On Steam, Hellblade 2's all time peak concurrent player numbers are worse than Hi-Fi Rush's, which doesn't bode well given Hi-Fi Rush developer Tango Gameworks got shut down despite the game's success and critical acclaim. While reports say Ninja Theory's next game has already been greenlit and the studio seems safe so far, given Microsoft's willingness to shut down studios like Tango Gameworks, it's understandable that people are still concerned that Ninja Theory may not be safe. It's a studio that has so much potential and I hope they get the long term life to fully realize that potential. PATREON: www.patreon.com/yongyea TWITTER: twitter.com/yongyea INSTAGRAM: instagram.com/yong_yea TIKTOK: www.tiktok.com/@yongyea TOP PATRONS [BIG BOSS] - Devon B [BOSS] - Charlie Galvin - Gerardo Andrade - Michael Redmond [LEGENDARY] - azalea

@Tom-sj3vn

24 күн бұрын

Free Palestine ♡

@TotemicFiend

24 күн бұрын

???

@bryanmartin8935

24 күн бұрын

I don't know how many people we're in tango but hopefully the small team nature of ninja keeps them safe. Regardless I'd love to see them go to another studio. They pushed the limits years ago of what the PS4 could do graphic wise and looks like they did it again.

@luluna5228

24 күн бұрын

the lead for tango left you clown jessus

@CadillacBoss30

24 күн бұрын

Are we so dug in on "protecting the little guy" that we can no longer call games flops? These games flopped. Critical acclaim means nothing if people don't buy the game. The problem is 2024 is littered with Bangers all year Iong ,indie and AAA. People are saving their money. These are the games that get skipped

I can already hear the Microsoft announcement "Unfortunately Ninja Theory has failed to reach our expectations, so we have been forced to take action. We wish them the best of luck... also our CEO is getting a pay raise."

@ZacHalls

24 күн бұрын

"Thanks for the IP. Don't let the door hit you on the way out."

@defaulted9485

24 күн бұрын

"Unfortunately, we from Microsoft hadn't promoted the game, we shadow dropped it like HiFi Rush but worse, we bled the studio to dry, so it's on Ninja Theory for not meeting our CEO-imposed unrealistic expectation. We are sorry to see Ninja Theory go after we killed them and siphoned their career-starting savings for Phil's yacht."

@paulsmith5684

24 күн бұрын

Yup. That is going to happen either tomorrow or week from now or a month from now tops.

@ManoMonikas

24 күн бұрын

I would not cry over that. There something not good with that studio. Talented people, but stupid choices.

@CadillacBoss30

24 күн бұрын

They fell short of their own expectations.

If it flops the studio might get shut down, if it sells well they might shut the studio down.

@alpha34098

24 күн бұрын

Tango Gameworks' fate was sealed the moment Shinji Mikami left to form his own Studio (taking much of the Japanese talent with him). So, why keeping a Japanese Studio when the talent that made it relevant are truly gone?

@fusingentree3928

24 күн бұрын

If it sells well so they get money back and also extra then it wont

@themajesticspider-man6116

24 күн бұрын

@@alpha34098 LMAO He alone didn't make it relevant; I PROMISE you. Other people worked on it, but regardless of all of that, they didn't even market the fucking game. I can't believe there's this many people not understanding how important marketing is when trying to appeal people to your product so that enough of them buy it, and the fact that marketing can absolutely make or break literally any game. What a weird argument to make...

@raskolnikov6443

24 күн бұрын

@@themajesticspider-man6116this comment doesn’t make any sense. He’s right about Tango. Also yes Marketing can obviously help but is also very expensive. So it’s not as straightforward as you think.

@Naklov351

24 күн бұрын

Win or lose you are going to the chop 😂

It's almost like a five hour game with great graphics but nearly zero gameplay isn't worth fifty dollars to many people.

@simonrockstream

23 күн бұрын

you're a clown

@terrylandess6072

22 күн бұрын

I used to joke that with many modern games I'd rather just watch the movie than push the narrative through the mud for several hours as the player. At least they can't mess with my PONG.

@flaviocampos3581

22 күн бұрын

I hope this stops the "movie games" trend... What happened to the games?

@Kirby-Krios

22 күн бұрын

@@secondarylogin642 indeed

@Asriel_Cypher

22 күн бұрын

Heard that the game can be completed in 5 hours. I saw a whole gameplay video on YT for 5 hours and a half. So that is kinda true, if not close. While in definition, it is a game. I don't think it's worth that price, simply for just graphics. There's not enough gameplay to call it a "Game" despite fitting the definition. I think that's the common ground here.

