech is too advanced now, there is no need for it anymore imo.