Game #1082: Hellblade - Senua's Sacrifice

  I keep calling it Hellua!

 After Heavenly Sword there was only one realm left to conquer, Hell, and thus came Ninja Theory's Hellblade: Senua's Sacrifice, there attempt at an AA game, a game that feels like a AAA release but running on a smaller budget.

 Hellblade definitely doesn't feel like NT's previous releases, the camera is set closely behind the player, battles are slow-paced and never take to the skies, the dialogue has very little swearing and doesn't feel like it's trying so hard to be edgy... yeah, it's a very different game, which caught me a bit by surprise. While it looks like a hack-and-slash game, and combat does play part in the game, I'd say it only takes up about 30% of the whole game, the rest being made up of walking and puzzle solving.\

 The developers investigated about psychosis, consulting with people that suffer the condition as well as specialists in order to theme the game around it, and they managed to craft a truly harrowing experience. All throughout the game you'll be hearing different voices, some hushing, some shouting, talking about what you're doing or what Senua is or should be feeling. Tied to the grey, although sometimes lush, desolate and very bleak environments, as well as the medieval art-design makes for a very unsettling atmosphere.

 Combat is simple: Strong and weak attacks, a dodge, a block and the ability to slow down time after dodging and landing a few hits. While the camera is fairly close to Senua, voices will warn you about incoming attacks so you can attempt to roll out of the way. It's not very deep, and while it's not super exciting, there's a palpable sense of weight to your attacks, so fighting feels rather satisfying.

 Most puzzles are super simple, consisting on having to find figures hiding on the environment. The game clues you in with floating symbols when you are close to one, so it's not as hard to find them as it sounds.

  Hellblade was a fairly interesting experience, that's for sure, and I think it's an experiment that paid off for Ninja Theory. They tried something different, they tackled a subject that I don't think was ever explored before in a videogame and the results speak for themselves. That said, considering the story this game told... I don't think a direct sequel is the right choice for this brand.

 7.5