Senua’s Saga: Hellblade II

86%
Game Brain Score Based on 3,122 reviews
  • story
  • graphics
  • gameplay
Senua’s Saga: Hellblade II Game Cover
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In "Senua's Saga: Hellblade II," players control Celtic warrior Senua, who has psychosis and is on a mission to save her loved ones from Viking tyranny in 10th century Iceland. The game features a cinematic immersive experience with brutal combat and a unique perspective into Senua's world through her senses. The game's stunning visuals and recreation of real-life locations provide an epic journey.

  • PC
  • Windows
  • Xbox Series X|S
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Genres & TagsPlay Modes

Reviews

86%
Audience ScoreBased on 3,122 reviews
story790 positive mentions
grinding50 negative mentions
  • Stunning visuals and exceptional sound design create an immersive experience.
  • The story is emotionally impactful, exploring themes of trauma and resilience.
  • The character development of Senua is compelling, showcasing her growth and struggles.
  • The gameplay is simplistic, with repetitive combat and easy puzzles.
  • The game is short, lasting around 6-8 hours, which may not justify the full price.
  • The narrative feels less cohesive and engaging compared to the first game.
  • story2,234 mentions

    The story of "Senua's Saga: Hellblade II" has received mixed reviews, with many praising its emotional depth and character development, particularly in exploring themes of mental health and resilience. However, some players feel that the narrative lacks the impact and cohesion of its predecessor, often describing it as less personal and more linear, with a slower pace that can detract from engagement. While the visuals and sound design are widely acclaimed, the overall execution of the story has left some players wanting more in terms of complexity and character arcs.

    • “Senua's saga is nothing short of a masterpiece, a breathtaking blend of artistry and storytelling that pushes the boundaries of what video games can achieve.”
    • “The story is deeply moving, tackling themes of trauma, mental health, and resilience with care and intensity.”
    • “The story, gameplay mechanics, and stunning visuals come together seamlessly to create a cohesive and impactful experience.”
    • “The story is disjointed and filled with convenient contrivances.”
    • “The story feels more railroaded, and the ending was anti-climactic.”
    • “The story is flat and lacks emotional depth compared to the first game.”
  • graphics1,270 mentions

    The graphics of "Hellblade II: Senua's Saga" have been universally praised for their stunning realism and breathtaking detail, showcasing the capabilities of Unreal Engine 5. Many reviewers highlight the game's photorealistic environments and character animations, describing it as a visual masterpiece that sets a new standard for gaming graphics. However, some players noted that while the visuals are impressive, they felt the gameplay and narrative depth did not match the graphical fidelity, leading to a perception of the game as more of an interactive cinematic experience than a traditional game.

    • “The graphics are absolutely stunning, with Unreal Engine 5 delivering some of the most realistic environments and character details I've ever seen in a game.”
    • “The game's graphics are a feast for the eyes, with every frame meticulously crafted to bring the hauntingly beautiful world to life.”
    • “The visuals are jaw-dropping, immersing you in Senua's dark world of whispers and blood.”
    • “Had it been a stand-alone game, I'd probably rate it a 3/10 and that's just because of the actors' performances, the audio, and the graphics.”
    • “The graphics are blurry and pixelated, even on the highest settings, without black bars, DLAA.”
    • “Despite the game's cutting-edge visuals, my mid/high-end PC hardly ran into any performance problems outside of a few stutters when the game changed areas, so props to Ninja Theory for putting out a fully working PC port at launch.”
  • gameplay863 mentions

    The gameplay in "Senua's Saga: Hellblade II" has received mixed reviews, with many players noting its simplicity and linearity, often describing it as more of a cinematic experience than a traditional game. While some appreciate the focus on storytelling and visuals, others criticize the repetitive mechanics, lack of depth, and minimal player agency, leading to a perception of the game as a "walking simulator" with limited interaction. Overall, the gameplay is seen as a step down from its predecessor, with many hoping for more complexity and engagement in future installments.

    • “The gameplay is fantastic and even though it was very short, it was worth it!”
    • “The story, gameplay mechanics, and stunning visuals come together seamlessly to create a cohesive and impactful experience.”
    • “Hellblade II is a breathtaking blend of cinematic storytelling and intense gameplay.”
    • “The gameplay itself falls flat on its face.”
    • “Gameplay is simplistic to the point of pointless boredom.”
    • “The gameplay is slow and boring and the story has been done before but better.”
  • music332 mentions

    The music in "Senua's Saga: Hellblade II" has received widespread acclaim for its emotional depth and immersive quality, particularly due to the contributions from the band Heilung, which many players found to enhance the game's atmosphere significantly. While some reviewers noted that the soundtrack lacks the memorable moments of the first game, others praised its ability to synchronize beautifully with gameplay, creating a powerful audio-visual experience. Overall, the sound design and music are considered top-tier, elevating the narrative and emotional impact of the game.