What the heck were they doing for 7 years? Holy crap a 5 hour movie game shouldn’t take that long to make

@KgEclispe252

21 күн бұрын

The realistic wrinkles were very important to implement

@mohandave5825

19 күн бұрын

Probably money laundering

@sickzappybeef9209

9 күн бұрын

The last game was a similar length. Also, it was definitely not 5 hours long unless you were speed running it

"It's No Longer Xbox, but Microsoft Gaming" Just remember that

@takeshikovacks6708

24 күн бұрын

Such a grim quote honestly

@tombstone118

24 күн бұрын

Speaking of witch Microsoft is planning to buy VALVE That causes very worrysome.

@Jack1994hoo

24 күн бұрын

Thank God that Valve is a private company, and Gabe Newel shows no signs of stepping down​@@tombstone118

@RJS2003

24 күн бұрын

​@@tombstone118 They say they wanna buy every company it seems, remember when Phil wanted to buy Nintendo? I doubt anything's actually gonna happen, especially after the hell the Activision acquisition was to go through.

@Walt_Xander94

24 күн бұрын

As if Xbox made good decisions? Seriously, this path they went down, started with the Xbox One reveal.

People ain't got 50usd for a 5 hour interactive movie

@Archontasil

24 күн бұрын

With over acting actress

@Kirby-Krios

24 күн бұрын

I'd rather buy multiple (better) movies for $50 ^_^

@patrickl671

24 күн бұрын

People have $20 for a 90 minute, regular ass movie though

@joaquin5929

24 күн бұрын

But they got 70$ for the 50th football/Star Wars/assassins creed game

@chamaragayan4011

24 күн бұрын

They sold it at 50 USD? If so then they dug their own grave with that decision.

This just means less people want to pay full price and are waiting for sales like a sane person in this economy

You know, I'm scared for Ninja Theory for sure, but I also have to wonder what in the actual hell they were thinking with this one. They made the first one on a shoestring, now they got the funding of a giant publisher and instead of making a sequel that was bigger, with more complex combat, more dense with features and activities, etc... they just made a game that is almost exactly like the first one, except it has even LESS game mechanics and isn't even significantly longer? What the hell happened here?

@kpsk8031

24 күн бұрын

Ninja Theory seems to have a lot of art designers and zero game designers. They should make movies and leave the game industry.

@SebastianBugiu

24 күн бұрын

@@kpsk8031which is exactly what Phil Spencer will help them do…. By firing them 😂😂😂

@TheCursedCat1927

24 күн бұрын

​​@@kpsk8031 I honestly wouldn't mind if Ninja Theory left the video game industry at least partially, and became more of a Studio that works on video game adaptations. Heck, I feel like Hellblade would do a lot better as a Show, than a short interactive video game...

@kpsk8031

24 күн бұрын

@@TheCursedCat1927 I wouldn't watch the TV show but I am sure it would be less boring.

@aaront8609

23 күн бұрын

Maybe they spent the budget on graphical fidelity?

"Microsoft already greenlit Ninja Theory's next game and assures the studio would not shut down" They said the same thing about Arkane Austin after the underperformance of Redfall, so that statement means nothing

@dudebruh8534

24 күн бұрын

I really don't get why people trust the words of companies. Are they literally signing a contract saying they'll do this? No? Okay then they will lie about it and nobody can hold them accountable. Every month I see a big AAA company say make a promise and I laugh while taking a mental note saying "I wonder when this will be brought up again." and it happens surprisingly quick.

@Asriel_Cypher

24 күн бұрын

Exactly. Yet people in YongYea's previous video comments didn't seem to connect those two dots. I knew Copium was running high, but damn... Idiocy really has no limits.

@santiagoherrera1853

24 күн бұрын

@@dudebruh8534 If you were an employee of a studio like Arkane, what other choice do you have? It's your job and therefore your future, they assured them they were safe and given it's Microsoft, you would assume if the game underperforms they can take the hit, but now I guess their other studios will be absolutely terrified because it will be impossible to trust them going forward

@dudebruh8534

24 күн бұрын

@@santiagoherrera1853 If I was a game developer I'd be aware of the environment of my job the same way if I worked in a coal mine. My job is easily replaceable, my boss could fire me on the spot with zero reason given, and the company I work under could be subsumed by a bigger one. Maybe you think it's a hard answer, but yeah. Just get another job. They're adults.

