Fans awaiting the upcomingSenua’s Saga: Hellblade 2were given a look at the visuals possible in Unreal Engine 5 during a trailer that premiered as part ofGDC 2023. Although the trailer was brief, showing the work that is going into capturing Senua’s face and rendering it in Unreal Engine 5, the comparisons between the real-life actress portraying Senua and her in-engine counterpart were quite impressive. However, for as impressive as this visual showcase is, without any gameplay to back it up, there’s still a lot about the game left to be desired.
To date, there hasn’t been a lot of information given aboutSenua’s Saga: Hellblade 2beyond a couple showcases of its admittedly impressive in-engine animation and visual style. The first game in the series,Hellblade: Senua’s Sacrifice, was itself on the cutting edge of graphics and player immersion with its use of binaural audio design. While it appears the sequel will also follow the trend of creating an impressive, immersive experience for players, the longer the game goes without presenting a substantial look at its gameplay will only hinder the spectacle of its graphics.
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Senua’s Saga: Hellblade 2 Has the Graphics, But Needs the Gameplay to Back It Up
Hellblade: Senua’s Sacrificereleased back in 2017 to critical acclaim, with many praising its dark Norse setting and accurate depiction of psychosis. To further the immersion of the game, VR support for the Oculus Rift and HTC Vive was added in 2018. With how successfully the game’s visual and audio design captured players, it wasn’t a surprise when Ninja Theory announced a sequel,Senua’s Saga: Hellblade 2, at The Game Awards 2019, just two years after the release of its predecessor.
Unfortunately, in the nearly four years since its original announcement, details about the game have been sparse beyond a couple of graphical showcases. The most substantial of these showcases was during The Game Awards 2021, where a new trailer gave fans their first true look at somegameplay forSenua’s Saga: Hellblade 2. Despite being a gameplay reveal, this trailer was still very cutscene heavy, and while impressive visually, didn’t really give a good feel for how they game would actually play.
It seemed like GDC 2023 would a great time to show off gameplay forHellblade 2given the large gap in time since it was last seen, but disappointingly, the trailer shown did not include gameplay and was rather short overall. While it’s good to see that developerNinja Theoryis clearly taking its time with this title, dedicating a lot of resources to making it the most visually stunning game it can be, going this long with little more than some in-engine tech demos doesn’t bode well for its release timeline. As a game supposed to be on the cutting edge of what is graphically possible on modern hardware,Hellblade 2needs to release sooner rather than later or risk being eclipsed by other games.
As more developers become comfortable withUnreal Engine 5, it’s likely more games on the same technical level asSenua’s Saga: Hellblade 2will be released. Although Ninja Theory is not the smallest studio, developers with more resources may be able to release equally impressive games in a shorter timeframe that could take the wind out ofHellblade 2’s sails if it doesn’t release soon. The ever evolving landscape of game development is always subject to changes in technology, and if Ninja Theory wants to remain ahead of the curve, it will take more than a tech demo to instill confidence in their upcoming release.
Senua’s Saga: Hellblade 2is in development for PC and Xbox Series X/S.
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