    • “The soundtrack by Heilung is top tier!”
    • “The music and sound design in general, once again, are great.”
    • “The music is incredible (Heilung is just an amazing band), the visuals are stunning.”
    • “As someone who was very excited about the band Heilung being involved in the soundtrack, I'm sad to say the music never really had any memorable moments.”
    • “And I don't know where the great Heilung had gone, but through gameplay their music is minimal.”
    • “The soundtrack is just okay compared to the first game.”
  • atmosphere254 mentions

    The atmosphere in "Hellblade II: Senua's Saga" is widely praised for its stunning visuals, exceptional sound design, and immersive storytelling, creating a hauntingly beautiful experience that captivates players. Many reviewers highlight the game's ability to evoke deep emotional responses through its atmospheric elements, with some noting that it successfully blends surreal and realistic aspects to enhance the narrative. While some critiques mention pacing issues and less engaging gameplay compared to its predecessor, the overall consensus is that the atmosphere remains a standout feature, making it a must-play for fans of story-driven games.

    • “The sound design and atmosphere are, as always, stellar.”
    • “Every scene feels like a piece of art, and the atmospheric sound design adds to the immersive experience.”
    • “The atmosphere is absolutely stunning, and in my opinion, this is one of the best games of the year.”
    • “Instead, I felt the monologues too often disturb the atmosphere rather than help it.”
    • “For almost all my playthrough, I found myself alt-tabbing to do something else or getting distracted... it wasn't due to me feeling uncomfortable by hearing the voices in Senua's head or the creepy atmosphere... it was due to sheer boredom.”
    • “The puzzles are easier and way less frequent, the atmosphere is nowhere near tense or claustrophobic, the voices in Senua's head that once were scary and actually cast doubts in every step I took are now just plain annoying, and the combat is just sluggish and also scarce.”
  • emotional218 mentions

    The emotional aspect of "Senua's Saga: Hellblade II" has garnered mixed reviews, with many praising its stunning visuals and immersive sound design that enhance the emotional narrative. While some players found the sequel to be a powerful and moving experience, others felt it lacked the emotional depth and intensity of the original game, resulting in a less impactful journey. Overall, the game is recognized for its emotional storytelling, though it may not resonate as deeply with all players compared to its predecessor.

    • “The story is a gripping journey, filled with deep emotional resonance and complex characters that leave a lasting impression.”
    • “It's not every day that I bow in front of the genius of a developer, but Senua's Saga is undoubtedly one of the most beautiful, heart-wrenching, soul-crushing, human, poignant games ever made.”
    • “Senua's journey is emotionally charged, making every moment count and every encounter meaningful.”
    • “I could talk about all the things other people complain about: restricted linear path, boring story, no real plot, voices being just directions, no character (Senua is actually not in this game, they just used her likeness), no real connection to NPCs, joke puzzles, tedious walking, and the awful, just awful combat.”
  • optimization215 mentions

    The optimization of the game has received mixed reviews, with some players experiencing solid performance on high-end systems, while others report significant stuttering and frame drops even on capable hardware. Many users noted that despite the stunning graphics and audio, the game can be demanding and may require careful adjustment of settings to achieve a stable frame rate. Overall, while some players found the optimization satisfactory, others felt it needed improvement, particularly for lower-end systems.

    • “The game is very demanding and has limited optimization capabilities, except for the intensive use of rescaling technologies, as performance doesn't scale by much by tweaking in-game graphics settings.”
    • “On NVMe SSDs and an NVIDIA 3070 Ti laptop GPU, my experience was practically seamless with nearly no stuttering.”
    • “It's incredibly optimized, but definitely pushes GPUs.”
    • “Even after dialing back the settings to optimized values, I was only able to achieve 45fps at native 1440p with a current gen $500 GPU (7800 XT).”
    • “The game is definitely beautiful and atmospheric, but it's just an unoptimized corridor with puzzles for preschoolers.”
    • “This game needs more love on the optimization end of things.”
  • grinding62 mentions

    Overall, reviews highlight that the grinding aspect of the game is characterized by tedious puzzles, repetitive combat, and excessive walking, which detracts from the overall experience. While some players appreciate the cinematic storytelling and improved graphics, many find the gameplay to be monotonous and lacking in challenge, leading to a sense of frustration and boredom. The absence of traditional grinding mechanics is noted positively by some, but the overall pacing and execution of gameplay elements are often criticized as tedious.

    • “Absolutely amazing story and feels like a cinematic experience, short and linear gameplay with no grinding for gears and all the crazy stuff with most games nowadays.”
    • “No side quests, no grinding/farming, no exploration.”
    • “The combat is tedious... incredibly repetitive, feels automated.”
    • “Gameplay is very tedious and boring.”
    • “It's so long, tedious and nothing really happens.”
  • replayability39 mentions

    Overall, the game's replayability is a contentious topic among reviewers. While some players appreciate the unique twists in new game+ modes and the opportunity to experience different narrators, many criticize the game for its short length and lack of substantial replay value, often describing it as a one-time experience rather than a game meant for multiple playthroughs. The consensus suggests that while there are some elements that encourage replay, such as collectibles and narrative variations, the overall replayability is limited.