@maverickrx8

24 күн бұрын

@@Asriel_Cypher You have to take into consideration that they are hardcore Yong fans that will believe literally anything he says despite a lot of what he says all the time is incredibly naïve and misinformed/ill-informed. It takes a collective outrage for Yong to take a step back and actually use his brain to put 2 and 2 together (If he isn't being driven by sheer bias that is).

$3 trillion company Can't manage a checkbook

@mash2481

24 күн бұрын

Sounds like you’re one of the two cats.

@LymeGreen04

24 күн бұрын

Because Microsoft is going to let xbox take all it's money. Are you stupid? Or is it just gamers in general.

@Saint_Arod

24 күн бұрын

⁠@@mash2481Guess you’re* the other one.

@MegaDman16

24 күн бұрын

​@@Saint_Arod watch you're mouth.

@Asriel_Cypher

24 күн бұрын

@@mash2481 Seems like *you're** the other.

I feel like I’m sitting atop a hill, watching trains continuously go through the station, then off a cliff.

@metaloverlord7465

21 күн бұрын

I'm sorry but that sounds rather entertaining!

@sirlaughalot0785

21 күн бұрын

@@metaloverlord7465 it gets stale after the first 20

@BritBox777

6 күн бұрын

We're just waiting for them to run out of trains before the station realises they might be doing it wrong.

Hellblade III: Senua's laid off.

@anantrawat2311

19 күн бұрын

But that's just a theory....a ninja theory

Also the fact that Microsoft barely promoted this game didn’t help it either

@ronniepatterson2827

24 күн бұрын

Don't forget the embargo till the very last minute. Like they knew it wasn't gonna review well when it dropped.

@1223optimus

24 күн бұрын

That was done on purpose because they know they had a flop on their hands. They aren't going to pour money into a lost cause. They do this a lot with movies and shows. 5 hour games Is absolutely ridiculous for a 5 to 6 year development time. Even worse a 5 hour experience in today's landscape shouldn't even be put on the table for discussion.

@devinwalters8769

24 күн бұрын

The head of the studio/original director of the first game left the studio mid production too.

@kpsk8031

24 күн бұрын

One of MS' smarter decisions. This game is unmarketable, why waste money?

@jacksnuller4867

24 күн бұрын

What should they have done? It has been on the front page of game pass for weeks. It has been brought up in their press coverages. They 100% promoted this. You think they should have wasted millions and buy advertisement space and that would have saved this 5 hour long walking simulator? This is a sequel where gamers know what they are getting. First one was boring as hell and barely a game. All outlets will review this and streamers will stream so what is this magical promotion they should have gotten to save the sales? This game is 7/10 5 hour long walking simulator that costs 50 bucks. Who is gonna pay for that?

Less than 4,000 on steam?? I guess we can kiss Ninja Theory goodbye...

@batalorian7997

24 күн бұрын

That's steam. That doesn't say anything about game pass where people don't pay $50

@silvershroud6263

24 күн бұрын

Its on pc gamepass fk face 😅

@da_ocsta1452

24 күн бұрын

​@@batalorian7997 How is that better?? Gamepass is failing, it was and is a mistake. Games need to sell for money, like in the old days.

@CadillacBoss30

24 күн бұрын

@@batalorian7997 Nobody is signing up for gamepass because of this game. It's not generating anything for gamepass either.

@diocub4022

24 күн бұрын

@@batalorian7997 It's not even on the trending web page on xbox game pass app nor is it on the top popular bracket. When the first Hellblade senua sacrifice is trending compared to the new one (hellblade 2). Ninja theory doesn't look too good atm.

Hellblade 2 is basically another tech demo for unreal engine 5

You don't make a game that's a movie. You make games that are games. Movies that are movies. It's that simple. You also don't take 7 years trying to make a walking simulator and think that you're gunna break the bank

@AlexVNL

23 күн бұрын

No. The quarry was really cool , and an interactive movie basically. Why should creativity be limited by this black and white thinking? If you don't like games like this just play something else.

@manuelferran4483

22 күн бұрын

Let developers do whatever they wanna do with their game. They can take advantage of the immersion inherent to the medium and use it to enhance the experience beyond your typical movie. This isn't for everybody though, so you'll never ever see great numbers there.

