Ninja Theory Reveals When Hellblade 2 Development Started

Summary

Hellblade 2 development began in 2020, not earlier, surprising fans who assumed it had started much longer ago.
The game's impressive graphics in the first trailer were not indicative of its actual development progress.
Despite a shorter-than-expected four-year development cycle, Hellblade 2 promises impactful improvements in combat and graphics.

Ninja Theory boss Dom Matthews recently revealed that Senua's Saga: Hellblade 2's development began in 2020. The upcoming Xbox first-party title was announced a year before that, and its predecessor, Hellblade: Senua's Sacrifice, was released in 2017, leading many to believe that Senua's Saga: Hellblade 2 had been in development for far longer.

During the 2019 Game Awards ceremony, Ninja Theory officially unveiled the first trailer for Senua's Saga: Hellblade 2 alongside the Xbox Series X reveal. The game was showcased as a fully-fledged next-generation effort that would harness the capabilities of Unreal Engine 5. The stunning trailer was touted to have shown in-engine graphics, leading fans to assume that the game had to have been in development for some time. However, recent comments by Matthews suggest the development of Hellblade 2 may not have been as far along at the time of the announcement as originally perceived.

In a recent interview with Kinda Funny Games, Matthews clarified that while the announcement trailer existed in 2019, the studio hadn't begun full development on Hellblade 2 until 2020. The studio's primary focus remained on completing Bleeding Edge, a multiplayer arena brawler it released in 2020. Only after finalizing Bleeding Edge did the team fully shift its attention to developing Hellblade 2. "It’s been seven years since the last [Hellblade] game, but we’ve been working on it [Senua’s Saga: Hellblade 2] for less time than that," remarked Matthews.

The Absence of Hellblade 2 Until 2021 Makes More Sense Now

Matthews' confirmation clarifies several doubts Ninja Theory fans had about the game in previous years, particularly the worrying silence around Hellblade 2 for two years after its first reveal. Many speculated that the sequel may have run into development troubles, but as it turns out, Ninja Theory simply didn't have much beyond the 2019 trailer to show in any meaningful capacity until 2021, when the sequel received a gameplay trailer at The Game Awards in December. Being able to produce a trailer that impressive in just over a year also speaks to the sheer talent of the team.

The four-year development cycle also puts Hellblade 2's smaller scope in perspective, as the game will only clock in at around 7–8 hours of playtime, a similar length to its predecessor. However, Ninja Theory has made massive improvements everywhere else, most noticeably in Hellblade 2's combat system and graphics, to maximize player immersion and push technical boundaries as much as possible. The game is currently in the hands of reviewers ahead of its May 21 release, and fans are very eager to see how it fares critically. If all goes well, Xbox might just have a Game of the Year contender on its hands.

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