My Honest Thoughts On Senua's Saga: Hellblade II

My video review for Hellblade, a game that does a few things beautifully and the rest badly. I explain by 7/10 here.

[@TrippyTigre]

I was very surprised they were making a second game considering the first game was a wholefully start to finish completed personal story.

[@jimmymac2292]

Yeah, at the end when Senua said there still more to be done. I took that as a lie and in fact there was no more to be done

[@mravg79]

@@jimmymac2292I replayed the first game this week (3 sessions: 3+3+2, 8h total including the video on making the game). Ending hit hard. But I did not took the last words as lie, more of an open ending meaning we witness this journey but Senua close one chapter of her life and the next starts. This game did not need a sequel. I’m in chapter 4 of Hellblade 2 game I had not expectations for, game I was afraid will not live up to what the part 1 was. And so far I’m between bored, and disappointed. I do not mind short games but they need to have something that grabs me (example I think that What Remains of Edith Finch is very good game and I didn’t mind that is is short experience). In Hellblade 2 well, it does not hit half as hard as the first one. One positive is the sound design and I do not mean voices but ambient sounds and music. Example at some point (I was playing with headphones) there are water drops sounds in the game and I started checking taps at home before I realized it was from the game.

[@jimmymac2292]

@mravg79 So do we just forget the arch with Druith? You informs Senua it was the Northman that raped and pillaged her village. Killing Dillion. The one purpose she had left in life? If the second one doesn't grip you, but I feel invested into Senua's saga. We find out the Northman are sacrificing the slaves as sacrifice to spare their village. We also see a continuing of her internal conflict in coping with her father, who killed her mother and made her watch. Even with nothing left to live for now that Diliion is gone. We see Senua growing as person. Learning to cope with her internal and external conflicts and becoming much stronger mentally and physically. If you are not invested into Senua, as a character then you probably wouldn't care about the archs in the second as they are a continuation of both her personal growths and find more closure from her past.

[@pmac206]

Plus it was relatively niche . Not saying that’s a bad thing. They just couldn’t of had them try abs make something with more mass appeal

[@JUiCE..]

Still waiting on Paul's first "My dishonest thoughts" video/review. One of these days...

[@FernandoAlmeidaCoelho]

Portal 1 was 3 hours and seems like it has more content.

[@daRealB-Rex]

Because Portal had great humor and fun gameplay that actually challenged your brain

[@mravg79]

What Remains of Edith Finch can be finished below 3 hours and I personally thing is it a very good experience/game. Sadly I cannot say this about Hellblade 2. The first one was simply good imo.

[@nidavelliir]

It's a great Unreal Engine 5 tech demo to be fair

[@metpach]

I mean the game is one of the best looking games I've ever seen. But it's also one of the most boring games I've ever played. I was just trying to look around and try to get into the setting and enjoy all the eye candy. But the voices in Senua's head would not shut up, they were literally telling me to solve the puzzle so I can move on to the next part of the game. The game doesn't even want me to play it. It wants to hurry up and get this experience done.

[@daniloazhar5454]

You do know that's her pyschosis. That's what people with psychosis suffer daily 🤦​@@metpach

[@dud1970]

Hellblade 2, my favorite part is the holding the left stick forward for 40 mins straight and the 3rd act where you light torches for an hour. Peak gaming.

[@nerdcast5]

I'm curious. What were you expecting from this game? Especially if you've played the first one. Walking Sims are a genre, its ok if it isn't for you

[@dud1970]

@@nerdcast5 There is for sure an audience for this game that want that kind of experience, and the game sure is pleasing to the eyes to look at, but for what it’s worth being more of an interactive cinematic experience rather than a satisfying game to play. It’s definitely not gonna be for me and those that prefer gameplay to be first in gaming.

[@jmako979]

Man the way you're describing this doesn't really sound like a 7/10 experience. It sounds poorly paced and unfun to generally play but looks amazing? Points for graphical fidelity and artistic intent I suppose.

[@tripprowe1695]

I’ve noticed that about a lot of reviews they talk non stop about negatives the game has and then at the end they are like 8/10 🤷‍♂️

[@Mmachine88]

You're right about it not being fun, but rather, It's deeply engaging.