@nman551

9 күн бұрын

Cough cough until dawn end of story

@nman551

9 күн бұрын

@@manuelferran4483yup

Just like real ninjas, they will vanish without a trace...

@kurisutina9304

24 күн бұрын

But thats just a theory......

@harlowviv2968

24 күн бұрын

A NINJA THEORY

@victorcharles27

24 күн бұрын

GET OUT​@@harlowviv2968

@Kirby-Krios

24 күн бұрын

🥷

@U_N_I_F_I_E_D

24 күн бұрын

Joking about a studio's closure..

If Microsoft has proven anything, it's that you can't trust them when they say they plan to continue supporting their internal studios.

@peterjaimes8776

24 күн бұрын

Microsoft devalues and ip likes new car coming off car dealership lot and continues destroying it value like a dollar tree special sale

@thatguyfawkes2328

23 күн бұрын

If studios flop and cost them more money than they make a profit what is Microsoft supposed to do keep subsidizing them from other parts of their business that does turn a profit? I think these shut downs suck and it's disappointing but I think a lot of people are being unreasonable thinking Microsoft should subsidize dev companies they own that fail to make them any profits and that's just not how business works.

@DarkDyllon

23 күн бұрын

@@thatguyfawkes2328 exactly this, if they're talented but can't make a product that sell enough, then what is MS suppose to do? bleed money? sure, MS has plenty of cash to do so, but you obviously don't want to constantly bleed money because "well, studio has a lot of talent, they do something that most other studio's don't dare to do" Layoffs suck, but people gotta remember that most companies and their layoffs are mainly because they had a massive surge during Covid, which meant that they massive recruited people, which mean a lot of people are simply not required anymore. because let's be real, why do you need 1000 people working on a game when you can get the same result in the same time frame with 300. (still think these triple A games are becoming way too big, they constantly spend more money and time, while then complain that they had to basically suffer a loss because of it, meanwhile you got a lot of oldschool 3D games that were a fraction of the cost of todays triple A game development cycle, like I thought MGS 5's development being over 100 mill was insane, which also included the creation of the FOX engine, now 100 mill isn't that much anymore)

@OtakuV2

23 күн бұрын

Can't support studio if it's shut down.

@whenallelsfails21

23 күн бұрын

​@@thatguyfawkes2328you act as if arkane asked to make redfall and it wasn't an executive choice. You also act like Microsoft didn't just buy an ass ton of studios at once and then later complained about how hard it was in general to manage those studios. Like Xbox knows wtf theyre doing and haven't been on a steady decline for about a decade now. "WhAt aRE tHey SuPpoSed to dO?" Idk, think before they act lol. .

They'll just wait six months before axing the studio, and claim it wasn't because of the game's reception.

@Luigiplaya246

23 күн бұрын

We'll see.

Dude. It's like a four hour game , This developers toast. Good luck to them.

When Redfall has a larger peak, you know it's dire.

@Diegoshadow85

24 күн бұрын

Redfall was probably 10x more expensive though. So you aren't very fair.

@JuliusGrohl

24 күн бұрын

​@@Diegoshadow85But also 10x worse

@NostalgiaNet8

24 күн бұрын

I don't know, no telling how much Ninja Theory put into Hellblade II. ​@@Diegoshadow85

@NostalgiaNet8

24 күн бұрын

​@@Diegoshadow85The costs add up beyond just the game, but flights, equipment, ect.

@to_the_vo1d

24 күн бұрын

Different player base

This game basically has the same problem as the order 1886. Not enough bang for your buck. I think that if it was released at a lower price, then it might be doing better

@youtube-kit9450

24 күн бұрын

While I think open world games and multiplayer grinders really skewed the perception of how long a game should be to be worth an asking price, the numbers I see about Senua ranging from 4-6 hours seems too short.

@raskolnikov6443

24 күн бұрын

@@youtube-kit94503 hours?! Yeah that’s nonsense. Took me around 7 hours.

@TheCursedCat1927

24 күн бұрын

​@@raskolnikov6443 It's 5 hours on average - 3 if you just rush through the game.

@karmaascendant3936

24 күн бұрын

@@youtube-kit9450never seen anyone say it can be done that quickly, if just because of the forced walking . Everyone says 5-8.

@youtube-kit9450

24 күн бұрын

@@raskolnikov6443 I've seen as low as 4, as high as 10. But the majority I saw was 4-6. I fat-fingered the 3 there.

I thought after 5 years theyd have added gameplay... but it's still a walking simulator.

