In many ways, given the current gaming landscape, settling for a game like Senua’s Saga: Hellblade II seems like a minor miracle. It’s still a completely linear 6-7 hour experience, with all mechanical fat stripped away in favor of a cinematic experience designed to keep you on your toes. While the first Hellblade was just as uncompromising in many ways, Ninja Theory’s sequel obviously has a much larger budget, putting it on par with the AAA titles it so closely resembles, production-wise.
On the other hand, I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t a little nervous about the commercial development, because how can a game that goes so much against current trends now reach a large enough audience to justify its budget ? Pass is not available? Is it apparently just as crucial a parameter for mother Microsoft as before? The simple answer, of course, is that it should be an unforgettable experience that is sweeping the gaming landscape with overwhelmingly positive word of mouth. It remains to be seen whether Senua’s Saga: Hellblade II can pull that off, but I wouldn’t be surprised because the sequel to Ninja Theory is such a unique, personalized and personal experience that anyone interested in linear action games, immersive narratives, etc mythological stories will love it. You owe it to yourself to give him a chance.
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Much of the credit goes to the game’s impressive presentation. Ninja Theory have been storytellers almost from the start, and in Senua’s Saga: Hellblade II they take that art to new levels with scenes that rival Sony’s best studios in choreography and direction. And it’s just right beautiful. Senua’s Saga: Hellblade II is quite simply one of the most visually impressive games I’ve ever played. Environments and characters are brought to life with a tremendous level of detail, showing how close the games of 2024 can get to photorealism when skilled developers don’t have to render massive open worlds. But it’s the raw and dirty art direction that takes the cake. Senua’s Saga: Hellblade II makes God of War look like a Marvel movie. That’s how dark, creepy, and twisted the black beaches, run-down towns, and haunted forests Senua travels through are.
The graphics are once again accompanied by a soundtrack that is unparalleled in the gaming landscape. Senua is still accompanied by the two voices in her head, the Furies, whose advice, encouragement, warnings and admonitions flow through your headphones using special binaural audio recording technology, creating a captivating and sometimes frightening 3D soundscape. However, through Senua’s development in the first game, the Furies have become more positive and understanding, which is appreciated after their often stressful and reckless behavior in the first game. They are the trademark of the soundtrack, but the rest of the cast also deliver excellent performances and the background music can either be epically thunderous or create delicate string arrangements depending on the situation.
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Standing on the shoulders of this trinity, Ninja Theory tells a story of revenge and forgiveness, legacy and environment, and fate versus choice. Where Senua’s Sacrifice looked inward, Senua’s Saga looks outward to see if Senua can move forward and use her powers to help the people who need it most. At the start of the game you are on your way to Iceland. She was deliberately enslaved by the Vikings who raided her village in the prelude to the first game, and is now here to seek revenge and plunge her sword into the heart of the monster that took everything from her. But what begins as a simple quest for revenge quickly develops into a larger social story through the people he meets along the way, people who change his perspective and his goals.
The big stars of mythology (i.e. the gods) have to give way this time to a more realistic Viking saga, in which extraordinary but mortal people take center stage. That’s not to say the supernatural elements have been completely removed (more on that later), but the Island we find in Senua’s Saga: Hellblade II is still very much Middle-earth, with all the beliefs and superstitions that come with it. It’s a smart decision because it positions the game as the most realistic and realistic interpretation of the era, compared to, for example, God of Wars’ more fantastical approach to mythology. The Northman by Robert Eggers seems an obvious reference point, and both works fit perfectly when it comes to depicting Iceland during the Viking Age.
However, Senua’s renewed focus on what might be called politeness hasn’t made the path to the goal any less bloody than before. In fact, Senua’s Saga: Hellblade II features some of the most graphically complex and well-choreographed fights in recent memory. In a one-on-one duel, you have the classic arsenal of light and heavy attacks, a block and an evasive maneuver at your disposal. You often have to open yourself up to your opponent’s attacks by dodging or parrying in order to give the fight a rhythmic character. Most enemies use only melee weapons, but some will also throw spears or axes at you, or use a torch as a flamethrower, forcing you to dodge sideways instead of backwards. There are plenty of special animations that give the battles a fantastic cinematic look, but you can’t help but notice that they flirt with the style of quick-time events. And while the Draugr and Vikings you make your way through look great, they eventually become monotonous.
However, the monotony of the battles isn’t as big a problem as it might have been if Ninja Theory hadn’t been so economical with it. There are long passages in which either the story serves you well or you solve relatively manageable puzzles. The latter involves manipulating reality and switching between two dimensions to identify runes in the landscape or find magical stones to be used in some sort of altar. As you move from one dimension to another, the landscape changes and certain things disappear or appear. So it’s about paving the way by changing at the right time. It’s not something that tests your mental capacity, but that’s not the point. Rather, Ninja Theory’s intent seems to be to create just enough tension to keep the player engaged in the story.
And it works, because it’s not like the things you’re doing are particularly novel or noteworthy in their nature, but everything is highlighted by the fantastic presentation. In the fight against the giant Ilthauga you have to run from stone pillar to stone pillar between waves of fire. A classic discipline that I’m not a huge fan of, but the horrific appearance of Ilthauga, the hellish flow of lava that surrounds the combatants, and the rhythmic pressure of the bass drum that seems to unleash waves of flame make it an excellent sequence.
Visually, however, the sequence has nothing to do with the fight against another giant, where Senua literally throws herself into the eye of the hurricane, dodging tidal waves and falling rocks. It is visually utterly stunning. No less so.
When Senua’s Saga: Hellblade II reaches these heights, it’s impossible not to completely surrender to Ninja Theory’s dark vision of the Viking Age. The often unforgettable cutscenes practically make it a visual poem, and in these moments it doesn’t matter that the game’s mechanical components are more fluid and superficial, because it’s more of an interactive experience than a traditional game. But in the moments when the magic isn’t there, it suddenly feels ordinary and sometimes even boring. Luckily, it’s magic that comes to the fore most often, and so “Senua’s Saga: Hellblade II” ultimately stands as a fine testament to the video game medium’s ability to tell meaningful adventures that reach the eyes, the ears, the ears, and the heart . I sincerely hope it finds a large audience.
