Hellblade: Senua's Sacrifice
I initially bought this game as a skeptic after watching the third trailer, where images and quotes are faded in and out of the screen, I thought; there's no way a videogame could be so moving as described in the testimonials, so I had to try it for myself.

From start to finish I was glued to this game, forcing myself to take one break- it was almost 4AM, with an 8AM day coming... The game takes you through Senua's quest to find Dillion, her love, and fight The Darkness. I won't get into the mental-health side of things, as I don't find myself well-versed in that subject, but experiencing the visions and hallucinations Senua goes through was super intense and really made you feel for her. Cutscenes are the only time you'll feel really safe.

The voice acting in this game is absolutely amazing and the visuals are stunning!

Puzzles: I've seen some complaints around forums about the puzzles in this game, and I will admit they are a little odd and strenuous, literally noticing the smallest coincidences in the SHAPE of RANDOM OBJECTS are what drives the majority of puzzles. but I believe they add to the feeling of hardship you're supposed to see in Senua's mind as she struggles with the difference between what's real and what's her imagination.

I had only one minor issue with this game that do absolutely nothing to take away from the story, but I believe it's worth mentioning.

Combat.
Combat felt oddly repetitive and easy, I found myself easily mowing down enemies after noticing their few basic attack types. I felt like every boss fight was similar in that your mode of success was to spam dodge and attack. The game does a great job of keeping your fights super-intense through use of visuals, sound, and other elements that present themselves throughout the playthrough. Also, Senua only has a few (maybe 8 or 9) attacks. Maybe I didn't explore the combative side enough, but after a while I began to notice the same exact combos rolling out over and over, and I guess I expected more attention to stuff like that coming from the same Devs who developed Devil May Cry. There are definitely differences in the way this game uses combat to drive the story, which is a smart move by the devs, but I feel like there could have been more.

All-in-all I recommend this game to anyone who enjoys a great story backed up by fun gameplay and audible/visible candy.

[b]Hellblade: Senua's Sacrifice[/b] I initially bought this game as a skeptic after watching the third trailer, where images and quotes are faded in and out of the screen, I thought; there's no way a videogame could be so moving as described in the testimonials, so I had to try it for myself. From start to finish I was glued to this game, forcing myself to take one break- it was almost 4AM, with an 8AM day coming... The game takes you through Senua's quest to find Dillion, her love, and fight The Darkness. I won't get into the mental-health side of things, as I don't find myself well-versed in that subject, but experiencing the visions and hallucinations Senua goes through was super intense and really made you feel for her. Cutscenes are the only time you'll feel really safe. The voice acting in this game is absolutely amazing and the visuals are stunning! Puzzles: I've seen some complaints around forums about the puzzles in this game, and I will admit they are a little odd and strenuous, [spoiler]literally noticing the smallest coincidences in the SHAPE of RANDOM OBJECTS are what drives the majority of puzzles.[/spoiler] but I believe they add to the feeling of hardship you're supposed to see in Senua's mind as she struggles with the difference between what's real and what's her imagination. I had only one minor issue with this game that do absolutely nothing to take away from the story, but I believe it's worth mentioning. Combat. Combat felt oddly repetitive and easy, I found myself easily mowing down enemies after noticing their few basic attack types. [spoiler]I felt like every boss fight was similar in that your mode of success was to spam dodge and attack.[/spoiler] The game does a great job of keeping your fights super-intense through use of visuals, sound, and other elements that present themselves throughout the playthrough. Also, Senua only has a few (maybe 8 or 9) attacks. Maybe I didn't explore the combative side enough, but after a while I began to notice the same exact combos rolling out over and over, and I guess I expected more attention to stuff like that coming from the same Devs who developed Devil May Cry. There are definitely differences in the way this game uses combat to drive the story, which is a smart move by the devs, but I feel like there could have been [i]more.[/i] All-in-all I recommend this game to anyone who enjoys a great story backed up by fun gameplay and audible/visible candy.