[@SojiRo23]

People were overly nice about the first one too.

[@Mmachine88]

@@SojiRo23 That's probably true, I could see that

[@joshhall5172]

The problem with the game is that it's a tech showcase game released 4 years too late. Release this alongside the series s/x this would of been perfect.

[@michaelcallan5336]

Im saving it for the weekend so i can play the whole thing without stopping but yeah, im glad its on gamepass, between what you and others have said, i would not want to spend $50 on this.

[@mravg79]

I liked the first one. I’m currently in chapter 4 of Hellblade 2 and I would discourage anyone from paying full price for it. A month of game pass - sure if you have enough time to finish maybe one more or a few more shorter games. But buy? To me deep deep sale maybe 5$. I will just add I thought first one was a good one (not so much good game as very interesting experience).

[@Joe-nd6km]

oof, sounds like even 7/10 is a stretch

[@Jaycy845]

People don’t want to be too negative on Xbox. In reality this game should have scored much lower 🤷🏽‍♂️

[@akshayarrison7269]

I think journalists are scared in case the devs get shuttered.

[@WeeWeeJumbo]

yeah. it’s almost like critics have been cautiously over-rating this pile of played-out, boring ideas

[@ED-209UHD]

I’ve completed it, it’s not the worst or best game I’ve ever played it’s fun for a few hours and have no reason to play it again!

[@Zurrke]

Paul what do you use to trim your beard

[@tropicata]

How the hell did this take 7 years of development? I understand they didn't enter full production until 2019-ish but even with that in mind, it's a six hour hyper linear single player game from a 100 person studio with the backing of Microsoft. That's an absolutely insane amount of time and resources to commit on a game of this relatively small scale. If this is the price to pay for realistic graphics then I genuinely don't want it lmao

[@aaronwalsh8469]

I heard that it didn’t start full production till 2021

[@daRealB-Rex]

they were still location scouting in 2020 so i’m not sure it started dev in 2019. but then again that first trailer dropped in 2019 so who the heck knows

[@mravg79]

Stylized graphics or hand drawn will never go out of style. I might be harsh but I will put it this way halfway through the game, I can say I had a better experience with Little Kitty Big City (and this game has a few issues and rough edges).

[@solidkwon]

7 years since the release of Hellblade I, doesnt mean Hellblade II has bn in development all that time. More accurate time frame for this game is probably around 4-5 yrs

[@kgrass976]

Makes you wonder wtf were they doing if they weren’t making a game😂. Course people come up with excuses like “actually it was 2020”. The game you played is the finished product that they the devs want you the customer to consume so you base your opinions off what you played regardless if it took 4 yrs, 6, hell even 20 yrs. Look at Starfield Todd comes out and says “it took 8yrs to develop it” but look at the final product

[@liamarmstrong1396]

about halfway through, loved the first game - which is why i am surprised how with better backing and tech this one just feels... shallower?

[@mravg79]

+1 Same here man I’m in chapter 4 and the only positive think I can say is sound design (ambient and music).

[@toddbeaver8277]

This isn’t a game. It reminds me of matrix unreal engine demo. Yes u can move around but that doesn’t make it a game per say

[@SojiRo23]

That’s exactly what it is except way more pretentious.

[@aaronwalsh8469]

Exactly but the matrix demo doesn’t pretend to be a game .

[@nerdcast5]

​@@aaronwalsh8469 matrix demo didn't have a whole story to play through either

[@RedEquus]

"I didn't like it" gives it a 7/10

[@G1224Alex]

No reaction vid to all the latest news of Destiny and the final mission cutscene?

[@KurtQuad]

To me I’m fine with it if it’s included in game pass

[@ombra711]

Gamepass is why it will fail

[@WeeWeeJumbo]

‘why don’t players trust review scores anymore?’

[@jakkudemoff3043]

another great opinion piece from one of the hottest men in gaming journalism 🎉

[@sammyflinders]

Paul on his alt account again...

[@nolives]

I really wanted to play hellblade 1 for the story, graphics and audio. But the combat was meh and i hate puzzles.

[@flannelsykes0]

In agreement with you on this game

[@iceburg2k]

Great review but please more doggos in the background 🥹

[@TheJCghost]

I liked the first game and to me it falls in a steady line of being roughly the same. It has different strenghts than the first, but also different weaknesses.