    • “It thankfully has some unique twists on new game+ that do make it very replayable, and you will enjoy getting all the achievements in 2 or 3 playthroughs (I'm on my 2nd right now).”
    • “It seems to encourage replayability by adding two different narrator choices (unlocked after certain milestones; one seems to be after beating the game).”
    • “Once you beat the game once you also unlock narration from some of the other characters you meet for your next playthrough, which I think is a really fascinating way to add replay value since you get to keep learning new things about the characters in a story that is still mostly Senua focused on the initial playthrough.”
    • “€50 for a 6 hour experience which has 0 replay value, the story is honestly confusing and not worth the price point, the only saving grace is the art, that's it.”
    • “In my opinion, the game doesn't worth its price; despite looking great, there's no big reveals, no memorable characters, no boss fights, and foremost, almost no replay value.”
    • “The game seems like it was made to be experienced once... not much replayability in my opinion.”
  • character development23 mentions

    Character development in the game receives mixed reviews, with some praising its depth and emotional resonance, particularly in the portrayal of Senua's struggles and growth. However, many critics highlight a lack of development for side characters and a reliance on repetitive themes from the first game, leading to feelings of disappointment and missed opportunities for deeper exploration. Overall, while the visuals and storytelling are commendable, the execution of character arcs is seen as inconsistent and at times shallow.

    • “Incredible graphics, character development, and story.”
    • “Interesting story and plot build up, good character development, and excellent voice acting.”
    • “Story and character growth = the story is very well written, and I like the addition of new people in Senua's journey, and her character development with the voices in her head is really well written, and it really comes to show that what Senua faces and goes through her mind is not easy to conquer, and what her views and goals are as the story progresses, this is probably the second strongest aspect about this game.”
    • “On the other hand, the story and writing is crowded with fillers, shallow or unfinished character development, and an underwhelming and anticlimactic ending.”
    • “There is simply not enough character development for them, which is what they desperately needed and deserved.”
    • “In typical modern AAA fashion, the slow burn of character development from the first game is replaced with monotonous, repetitive rehashes of scenes from the first game until all of Senua's problems are finally solved with 0 buildup in two 10-second cutscenes with no care or anything.”
  • monetization17 mentions

    The monetization aspect of the game has received mixed feedback, with some praising the absence of microtransactions and feeling it offers good value for the price, while others criticize it as a potential cash grab due to minimal advertising and a perceived lack of content compared to its cost. Overall, players appreciate that the game does not include gameplay-affecting microtransactions, contrasting it with the prevalent practices in many modern RPGs.

    • “No microtransactions.”
    • “No bad monetization.”
    • “Though one thing is really bothering me, the game got basically no advertising closer to release, meaning it was on barely anyone's radar.”
    • “I didn't find it good and honestly felt it was lazy, boring, disrespectful, and a bit of a cash grab release.”
    • “-- microtransactions that in any way, affect gameplay (cosmetic purchases are allowed)”
    • “You’re not getting the same amount of hours you would a long RPG, but nowadays you’re paying $70 USD + more if you’re getting microtransactions or deluxe editions for most RPGs, and most of the gameplay boils down to repetitive grinding.”
  • stability16 mentions

    Overall, the game's stability is praised, with most players reporting a smooth experience free of major glitches or crashes. While a few minor bugs were noted, they did not significantly impact gameplay, and the performance on various systems was consistently strong, often exceeding 60 fps. Players appreciate the rarity of a well-functioning launch in today's gaming landscape.

    • “Though it says a lot that people with the systems to do it justice could count on a basically bug-free and perfectly clean experience on day one, a hyper rarity these days for a game this technologically cutting edge.”
    • “So even with all the bells and whistles this game has, it runs great.”
    • “It's so nice to have a game that runs great on day one.”
    • “My only complaint is that combat felt a little buggy at times, but I'm playing with MK and didn't bother to redo the controls, so that could easily be on me.”
    • “There are also some minor glitches and bugs that I encountered, but very rarely and didn't affect my experience, mostly regarding the fire.”
    • “Performance-wise, the PC version runs surprisingly well, without major bugs and only minor glitches that will probably be fixed with the first few patches.”
  • humor8 mentions

    The humor in the game is a mixed bag, with players noting moments of absurdity and meme-like situations that elicit laughter, such as the "hello, I'm under the water" scenario. While some aspects, like battle transitions, provide comedic relief, the overall execution of humor can feel forced or nonsensical, particularly in relation to the villain's motivations and the game's pacing. Overall, the humor adds a lighthearted touch but may not resonate with everyone.

    • “There is a funny thing about this game though: the ratings it has received.”
    • “I particularly liked some of the battle transitions, although it was a little funny when there was always another guy charging at me from off screen the moment I killed the previous guy.”
    • “Without spoiling, this leads to a hilariously nonsensical villain whose half-baked motivations only damper an already poor excuse for a climax.”
Positive mentions (%)Positive
Neutral mentions (%)Neutral
Negative mentions (%)Negative

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Play time

8hMedian play time
13hAverage play time
6-11hSpent by most gamers
*Based on 45 analyzed playthroughs

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