What Hellblade Fans Need to Know Before Playing the Sequel (2024)

Hellblade: Senua's Sacrifice earned a lot of praise from players and critics alike for its storytelling. It has been likened to a work of art, detailing one woman's struggle with psychosis as she tries to save the man she loves. Yet, Senua's journey is not a tale of rescuing a lost love, but accepting oneself for all that they are, even the parts that don't always seem to be good. Her adventure through Helheim throws at Senua many different, horrific obstacles, all the while forcing her to confront death itself at every turn. As the story progresses though, it becomes clear that Senua is struggling with more than just her quest to reunite with her lost love.

Senua is a complicated and determined character. She is in no way perfect, and makes mistakes along the way, often at no one else's expense but her own. By the game's end though, Senua reconciles with her traumatic past and manages to accept the way things are. It is a metaphor for life and all its difficulties, but she emerges stronger for it. What's even more impressive is that her story is not over yet, and fans can continue her journey in Senua's Saga: Hellblade II. Of course, it is crucial to understand what Senua went through to begin the sequel.

Senua's Quest to Save Her Dead Lover

• Senua is a Pict woman trying to rescue her lover, Dillion, from Helheim.
• She struggles with psychosis which provides her with visions.
• Senua eventually comes into conflict with the goddess, Hela.

Senua is an 8th-century Pict warrior who had recently lost her lover, Dillion. Carrying Dillion's head to potentially contain his soul once she located it, Senua enters the realm of Helheim, determined to confront its goddess, Hela, who she believes is holding Dillion's soul hostage. It is important to note that Senua is a woman struggling with psychosis. Of course, back then she wouldn't have a technical name for it, but refers to its presence as her "curse." Due to her curse, she can hear voices that she refers to as "Furies", one of which is the narrator of the game who speaks to the player directly several times. At the core of the curse though is the Darkness, a powerful entity that continually stalks Senua.

Unfortunately, entering Helheim was easier than getting through it. Senua is guided by the memories of her mentor, Druth, whose stories help her navigate the realm of a foreign god, Senua does encounter resistance. Her first major challenge is the fire giant, Surtr, followed by the Norse god of illusions, Valravn. Senua manages to best them both, but these were merely minor antagonists compared to her ultimate enemy, who made her presence known just before Senua could formally enter the realm of Helheim.

Hela appeared before Senua to obstruct her path. Attempting to fight the deity on her own resulted in Senua being defeated and her weapon destroyed. Though she managed to get away from Hela before being killed, Senua was now defenseless in a realm that was completely hostile to her. Guided by more visions of Druth and an unknown entity made of light, Senua undergoes four trials designed to test her strength of body, mind, and spirit. Once her tasks were completed, she was granted the sword, Gramr, which is said to be powerful enough to kill even a god. Along the way though, players begin to learn more about how Senua ended up here.

Understanding Senua's Past and Trauma

• Senua's mother also had psychosis and was burned to death by her husband for it.
• Senua's father proceeded to abuse her until she ran off with Dillion.
• Dillion and their village were slaughtered by Norsem*n, launching Senua on her quest.

As Senua travels deeper into Helheim, memories of her past begin to reveal her story and how she found herself on this one-woman mission to defy death. Her mother, Galena, also struggled with psychosis, but unlike Senua, Galena came to view it as a gift, becoming a healer for their village. Unfortunately, this contradicted the beliefs of her devout husband, Zynbel. As leader of his village, he came to view the voices Galena heard as dangerous and blasphemous. To prevent harm from coming to their people, he ordered Galena to be burned alive.

Senua was only five when she witnessed this, and the experience was so traumatic that it worsened her burgeoning psychosis, and Senua blocked out the memory. Her misfortunes did not stop there. Though Zynbel stated he did it to protect their people, without his wife's caring influence to act as a buffer, his true personality began to surface. He was cruel and abusive towards Senua. He would regularly perform rituals upon her, and isolate her from the village, locking her in their home for extended periods of time.

More than once he hurt her physically as well. All of it was an attempt to maintain control, but that ended when Senua met Dillion. He did not view her "curse" as something to be vilified, instead seeing Senua as someone who was misunderstood. This gave Senua the courage to leave her father's home to be with Dillion, though they did not part on good terms, with Senua being forced to fend her father off with a sword before fleeing.

Her father's abuse was not something she could just leave behind though, and all the self-loathing he had taught her was still inside her. Thus, when Dillion's village was afflicted by plague, Senua blamed herself, believing her curse brought this misery upon their home. In shame for something she had no control over, Senua went into self-imposed exile for a year where she attempted to conquer her inner demons. When she returned though, she found the remaining villagers, including Dillion, had been executed by Norsem*n. It was only Druth's stories that kept Senua from falling into despair as she vowed to get her lover back.

Senua's Journey Was About Forgiveness

• Senua confronts Hela one last time but loses.
• She finally accepts that loss is inevitable in life and manages to let go of Dillion.
• Senua finally accepts herself for all that she is.

As Senua reaches the end of her journey, she crosses through the "Sea of Corpses" battling an army of unread Norsem*n conjured by Hela to deter her, all the while fending off the relentless voices of the Furies and the Darkness. As epic as her final battle is though, she is still just one woman and eventually is overwhelmed. Confronted by Hela once more, Senua offered herself to be a companion and champion of Hela in exchange for Dillion. Hela responded by running Senua through with her own sword. In her last moments, Senua remembered Dillion's advice about how important it was to accept that loss was an inevitable part of life and an indicator that it was one well-lived.

Finally accepting the fact that the man she loved was gone for good, the vision of Helheim changed. Senua was now the one who had triumphed over Hela, symbolizing her metaphorical victory over death by accepting its inevitability. More importantly, she was able to accept that she was not responsible for the deaths that had already happened, allowing her to let go of Dillion and all the people from their village who died. This in turn gave her the peace she needed to accept that the Furies were a part of her and not something to be seen as malevolent, finally reconnecting with what her mother had been trying to teach her when she was little.

Overall, Senua's journey is about moving past the self-hatred that others enforced upon her. She is not broken in any sense of the word; she just has a different battle to fight than most people. Once she realized that, it enabled her to let go of the guilt she'd been feeling and finally find the peace that those who cared for her in life wanted for her. Senua may not have been able to reunite with the one she loved, but she can at least love herself now. Her journey continues in Senua's Saga: Hellblade II as she finally begins to fight for the living instead of the dead.

Hellblade: Senua's Sacrifice

Action

Adventure

Systems

OpenCritic Reviews

Top Critic Rating:84/100 Critics Recommend:81%

Platform(s)

PS4 , Xbox Series X , Xbox Series S , Switch , PC

Released

August 16, 2017

Developer(s)

Ninja Theory

Publisher(s)

Ninja Theory

Engine

Unreal Engine 4

ESRB

M For Mature 17+ due to Blood and Gore, Intense Violence, Strong Language

How Long To Beat

8 Hours

X|S Enhanced

Yes

File Size Xbox Series

19 GB (November 2023)