[@fabiorossi8]

13:36 Amen to that

[@EastyyBlogspot]

I do wonder with many games...people review them like films great looking great story...which is great for a film but for an actual game i want the gameplay

[@nothingisawesome]

i think you can do whichever you want as a dev and thats one of the cool parts about video games. if you dont like them then fair enough

[@bizarduno]

I just feel that even your score is veeeery generous, at least judging by the way you're describing the experience. This is why the "text" is more important than the review scores.

[@solidkwon]

He def wants to rate it lower 😅

[@sterlingduguay6952]

Still a better way to spend 5 hours then having to endure Rebel moon again!!

[@ThePosrein]

As a PS5 owner and psychologist, I’m going to miss playing HB2. I loved the first one, particularly how the devs consulted with people with schizophrenia who then endorsed the depiction of psychosis as portrayed in HB1. I was haunted for days after finishing the game. Yes, the voices are annoying. That’s why schizophrenics are so bothered by them, especially command hallucinations. Sounds like the devs hit the nail on the head again, given your own reaction.

[@Cshizzle94]

Hellblade 2 is most likely coming to PS5 in the future just fyi.

[@pilau1749]

There's no gameplay so just watch it on youtube

[@daniloazhar5454]

​@@pilau1749there's plenty

[@byte-bg4ob]

6/10 game

[@SomeUnkindledAsh]

All that and you gave it a 7/10? Seems kinda high.

[@spacecowboy7193]

A lot of reviewers have similar sentiments.

[@richied5294]

Let me guess zero replay value?

[@ombra711]

Giving this a 7 is weird for a game you describe the way you did.

[@ombra711]

Ooooh, you gave Starfield a 9.5😮 So this actually a 5 then.

[@thedriftereliassampson7200]

I’m shocked at all the 7s and 8s this game is getting despite the general feedback being “it’s beautiful but ridiculously short, boring as hell, and feels miserable to play”. It feels like everyone’s trying to avoid being too critical so they don’t have to feel guilty if it underperforms and gets Ninja Theory shut down by Microsoft’s hapless leadership.

[@profbrain8474]

7 seems way too generous based of what you said. I enjoyed your commentary though!

[@EmperorOfMan]

Thanks for letting us know these are your honest thoughts. Now I know every other video is a lie!

[@SojiRo23]

I didn’t care for the first game. Really surprised that it got such a high budget sequel. It’s not for me.

[@Blade12121]

Wasn't over the moon about the first game. Thought it was decent, but this second one..... Damn it's dope everything feels so visceral. To me it feels like Hellblade 1 with a shot of HGH 😆

[@Kratos176]

I thought it was good but just ended way too soon

[@jadedragon216]

Hearing more people say they weren't a fan of the first game makes me happy. I thought I was the only crazy person that didn't like it.

[@mravg79]

Different people like different things, this should be utilize by games creators and we as gamers should have a huge variety of different games. Nowadays I have this nasty feeling to many games are done from the template. With that said I liked the first one as a experience but half way through Hellblade 2 I cannot say the same about this one.

[@caldweab]

I disagree with the review but at least this is a sensible take on why you don’t like the game.

[@The_Makr_]

Why must every game released by Xbox be held up as if it is supposed to single-handedly be some kind of console savior rather than judged on it's own merits.

[@C2190]

maybe because microsoft themselves hyped it up while it took 10 years to make and was supposed to be a xbox series x launch title

[@anubrakahn2970]

Because they need a savior.

[@akshayarrison7269]

They announced the game with Series X reveal at The Game Awards. Why would anyone not hold it to those standards!

[@robovinefilms1811]

Because a game will come out with glaring issues under Xbox's leadership or lack thereof and Phil will have to apologize profusely for "being suprised" even though he's supposed to understand what his customers are looking for. This cycle has repeated ad nauseum for the past 10 years. Xbox needs the positive reinforcement while Sony and Nintendo make running the same business look effortless. Incompetence vs. Competence Inconsistent vs. Consistent

[@behr7990]

I personally thought the first game was horrible. I remember chuckling at the ending due to the story being ridiculous and eye rolling. The game was trying way too hard to be “art”.

