When indie studios Ninja Theory released Hellblade: Senua’s Sacrifice back in 2017, it ended up sweeping awards and garnering critical acclaim. Thus. when Microsoft acquired the studio in 2018, everyone was excited to see what the game’s sequel would look like, with Microsoft’s massive budget.
The sequel Senua’s Saga: Hellblade 2 was announced in 2019 as an Xbox-exclusive title. Naturally, amidst much anticipation and fanfare, the game is all set to release on Xbox Series X and S consoles and PC on May 24, 2024.
Perfection wasn’t the aim, say devs about Hellblade 2
Back in 2022, it was revealed that the developer’s team scanned over 40 real-life locations in Iceland to design the most apt landscapes possible. Similarly, it helped in costuming the characters in period-authentic clothing.
During an interview with NME back in 2022, the co-founder of Ninja Theory, Tameem Antoniades discussed the studio’s plans for Hellblade 2. He said,
“The goal with Hellblade 2 isn’t to perfect it but to create an experience that feels more believable and more refined. Its ambition in terms of scale is bigger. I think Hellblade 2 will make Hellblade look like an indie game.”
The game, which is believed to have bigger ambition, will circle around questions of religion and society, as the first Hellblade included a more personal experience and journey.
Tthe first game gained massive popularity due to Melina Jergens’ incredible acting and motion capture. With Hellblade 2, it seems like the developers have taken things to the next level, as Jergens was trained by a combat expert so that she could perform the in-engine combat herself.
There are many measures of Hellblade 2’s success
Similarly, during a recent interview with IGN, Ninja Theory studio head Dom Matthews revealed how they measure the success of Hellblade 2. He said,
“I think for us as a studio, well my focus as well as studio head is how can we empower the team here, the artists here to go and create an experience, and how do we get it out to the widest possible audience?”
He mentioned that success for them is to have as many players to play our games as possible. However, he added,
“I think particularly with Hellblade we love and I love that magic that you can achieve by creating something that makes people think and feel. So if I think about the things that I want to achieve in Hellblade 2, once it’s released, the thing that will put the biggest smile on my face is to see fans of Hellblade: Senua’s Sacrifice and people who like those kind of game saying you’ve continued Senua’s journey in a way that is worthy of that character.”
While there is a lot of hype and anticipation around the latest action-adventure title, some fans have been disappointed by the game length revealed by the developers recently. The devs said that the game would cost $49.99 and offer 9 hours of gameplay content. However, its predecessor included slightly more content for a price tag of just $29.99.
