Six years ago, Microsoft announced the acquisition of Ninja Theory, and a year later, the company unveiled Senua’s Saga: Hellblade 2, positioning it at the time as a showcase title for newly revealed next-gen Xbox hardware. When the sequel was first announced, given how well received the first game was and the impressive track record that Ninja Theory boasted, expectations were high that it would be a statement first-party release for the Xbox Game Studios umbrella, and in the years following the game’s announcement, that belief only grew.
After years of development, Hellblade 2 is finally out now, and where its visuals, storytelling, and technical accomplishments are concerned, there’s absolutely no doubt whatsoever that the action-adventure game is an experience worth celebrating. At the same time, however, the game has legitimate issues, which means that though it’s a genuinely well-made game that I personally would recommend to many (as would many others, based on the overall positive critical reception the game has enjoyed), it’s not the astounding, statement, attention-grabbing first-party release that many had expected it would be.
“Expected” is, of course, the key word here, because many will tell you that Microsoft hasn’t done a stellar job of managing expectations with what Hellblade 2 was going to be. Over the course of the last few months, the company has seemed to go to baffling lengths to make it clear the it is not a major flagship release, launching it as a digital-only game, selling it at a lower price point, not even having the multiple editions on sale that you’d expect to see with a major release, and hell, barely having any marketing in the lead-up to its release at all.
Prior to that, however, for a good four years or so, Microsoft seemed to be positioning Hellblade 2 as something else entirely. For all intents and purposes, this was the game that the Xbox Series X was revealed with, and for years following its announcement, Xbox leadership were outwardly billing Hellblade 2 as the big, cinematic, single-player game that its first-party portfolio has lacked for so long, but Sony has had in abundance. To many, Ninja Theory was going to be Xbox’s Naughty Dog, Hellblade its God of War– or something along those lines, at the very least.
Suffice to say, that’s not what the game turned out to be, because the final few months of its marketing were a much more accurate reflection of what it is. If you’ve played 2017’s Hellblade: Senua’s Sacrifice, you’re likely going to be surprised by how similar its sequel is to it. I want to make it very clear that I had a great time for Hellblade 2, as is reflected in my review of the game, where I had plentiful praise to shower on its technical, visual, and narrative strengths. One thing that stood out to me, however, was just how little it had changed or improved things over its predecessor from a gameplay perspective.
Hellblade 2’s gameplay side of things haven’t seen an awful lot of changes from the first game, to the point of being indistinguishable more often than not- which is to say that the recently released action-adventure title is a surprisingly brief and straightforward gameplay experience. Is it one of the best looking games I have ever played? Absolutely. Does it boast stellar audio design that elevates the experience in unimaginable ways? It sure does. Is it a compelling cinematic experience with an engrossing story to tell told in a visually captivating manner? It definitely is.
It is, however, not “game” enough. I’ve been a strong proponent of having shorter and more focused gaming experiences for years at this point, so this is absolutely not about Hellblade 2 being “too short” or anything like that. I do feel, however, that the game could have used its 6-7 hour runtime much better than it does from a gameplay perspective. With limited exploration, repetitive puzzles, and way too much railroading, it feels like the vast majority of the game almost plays itself- which definitely does make its shorter runtime feel like a larger issue than it would be if it had delivered a more engaging and mechanically deep gameplay experience in that same amount of time.
I recognize, of course, that saying a game that’s as good as impressive as Hellblade 2 is has failed to live up to expectations might come across as a bit unfair, but I also think it’s fair to say that this is the sort of critical reception you would expect to see for a big, flagship, statement-making first-party release, which is what so many of us thought Hellblade 2 would be for the longest time. It is, at the end of the day, a win for both Xbox and Ninja Theory, given the fact that it’s yet another solid game that’s well worth experiencing and available day one to all Game Pass subscribers, but is Hellblade 2 the big first-party moment that many had hoped it would be for Xbox? It seems to have fallen short of that particular benchmark.
There is, of course, something to be said about Microsoft’s confused messaging related to the game over the course of its surprisingly long development period (which was something else that contributed to expectations that the game would be bigger than it turned out to be), but at this point, I suppose the more pertinent question for many would be- what is the big first-party game that Xbox can turn to next to provide that sweeping, head-turning win that continues to remain elusive for the platform? Hellblade 2 couldn’t do it, Starfield couldn’t do it, Halo Infinite couldn’t do it- so what could?
Well, to be fair, looking ahead, there’s no shortage of candidates on that front, if nothing else. This year itself will see Microsoft releasing both Indiana Jones and the Great Circle and Avowed, and given the pedigree of the studios behind both of those games, there’s a good chance that either of them could turn out to be a critical darling. Beyond that, there’s a number of high-profile first-party Xbox games currently in development across several studios, including the likes of Fable, Perfect Dark, Contraband, and many more, while you also have the whole Activision Blizzard and Bethesda side of things to consider as well. Marvel’s Blade? The next DOOM? There’s no shortage of names and contenders, that’s for sure.
Not long from now, Microsoft will be showing off multiple upcoming first-party games at its annual Xbox Games Showcase, which means there’s a good chance we’ll have a much clearer picture of which games we should be looking at in the next couple of years that can deliver the sort of superlative experience that Xbox’s first-party lineup keeps chasing but can’t quite seem to nail down. Looking at the last couple of years, there’s absolutely no doubt that in terms of pure output, things have picked up significantly for Xbox’s first-party lineup (even if there have been significant blemishes in the form of widespread layoffs, studio closures, and high profile failures like Redfall), which hopefully means that Xbox is not far from finally turning a corner. Of course, many have been feeling this way for a while now, so there’s no guarantee that Xbox’s fortunes are indeed going to turn in the near future. Then again, if the company consistently delivers a handful of games boasting Hellblade 2’s level of quality without attaining that higher tier of praise, maybe that’s not such a bad scenario either.
Note: The views expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily represent the views of, and should not be attributed to, GamingBolt as an organization.