Let's talk about Hellblade's combat

[Fiery Phoenix]

What did everyone think about the combat in Hellblade?

I personally thought it was generally serviceable. Countering and attacking was particularly satisfying. Focus added a nice effect that made for some good crowd control. I did find that it grew old rather quickly, though. There wasn't much to it besides the basics you learn from your first fight or two. Fighting multiple enemies at once was often frustrating due to the camera and incredibly narrow FOV. Generally, I would have liked more moves and tricks. None of the fights really required you to do anything different from any other fight. More variety would have been welcome.

 

[Deleted member 8196]

Serviceable combat, not bad and not good.

They did good with the budget and the manpower they had.

 

[Finale Fireworker]

It was very simple and very repetitive. It was also often difficult to tell how far in to the fight you were and how much you had left. It was very cinematic in a way that I didn't feel very in control of what was happening.

However, it was fine for the type of game Hellblade was. Given its budget and intention I think the simplicity of its combat system made sense and it wasn't bad so much as it was basic. I would definitely like to see the combat refined for the sequel, but I'm not sure exactly what I'd do. That kind of cinematic combat is cool to watch but not especially fun to play. But combat also felt a bit like puzzles because of the certain ways you had to dispatch certain enemies.

I dunno. It's an enigmatic combat system. It worked for what it was but I think it could and should be improved. But I struggle to describe exactly how.

 

[Xx 720]

It was fine but Hellblade wasn't really a combat type game, was just there for variety

 

[RedSparrows]

It was serviceable, but in concert with the narrative it worked pretty well: the bits where Senua went ham, it felt good.

 

[FelipeMGM]

Its not good when evaluating in traditional gameplay values I guess, but it worked well for what the game was trying to do. I just think the game had way too many encounters, would've been a better experience if it was shorter overall for me

 

[Rommaz]

It was bad imo. Didn't like the way hits sounded or felt. I always wanted the combat segments to end as quick as possible because I wasn't having fun with them. But I don't think it was the point of the game so maybe that's why the focus on making it super engaging might have been low. I do expect it to be much better in the sequel though.

 

[LiK]

Very basic and simple. I hope the sequel is better.

 

[HStallion]

One of the weakest aspects of the game. A real turn off that had me groaning every time enemies started to appear. It's a game that would have been better without it, just a chore to get through.

 

[Dr Pears]

I thought it was pretty bad considering Ninja Theory's background of action games

 

[Deleted member 8196]

I thought it was pretty bad considering Ninja Theory's background of action games

Click to shrink...

Well, DmC combat designer worked on Bleeding Edge and not Hellblade

 

[Windrunner]

If the game was any longer it would have started to feel really limited and unsatisfying. Luckily it being as short as it was, it did the job. Just.

The visual and audio feedback from striking enemies and being hit yourself was very good however: it didn't have the problem that many other third person hack and slash games have where you feel oddly disconnected from everything.

 

[flaxknuckles]

I liked it a lot especially when I realized you can do near unlimited combos by making every third hit a x/square button press. The puzzles are what annoy me.

 

[Gustaf]

i really love it, it does what it has to do

it wouldn't make sense for senua to turn into bayonetta when fighting.

 

[cowbanana]

It worked ok for what the game was, but I wouldn't call it great or even good. Hellblade was a nice experience overall though.

 

[Fatoy]

I liked the boss fights, but the combat against the regular enemies was far too simplistic for the amount of it there was. If they'd cut the standard enemy encounters in half, I'd probably have enjoyed Hellblade a lot more.

 

[Yautja_Warrior]

Hellblade's combat is solid but basic.

 

[Nazgûl]

Simple and repetitve but i like it.

 

[Couscous]

It's very basic, but it's responsive and feels good which makes the combat more than servicable for the type of game Hellblade is.

 

[Acu]

I didn't remember it had combat at all.

Go figure how relevant it was.

 

[Dimple]

Basic, but it was decent, things like the parrying felt like they had a bit of weight to it which was nice.

Not sure they're gonna do for the next game, I feel like they will do something similar to god of war (2018) but I'm not sure if something like that is right for Hellblade, time will tell.

 

[Theorry]

I loved it. think the combat fitted perfectly for the story/game it was telling.
Crazy combo's wouldnt make sense at all in the game. Yet it focused on claustrophobic combat in terms of camera angle, the way the dodge worked, the directional sound etc.

 

[pswii60]

I didn't enjoy the combat at all in Hellblade, but loved it in NT's previous games. But I think that was down to limitations due do its budget. I hope they go for more of a DmC style of fast combat in Senua's Saga.

 

[GING-SAMA]

Hellblade 2 is directed by DMC combat/boss désigner and is not working on Hellblade 1.