@anantrawat2311

19 күн бұрын

The combat in this game was better in the previous one

@LightTrack-

18 күн бұрын

The first game wasn't much different. It was basically an indie game with really good graphics.

To be fair, I'd rather take a 5 hr story driven game than yet another 50hr open world ubisoft type of game. I believe it took that long because they experimented with UE5.

Ninja Theory is cooked. There's no way they don't get gutted.

@PulseOfMe

24 күн бұрын

Don't feel bad for them if they do, they did this to themselves.

@nbomberguy44

24 күн бұрын

they should have made a better game

@353darkesthour

24 күн бұрын

@@nbomberguy44explain hifi rush

@raskolnikov6443

24 күн бұрын

@@353darkesthourfounder of the studio left and the team took a long time to develop and isn’t sell well. The team isn’t that small either. Not saying those are good reasons but there are reasons.

@homeblue7667

24 күн бұрын

@@PulseOfMe "they did this to themselves" by making another good game? lmao

Is part 2 longer than 8 hours? Has it still underwhelming puzzle elements? Because that was my experience with the first one.

@AndrewAnstrom

24 күн бұрын

Took me about 7.5-8.5 hours to finish and the puzzles were mostly terrible and I was so over them by the time the credits rolled.

That studio is gone in half a year. Mark my words.

@able75dev60

24 күн бұрын

Your words? That has been said ad nauseam in this and all related comment sections already.

@sebastianalhares

23 күн бұрын

@@able75dev60 Well, they are still my words. They didn’t copyright them, did they?

@able75dev60

23 күн бұрын

@@sebastianalhares Haha I suppose so. But anyways, if it does happen, I will mark your words and remember that YOU said so. And then I will sing your praises to all!

@stevenmarler5154

22 күн бұрын

Didn't one of the co-founders leave in April of this year?

@adrian09166

22 күн бұрын

Mark

7-8h of gameplay for $79.99 in Australia and no physical copy I can resale after I finish game? No thanks.

@ED-209UHD

24 күн бұрын

5 and half just the story

@MusicForMyDemons

24 күн бұрын

*5h

@raskolnikov6443

24 күн бұрын

@@MusicForMyDemonsmost people take quite a bit longer

@ED-209UHD

24 күн бұрын

@@raskolnikov6443 There is no reason to in this game

@theghostleader140

24 күн бұрын

You buy it you're stuck with it and you don't own it... What kind of $h!t is this 😂

No one is saying this but I think the new $70 price tag for video game now is destroying the AAA gaming market.

@jynxce

24 күн бұрын

I blame the industry for trying to standardize that price when we all are aware that every game made is not worth that price. At the 60 USD mark, there was a somewhat joint acceptance of the price. Once that limit was breach, either through greed of the industry or honest need for the additional revenue, gamers started to really scrutinize every purchase made. I hope it was worth it for the industry, because now they have and audience that isn't so willing to come out of pocket so easily.

@enrikekasijas705

24 күн бұрын

For sure. I wait for used version if price is too high. When it cost me 50-60 bucks I was getting every game on release 😂 Now I even wonder should I even care for a title. Capcom sells like us used and I think they benefit a lot

@bradams1854

24 күн бұрын

Its the 70$ price tag mixed with 1,000$ in required microtransactions to get the intended game experience. Not to mention that a lot of games aren't even settling for the 70$ anymore. Ubisoft games are all 130$ now if you want the whole thing, and that's before the XP boosts and crap you have to buy to make the game flow at the proper pace. Most AAA games aren't worth the hundreds of dollars they are trying to extract, and the people who chose to keep spending that much are finally running out of money.

@jakasmalakas

24 күн бұрын

I'd be happy to pay 70 for a finished game with absolutely no microtransactions or extra hidden costs or lies. That never happens though...

@Gundamman

24 күн бұрын

@jmontoya5485 I whole agree we are in a bubble and prices can't keep up with the crazy financial expectation, especially when they get bodied buy games like like palworld and hell divers that are a fraction of the cost of AAA games

Gamers: cheered when MS won battle for monopolization. Also gamers: pikachu face when a monopolized company set their price

@jynxce

24 күн бұрын

Unfortunately, it'll take people losing their livelihood and some of their favorite studios disbanded before they learn their lessons of monopolization. Maybe they'll be a little more wary of which mega-corps they champion on next time.

