I just wanted to take a moment to recommend Hellblade: Senua's Sacrifice this morning. I've just completed it and found it to be an exceptional game! I went in expecting a standard-issue Dynasty Warriors type hack n' slash game with a generic revenge plot, but instead found myself playing what was primarily an atmospheric exploration game about navigating psychosis. Hellblade treats the mental illness it addresses with a surprising amount of sensitivity and seriousness, with the game play mainly revolving around deciphering what's real and what isn't.

Honestly, the combat and puzzle elements are secondary and frankly feel shoe-horned in to me just to make the experience feel more traditionally "gamey" than it's really meant to. For my part, I think this would've been an even better game without those elements. It's still really powerful though!

The world needs more highly creative, independently-developed games with strong and poignant stories to get these kinds of budgets, to which end I really hope this game gets rewarded with success.

Just thought I'd give it my formal recommendation.

I'll look into it if I ever finish my backlog, or maybe it's gone on Plus by then

it uses the same formula as the order did. straight forward, main misson focused with no optionary side quest stuff to stretch the game. the just managed to buid it so they could sell it for half the price. i like that formula allthough to me stuff like the order and now hellblade still is worth more than the average 60$ aaa third party game so i also would have paid 60 for it without regret.

Someone who understands this game! Thank you. It's not just an amazing game it's important one, through the subject matter it's tackling and also showing that smaller studios with great minds and work can create a hell (no pun untended) of an experience through a great story driven game. Also the audio team have done a f**king awesome job with the 3D sound and voice acting for the voices in Senuas head (you really must wear headphones to experience it 100%).

I havnt completed it yet as I'm really taking my time enjoying it. You might say the combat felt shoe-horned but I actually find the combat massively satisfying. I love how Ninja Theory have managed to create a good feel of weight and impact behind Senuas attacks, each one feels like it was a important blow to the enemy.

I really recommend the game but it's for people who can appreciate the work that been put into the story, Audio and atmosphere.

Yup. And indeed that is how it looked to me from the Jim Sterling review.

To experience a linear story, I would watch a movie. That is why I am likely never "playing" this. To have a game tell me a story, I will play Bloodborne or Persona 5. I frankly do not understand what do people find in these hyper-linear, barely-game experiences.

The devs behind Hellblade stated in a PC article that they want to bring back the AA game. It's sitting at 83 on Opencritic, which is a really good score. I'll pick it up once it hits $20 on steam.

When I think of a "barely-game experience", I think of Gone Home, not this or Persona 5. And Gone Home is my favorite video game of all time. I guess I just don't really care about the semantics of whether something reaches X level of interactivity so much as the substance of whether its poignant or just plain fun to me.

In any event, Hellblade has plenty of those traditional game elements that you might desire.

As to Jim Sterling, I'm having an increasingly difficult time regarding him as a credible voice. I mean when you score this game a 1 out of 10 (even if just temporarily), you lose some credibility with me because that's just not a serious score or evaluation. That's just doing anything for attention.

I meant Persona 5 & Bloodborne as game AND story experiences, rather that non-games. Granted that Gone Home is your favorite game of all time, I can see that you don't mind little interactivity, however.

1/10 or not, he still is entertaining to watch and certainly focuses on the aspects I care about in games, so in my eyes, he is just fine. A score is just a number, a review exists for you to judge whether the game is worth anything - and that 1/10 was out of pure annoyance.

I haven't seen the original review, but the revised one is certainly fine, and convinced me that this game is absolutely not for me.

I loved Hellblade. An amazing experience and game.

It is very much not that. I respect the ambition the devs had though, but I very much do not understand why people like this game.

That being said, this is a game. It's not an "experience." It has mechanics and rules and a fail state. It's just not very good. Not good pacing (literally and narratively), very very bad combat, a very shallow representation of psychosis, a story much less complex than what the game thinks it is, repetitive puzzles, and the level design (feels weird calling it that but w/e) that feels as linear as it is.

Trying to put the player in the shoes of someone suffering from mental illness is a lofty and commendable ambition. But, it failed. Also, what a poorly thought out ending condition. Like, I get it - but they clearly didn't think about that very deeply. Completely immersion shattering - more so than any other moment in the game by far.

More games should be made like this, though. The attempt is good.

EDIT: Also dear god, I hope the new God of War isn't like this.

EDIT: Also also, is it just me, or was this game insanely easy. I died a few times, but only during scripted sections. Not once during combat, but I played on the auto difficulty. The biggest reason it bothered me is because it really removed a lot of the tension for me, considering the permadeath that was never a worry for me.