The voices in my head told me to make a Hellblade: Senua's Sacrifice thread - by Thirith
Nameless Voice on 14/7/2018 at 14:02
The developers themselves actually describe it as being based on "an epic hero's journey" in the documentary.
Sulphur on 14/7/2018 at 14:08
Sounds like standard marketing, unfortunately. Given the focus on mental issues and the way the game opens, it ought to dispel any illusions of this being a standard heroic story.
Nameless Voice on 14/7/2018 at 15:31
No, I mean in the "spoiler" documentary that the game ships with, which I watched after playing it. The head of the project said that they started designing the game based on the concept of an epic hero's journey.
Either way, I feel that an ending that doesn't really resolve your plot and just leaves your players/viewers/readers confused is never good, regardless of what type of story it is.
(I know others will disagree with that, but I've never liked stories that end like that.)
Sulphur on 14/7/2018 at 17:22
I'm sure that's what they (
https://medium.com/@ninjatam/psychosis-and-hellblade-my-journey-grappling-with-reality-f223cd126bd4) started with, but it's certainly not what the end product's focused on. I get where you're coming from, but I didn't find it confusing because it's quite clear that the entire story is completely internal.
To wit, Hela isn't real, or even an enemy; it's the part of her that she refused to acknowledge, the part that accepts that Dillion died needlessly, and is not coming back. The entire trek through Hel is about fighting against reality until you realise the only way forward is acceptance. 'Dying' to Hela was an act of acceptance that was needed so she could finally grieve, let go, and move on. It's what gives context to the entire journey and redefines it while also telling you there's no simple way to lift her 'curse'. You don't just wish mental illness away. It's a constant, daily battle to subdue the voices in your head, and even the acknowledgment that they're not real won't magically make them stop. A simple resolution like the one you were expecting would actually run counter to the game's central themes and possibly cheapen it entirely.Again, it seems that expectations of the game leading to something else managed to sour you on it, which is unfortunate. If you're able to revisit it on its own terms, I'd say try taking a second look sometime in the future.
henke on 14/7/2018 at 17:47
Don't worry NV, I was also too stupid to understand the ending. You're not alone.
Twist on 14/7/2018 at 19:57
As someone who generally thinks game endings -- especially game endings in epic games or long, complex games -- almost always have bad or disappointing endings, I thought Hellblade offered a rare excellent and satisfying ending. I thought it was beautiful and moving and almost perfectly fit the game's theme and atmosphere.
The combat? Yeah, it gets a bit tedious and repetitive. One of the more disappointing aspects of the combat was that it featured unnecessary or unused variety.
It's been about a year since I played it so I can't recall the details, but in my first playthrough I played it blind without looking up any hints or tips. After I finished it, I looked up combat tips and lists of the available combos. There were a bunch of interesting combos, with elaborate animations, that I never discovered or used and never needed to use. It was almost like Ninja Theory developed the components for a more diverse and interesting combat system, but didn't have the time or money to bring it to fruition.
Thirith on 14/7/2018 at 20:09
In part I think it was a conscious choice not to make the combat more enjoyable, because you're not supposed to feel like a badass. It's the usual conundrum you've got if your game isn't about a fun experience: is it worth making the gameplay less fun to make a thematic point, or should fun always trump everything else? I'm a sucker for ambitious storytelling so I'm okay with the game's somewhat tedious combat, not least because it's a relatively short (but intense) experience as it is.
Twist on 14/7/2018 at 20:40
I agree, for the most part. I wouldn't want these unnecessary features to make my character feel more like a 'badass' or anything remotely like it. I just think a little more diversity in the combat could have helped usher more players through the story and its themes.
And I'm more commenting on the strange irony or sadness that a game commonly criticized for having repetitive, tedious combat already had the makings for more diverse combat within it in the form of several unnecessary yet elaborately animated combinations in its moveset.
But I agree: I wouldn't want the combat system to compromise or dilute what is supposed to be a harrowing experience, and I wouldn't want the combat to distract the player from the story and its themes.
henke on 25/7/2018 at 15:44
Hellblade is getting a free VR update! :thumb:
Here's some gameplay:
[video=youtube;_sanPP6-pnY]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_sanPP6-pnY[/video]
Snap-turning is in, but there still seems to be a bit of involuntary camera turning during the fights, and of course locomotion is all smooth. Not sure how pleasant this is actually gonna be to play.
Apparently the hardware requirements are pretty steep too:
Quote:
On a technical level, Hellblade at minimum requires an Intel i5 3570K or AMD FX-8350, 8 GB RAM, and either a NVIDIA GTX 1080 or AMD Radeon RX 580.
(
https://www.roadtovr.com/exclusive-first-look-at-hellblade-senuas-sacrifice-vr/?platform=hootsuite) RoadToVR has the scoop!
Thirith on 25/7/2018 at 16:45
I have to say that the third-person games I've played in VR haven't been a problem at all, mainly because you've got something/someone external to focus on.