@H3LLGHA5T

24 күн бұрын

I knew it was a bad sign when they acquired Bethesda, but Microsoft being allowed to absorb a company the size of Activision is downright corruption. And all these idiots cheered them on because those NPCs thought Microsoft was going to fix Activision, lol.

@DarkDyllon

23 күн бұрын

let's forget that it took Ninja Theory 4-5 years to make a 4-6 hour walking simulator game with less depth than it's predecessor. this isn't a Microsoft bad issue, this is a Ninja Theory is a bad dev studio issue. (their only other noteworthy game minus Hellblade 1, which I completely forget existed, was DMC Devil May Cry, which is still concidered 1 of the worst DMC games out there, it might just be better than DMC2 somehow)

I want my games to be at least as long as the opening/tutorials of my favorite rpgs. 8-15 hours long and fun.

The Internet really doesn't seem worried since they not playing it

@troin3925

24 күн бұрын

Because the game had little to no advertising. People can't be worried about something if they don't know it was being released so soon.

@PulseOfMe

24 күн бұрын

​@troin3925 well people know about it now with all the headlines it's making do you see people buying the game now? No. Stop making excuses and blame on Microsoft all the time. The game is just dogshit.

@troin3925

24 күн бұрын

I wasn’t saying that those people literally never existed. Also, I didn’t make any claims about the game’s quality, I was just referring to the marketing before the game released recently (even before the game came out in the midst of Microsoft shutting down studios, people brought up Hellblade 2’s marketing as an example of Microsoft’s way of marketing games compared to other companies). I didn’t say anything like “dis game is good you poopy heads!”

@samc9133

24 күн бұрын

​@@PulseOfMe In fairness, doesn't a lot of the gaming market revolve around pre-release hype and pre-orders these days? Since it's a single player short experience I would guess that players would trickle in over time as they free up budget to buy the game (which they can't do if they don't know about it, now folks have to wait for paychecks to roll in)

@raskolnikov6443

24 күн бұрын

@@troin3925this is such a stupid take lol. Many Games with less marketing sell more.

never forget tango gameworks.

@techno_otaku

24 күн бұрын

It'll be impossible for me to forget seeing as they brought me and most of my friends awesome experiences.

@Skateandcreate9

24 күн бұрын

I’ll miss that snail 😢

@jacobxiaolong9104

24 күн бұрын

At that rate things are going, Microsoft should've just sold Bethesda/Zenimax including Tango Gameworks) to a company that actually cares like A24 or Lionsgate.

@GetterRay

24 күн бұрын

And I never forgot DmC: Devil May Cry. Ninja Theory belongs in the gutter.

@youtube-kit9450

24 күн бұрын

Loved TEW, 2 and Ghostwire: Tokyo. Absolutely furious that they got shut down after hi-fi rush, a super successful game.

Oh no not the $50 interactive movie. Why isn’t it selling well?

I have a real question : Do we not have to view the player number differently because the game is on the game pass, so okay on steam people are not playing it that much but beacause it is only 5 hours, most of them are taking the pass for one month so 10€ instead of buying 50€ ? Sorry for my not so good english, but i hope you get the question, i would like to reas people comments about that, that the statistic now is a little different because of the game pass. Thx

5 years to make a 5 hour game. They ought to be worried.

@UlyssesM

24 күн бұрын

And people are going to be surprised when they get shut down. I'd shut them down too lol

@jynxce

24 күн бұрын

Well, cup half full, at least they got some vacation time in disguised as work travel for game development over the years. Some of the rocks in the game are just amazing in texture. Wow.

@fusingentree3928

24 күн бұрын

4

@samc9133

24 күн бұрын

I really feel like you guys are expecting something out of this game that was never intended. This is just like the first game and so far as I know that's what it was meant to be. An art game like this, longer than 5 hours, would overstay its welcome

@timinou9915

24 күн бұрын

It's overstay it's welcome after 30min lol

Gotta say Microsoft and Xbox be fucking up a lot. First Xbox shuts down four studios and now Microsoft themselves inputs a Windows 11 feature that records everything you do upon updating!

@MasterBotttle

24 күн бұрын

Maybe that's why few people actually started to used Linux or some alternatives I guess.

@chriskennedy6300

24 күн бұрын

I hear that they're planning on buying STEAM. Absolutely atrocious...