My dream is that Hellblade 2 is semi Open World Soulslike 🙏

 

[SnazzyNaz]

Well, DmC combat designer worked on Bleeding Edge and not Hellblade

Click to shrink...

DmC wasn't exactly stellar either. Come to think of it neither was Heavenly Sword in the combat department.

 

[Irrotational]

I've been playing it over the last couple of days and I agree with most posters...fairly simple, but fine, and worked well within a story-based game.

I like the cinematic style of it (no HUD or recharging shield!), as a change of pace/style, and it helped make her feel part of the world more.

Haven't finished it so I'm not sure how any final bosses will play out.

I'd like the next game to mix it up a bit more, but keep the no-hud no-health style. It's pretty hard to get killed on "auto" difficulty.

 

[shinobi602]

Solid enough. I enjoyed it and felt it served the type of game Hellblade was. The team was tiny too, which itself is a damn miracle.

I'm expecting them to expand on it a lot in the sequel. Very excited to see what they can do with a much, much higher budget and larger team.

 

[Deleted member 29682]

It's fine for what it is. If combat is going to be revamped in the sequel I really hope they don't make it too flashy, it would feel out of place.

 

[KillLaCam]

Wasn't amazing or bad. It was good enough for me. The use of sound for enemies behind you was really cool though

 

[Mirage]

I liked it a lot especially when I realized you can do near unlimited combos by making every third hit a x/square button press. The puzzles are what annoy me.

Click to shrink...

I thought it was interesting how there was a lot more moves than it first appeared to be.

 

[Kyrios]

Basic, nothing great. I'd imagine the sequel is getting a dramatically improved system.

 

[Ravio-li]

I liked it a lot for a non combat focused game. It looked great while letting the player in control. The boss fights were intense.
It did feel a bit repetitive after a while, but I would have only an issue with that if the game had much more combat sections.

 

[sredgrin]

Thought it was fine and even fun / cathartic in some events. The puzzles were the real weak point of Hellblade.

 

[Marble]

Absolutele shite. It was utterly boring and it got to the point it was actually hilariously bad when I figured out your could just endlessly roll around the shield dudes (which are supposed to be tough enemies) and hit them while doing so.

 

[Garlador]

It was simple but had some good depth. By the time you get the rhythm down, it's fantastic.

 

[Kamaros]

very solid and tense, the animations are great. i liked it.

 

[Cloud-Strife]

They need to improve it.. it was the weakest part of the game.

 

[erikNORML]

Pretty dull, kind of annoying. I never felt I really understood it much, just waited for the witch time slow down move and railed on them. Overall it would've been fine if they decreased the number of encounters. It wasn't a fun enough combat system for me to enjoy constantly ending up in some dead end arena where I had to fight a ton of dudes to get out. Half as many of those and its flaws would've been less apparent. Still loved the game though.

 

[Adamska]

It's pretty fun, especially when multiple enemies start appearing and you get into the groove of its rhythm. Honestly, they should've made an endless mode or a survival mode for it, even if it wouldn't quite gel with the game's themes.

 

[Deleted member 54073]

Very simple, clunky and kinda bad. Makes me worried if they are gonna increase the size of their next game.

 

[Zeta Ori]

It's actually a lot deeper then it seems, it's just there is no tutorial explaining any of that in-game.

 

[Duxxy3]

Decent combat. Fantastic storytelling. Outstanding audio.

 

[Indelible]

I enjoyed the combat but it wasn't the focus of the game, the story and atmosphere really elevated the experience.

 

[Sub Boss]

Hellblade its not about gameplay but with the budget they had its serviceable

 

[Filipus]

It's actually a lot deeper then it seems, it's just there is no tutorial explaining any of that in-game.

Click to shrink...

I mean, the problem is that there's no reason to even use the deeper stuff. You can survive pretty well with the basic "dodge, fast attack, heavy attack" and occasional counter.

I really liked the boss fights since it added different dynamics but I was starting to get tired of the fighting by the end of the game.

 

[Freezasaurus]

It was fine. The combat wasn't the point of the game.

 

[Ravio-li]

I know it doesen't fit super well with this game but I want an arena mode + boss rush for this.

 

[Man Called Aerodynamics]

I found it really frustrating and ultimately put the game down because of it. I was really interested in the story and characterization too.

This would have been the ideal game to have a "Narrative" difficulty setting for people who just want to get combat over with and move on. It's not Dark Souls here. I don't understand why developers do this stuff.

 

[theAllseeingEYE]

It was a simple, solid combat system, that seemed obviously limited by budget, but once again showed Ninja Theory knows what they are doing. I can't wait to see what the team does now that they likely have a AAA budget.

 

[dancingphlower]

I thought it was horrible. Lack of enemy variety and hit impact really hurt it. Ultimately I got bored with the game extremely quickly due to it. Not sure why I bothered to stick with it through to the end.