[@sol5916]

A game is played. If you can’t design something around what makes the medium what it is, you should honestly just make movies 🎥

[@namelesshunter4714]

Cant even finnish the game so boring almost no gameplay the puzzle even more boring.

[@jacoblesperance2115]

It's definitely beautiful, but a game? The bare minimum to qualify as one

[@hELLLcs]

I think you have a great take. You recognized the insane stuff the game is doing but you also felt it was absolutely boring. Exactly how I felt and how the vast majority of gamers will feel imo.

[@jhitcho2026]

I agree. Not for me

[@georgeking1014]

So the title of the article suggests that you, at least sometimes, don't give us you honest feelings.

[@lordnub926]

It’s definitely like a 8/10 game. The price point and the length of the game are the biggest downsides. I literally refunded it after I finished which was in one day, lol.

[@ED-209UHD]

It’s a 7/10 at best

[@sugarbait]

7/10 and didn't enjoy it doesn't make sense. 7 is not that bad of a score.

[@ED-209UHD]

I’m with you on this weird but very interesting ideology 😂 👍

[@SojiRo23]

He’s being too nice.

[@ED-209UHD]

@@SojiRo23 I get that aswell 🤣 Put it this way doesn’t make me want to play the 1st one ever!

[@moviesteels7422]

I feel like everyone is worried about ripping this because their words are gonna be used as justification to close Ninja Theory

[@Jp-1377]

As opposed to your dishonest thoughts on senua’s saga

[@rbyerly]

Do I love Paul? Maybe 🥰

[@tomvandenbosch4914]

Paul i like you vids man but dam its a 9.5 out of 10 for me. Idk what game you played.

[@mazaleska]

I'm glad you liked it. I think Paul provided a clear justification for his rating. How do you justify giving it a 9.5 out of 10?

[@bobpinto8312]

Why is this a 9.5 when there is nothing to do in the game? Story? It's not as good as the first.

[@rjproduction486]

If you are coping yeah 9.5/10. But objectively its a 7/10. Funny thing is The order 1886 have the same criticism like Hellblade 2 but for some reason hb 2 got a pass! And the order 1886 get destroyed by critic's! Playstation tax does exist!

[@LordAsturgis]

This review is longer than the game.

[@Disconnis]

Hellblade 1.5

[@nikohunt5187]

Spider man is always the same and so on for other games the graphics are better in hell blade 2 , audio, story , combat even tho it’s not super crazy it’s better and the animations are legit realistic so for me it’s a 9 compare to hellblade 1

[@ari.nogueira]

First of all, I'm not criticizing your opinion, I don't want to trigger haters LOL. You indeed provided your honest thoughts and had good points to base your statements. If this game didn't trigger your personal taste, it's all good, everyone has the right to express your own opinion. Most of the time I agree with your reviews, but it doesn't mean I will always do. I think this game deserves to be around 80-85% based in the technical marvel it is and based on it's own style. It won't be a GOTY contender because it isn't a mainstream game, it's a individualistic experience that each one will interpret on its own way, and this was exactly what they planned. Thanks for another video (and I watched till the end)!

[@muncus9599]

I think 7/10 is generous. This game is wildly pretty which is neat i guess but my goodness its so stinking boring, the internal chatter audio is distracting and annoying (which may be the point) and the over acting is cringy. I'm half way through it and there no way I'm gonna finish. There are better games to play with my limited time in this life.

[@ScubaSnacks]

If you find the voices “distracting and annoying” then you are legitimately and fairly not the target audience for this game

[@74Vidgamer]

Jesus, nearly everything he described is what I hate about modern games, this is a very easy pass!

[@RedEyedDRAG00N]

Hellblade 2, most boring "game" ever made.

[@wttruax5816]

Brother why tf would you even play this if you didn't like the first? The original was wildly un-videogamey. Much closer to Journey than God of War. It's not like they were going to suddenly add a bunch of rpg mechanics. This series is absolutely not for everyone and I love it for that

[@spawnofsatan117]

Is this the same Paul tassi who is ok with grooming kids in the entertainment industry but not ok with sexy costumes being in video games?

[@Saegan7]

Yup same person