@ofearghailthefearless6481

24 күн бұрын

@@chriskennedy6300 please let that not be true

@dakotasan8719

24 күн бұрын

@@ofearghailthefearless6481Given Gaben’s strict standards, I doubt that’ll happen

@chriskennedy6300

24 күн бұрын

@@ofearghailthefearless6481 It might be true due to how they're trying to monopolize everything and reduce options for players. Let's just hope STEAM doesn't give into them. Dark times in gaming these days... smh

Didn't Tango Gameworks pitch Hi-Fi Rush 2 and get greenlit? Just because Ninja Theory pitch Project Mara and got it greenlit doesn't mean they're safe from being closed. Why do people think this?

It has no gameplay, you can watch it on KZread and not miss anything.

5 years to develop a 5 hour game is absurd

@JDReC100

24 күн бұрын

how is it absurd? depending on how it was produced, I can totally see how "5 years to develop a 5 hour game" can happen.

@evildarc0

24 күн бұрын

​@@JDReC100 do tell... cause I can't wrap my head around it.

@kamurotetsu4860

24 күн бұрын

120 people worked on Hellblade 2. In contrast, Animal Well was made by one person.

@_Paul_N

24 күн бұрын

An hour of gameplay per year! Yeah they sat on their hands and did absolutely nothing outside of graphics and visuals 😄. The puzzles got even worse and fights were also reduced in a game that relies on them.

@sheepfly

24 күн бұрын

​@@JDReC100it's absurd

I find it weird... If you played hellblade 1, beat the game and jumped into this sequel, its legit 5,000 steps back in terms of gameplay. No melee attk, no dash attack, virtually zero combat nuance. Parry is overpowered this time around, timing is wonky, but its almost nearly a 1 shot on regular mobs. Dodge feels weird and OP, it feels like the game plays itself. Combat is braindead and extremely painful, just like walking forward, which is majority of the game. The player hardly has any agency, puzzles are time chores this time around, extremely filler and extremely simple and samey. Sewer Shark on Sega Cd has more twitch and brain matter interaction for the player. Best part of this game, UI and Graphics preview menu on PC. The game is extremely well optimized, minus traversal stutter on UE5, but its minor. Best UE5 showcase on PC thus far, thats it.

@KleioChronicles

23 күн бұрын

I’ve avoided looking into it to avoid spoilers (and I’m on PS5 so I’m unlikely to play it any time soon) so this is a bit disappointing to hear. Hellblade 1s combat was very simple, how on earth are you taking a step back from that? I was a bit disappointed to see the same simple visual puzzles in a glimpse I got of a trailer. I liked the boss battles and the unnerving/horror exploration parts, not so much the puzzles.

@nuruddinpeters9491

23 күн бұрын

@@KleioChronicles After playing 3hrs (5 hour game, lol)... I really just want to play HellBlade 1 with new visuals/gfx and I'd consider it a Sequel haha. Yea. Another thing about combat, tension IMO is gone... Enemies don't/ cant flank because enemies spawn in SEQUENCE, 1 by 1. Everything is seemingly 1v1. As such, there's no target-switch button, admittedly, it was terrible in Part 1, but having your voices yell, "watch out" or "Behind you!" was kinda COOL! Repetive in part 1, but cool, this is GONE in the Sequel. Its baffling... Why remove so much for simplification?!?! The game was never a GodOfWar or Souls like in terms of combat strat or puzzles etc but... Come on man. They gave us Street Fighter 6 with MODERN Controls (1 button supers/ combos) without any FUN/advanced movement or directly input abilities essentially. And then, the game itself its just really dull. It is. Yes yes, technically looks pretty but who cares if the game doesn't game?!!

@gilbert8667

23 күн бұрын

Well said.

@GamingandFrightened

22 күн бұрын

Again. This is not a hack n slash game. It’s a narrative driven game

@nuruddinpeters9491

22 күн бұрын

@@GamingandFrightened did you play hellblade 1?

I honestly did not even know that the second one was coming out till it released, so maybe it will take a little time for everyone to catch on... maybe?

I think what plays a role in the low player count is the high price tag ($50 USD before taxes) for that short of a gameplay experience (5-7 hours for the main campaign). If the price tag were lower ($25-$35 USD before taxes) it would help shift more digital units. A multiplatform release outside of M$'s umbrella would be challenging but not impossible (ie: Hi-Fi Rush getting a release on PlayStation 5 and Nintendo's next console) as there's going to be a lot of back and forth between the parties involved (M$, Sony, and Nintendo). Better advertising for that game also could've helped bring in the numbers to keep the axe-man from coming.

