Senua’s Saga: Hellblade II

“The graphics are absolutely breathtaking, with photorealistic characters and stunning Icelandic landscapes, while the sound design creates a hauntingly immersive experience—headphones are a must!”

“The visuals are stunning, the graphics and the audio design are ridiculously amazing, setting new standards for immersive cinematic gaming experiences.”

“Hellblade II excels technically as it is incredible visually and features some truly outstanding playable moments, especially the confrontation with the giants, boasting probably the best graphics in a game for 2024.”

“The graphics quality is better than anything I've seen but I was most impressed with the combat gameplay.”

“The story and horror themes were not as good as they were in the first game, however the gameplay and visuals make up for it.”

“All in all, it's not only a great improvement over an already great game, but it ironically feels more like a game than just a psychosis simulator with gameplay elements.”

“The soundtrack, especially the ending credits song by Aurora, is beautiful and truly emotional, perfectly fitting the game's atmosphere.”

“The music and sound design are phenomenal, with intense battle songs and contributions from the folk band Heilung adding depth and authenticity to the experience.”

“This game features an exceptional soundtrack that deeply enhances immersion, with music that feels like a living part of the world and masterfully supports the narrative and gameplay moments.”

“Hellblade II is an absolute masterpiece that excels in every aspect, from its audio and atmosphere to its stunning graphics and impeccable soundtrack.”

“The unparalleled audio design pulls you deep into Senua's fractured world, while the cinematic visuals and motion capture are staggeringly realistic, creating an atmosphere thick with tension and beauty.”

“From the moment you step into Senua's world, you're enveloped in an atmosphere that is as haunting as it is beautiful, a testament to the exceptional craftsmanship of Ninja Theory.”

“Crossover review for the lazy: 5/5, runs like native, just really excellent compatibility and optimization.”

“For a UE5 game, it is egregiously well-optimized; I'm able to run it at 2k on medium settings with HDR through Crossover on a MacBook Pro. The game is breathtakingly well-rendered, with loads of neat tricks like water hitting the rocks, rain, and god rays.”

“Thankful with the budget of Microsoft, very polished Unreal Engine 5 settings that work (mostly). This is definitely one of the most optimized games utilizing UE5 that I have played.”

“Senua’s story is deeply immersive, emotional, and powerful on so many levels.”

“Senua is still a great character, even greater, her story and struggle is so deep, human and well portrayed that the immersion, the empathy and the shared feelings are actually touching; I found myself tearing up for her, cheering for her and sharing her roaring will power to overcome all that she faced.”

“This is a profound, soul-stirring journey about trauma and resilience, delivered with unparalleled technical artistry and emotional depth.”

“From the gameplay angle, I love that it has no UI, no grinding/levelling, no dialogue trees, etc., just Senua and her world.”

“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.”

“I especially appreciated the three narration options, which added depth and some replay value.”

“Pros: breathtaking audiovisuals – from incredibly detailed environments and cinematic camera work to top-tier sound design; probably the most beautiful game on Unreal Engine 5; immersive atmosphere; epic combat; a psychologically well-crafted story; engaging characters; full Czech subtitles; collectibles that expand the world and lore; replayability through alternative story perspectives; film-quality performances; authentic environments captured with photogrammetry; and binaural audio that makes you feel like you’re truly inside Senua’s head.”

“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.”

“While the first game was groundbreaking in terms of storytelling and scope, this chapter of Senua's journey extends her story in a truly meaningful way, with each act not just creating emotional impacts but also great character development for our tired but strong protagonist.”

“Story and character growth: the story is very well written, and I like the addition of new people in Senua's journey. Her character development with the voices in her head is really well written, showing that what Senua faces and goes through in 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 of the game.”

“Everything from the character development, the fights, the music, the animations, and the graphics is just insanely good.”

“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 1, a hyper rarity these days for a game this technologically cutting edge.”

“It's so nice to have a game that runs great on day one.”

“I'm 5 hours in and I feel like I am toward the end of the game, so it is a bit shorter than I expected but everything is solid, game runs great and it's about the same length as the first one.”

“No microtransactions.”

“No intrusive monetization.”

“Microtransactions that only affect cosmetics, not gameplay.”

“The voices don't even help in combat anymore except talking trash to Senua {always funny} and Druth says nothing in this one other than the totems you find {I miss and love Druth} even though he said he would be by her side till the end {in the first one}.”

“Without spoiling, this leads to a hilariously nonsensical villain whose half-baked motivations only damper an already poor excuse for a climax.”

“- [spoiler] Hiddenfolk 2: electric bo... - I mean walk underwater... cool for a few seconds, but after laughing at the "hello, I'm under the water" meme-like situation, I just hoped it would end soon [/spoiler].”