In YongYea's previous video, the top comment talking about "the studio 100% is going to shut down" by Uberbyte, a lot of people was so slow in understanding that Ninja Theory is still at risk of getting shut down. It's so ridiculous how people can't see the looming threat or chose to ignore or just cope. It's still worrying, that's the point because Tango was shut down and currently it was performing less. So the concern was valid and logical.

@maverickrx8

24 күн бұрын

The flags were screaming "HEY, LOOK AT US!" and were ignored. Anybody who tried pointing them out were treated like "old man yells at clouds" like usual. Now that it is getting real and Senua 2 relatively sucked as a 5 hour walking simulator that was so expensive, those who turned their heads away from the issue are going to be in for a wild surprise.

@Asriel_Cypher

24 күн бұрын

@@maverickrx8 One of them even used those big Twitter words like "Echo Chamber" as if it makes them any more compelling or dispels the worries, when they should've considered the common worries and concerns. Glad YongYea made this video because this is should be the concern, instead of ignoring it.

This game is just a really, _really_ pretty tech demo. It isn’t a game, really. Like, they put their foot into making the game look amazing, but everything else is lacking from what I’ve seen from reviews. Most of the compliments go to how great the game looks. That’s great but…not the main focus of a video game. If I wanna just look at art, I’d go to a museum. Repetitive combat, though it has its cool moments, walking, rudimentary puzzles and more walking doesn’t exactly justify it being a $50 tech demo

@ShrimpKrillingSpree

24 күн бұрын

This game is the same as the first. All these complaints were lobbed at the first one that still sold well enough to warrant a sequel. Clearly a group of people like it or it wouldn’t have sold so much to even get another one greenlit which this one has.

@Pengun3

24 күн бұрын

The game feels the same as the first game to me, and I just played the first one a week ago to get ready for 2, I enjoyed it.

@lolmarko4897

24 күн бұрын

​@@ShrimpKrillingSpree exactly

@manonthelivingroad

24 күн бұрын

let's be honest, you wouldn't go to a museum

@CZProductions

24 күн бұрын

So it's exactly like the first one? What the hell did you guys expect lol

Ain’t nobody worried about Ninja Theory. They’ve released mid game after mid game. No one is going to miss them. I really don’t understand why Microsoft keeps giving studios like this a ton of money.

Well it is time for huge companies to know that selling 4 or 5 hours movie as a game might not be what majority of gamers want.

The Steam review count is what stands out to me the most. Only 1200 reviews in almost 36 hours since launch. The game is said to be around 5-7 hours in length, meaning that most people could’ve easily gotten through the majority or all of the game by this point and post a review. It seems to me that this game isn’t being bought and played by many people. The original has 58K reviews, and major releases tend to break the 1K review mark often by the first hour. It’s concerning how little marketing has been done for this sequel. I’ve seen a lot of people who said they didn’t even know this game was coming out this week.

@juliothom2408

24 күн бұрын

Then buy the game, or subscribe to Game Pass. Otherwise, if Ninja Theory dies, it’s your fault.

@Phirestar

24 күн бұрын

With the mixed reception on how the game plays and all of the issues people have had with its design, I have to wonder if they intentionally chose to not to bring attention to Hellblade 2 out of fear that a lot of people would end up not liking it.

@Phirestar

24 күн бұрын

@@juliothom2408 I’m not someone who is personally interested in this game, nor did I play the first Hellblade. I’m simply saying that it’s concerning for fans _of_ Hellblade and Ninja Theory that Microsoft didn’t properly market this game and seems to be quietly releasing it under the radar. That isn’t the fault of fans either, if the studio behind the project isn’t showing enthusiasm about its release.

@juliothom2408

24 күн бұрын

@@Phirestar My point stands. Fans should buy the game or subscribe to GP. If they don’t, you don’t get to complain. I did.

@samc9133

24 күн бұрын

​@@juliothom2408 Everyone doesn't have the budget to spend on something at every moment. I've blown through my game budget this month. The point stands that marketing helps people make decisions on what they can spend their money on. I'll likely buy it on the first of next month as my paycheck is coming in. Before y'all go the "you're poor" line of dialogue, I have a six figure salary - I can afford to buy it lol. I ain't going over my budget tho.

To be fair, Xbox seems to only shut down games that everyone likes, so if it appears as though Hellblade isn't doing well, its developers may actually be safer.

@DearMink_X

24 күн бұрын

Who liked Redfall?

@dudebruh8534

24 күн бұрын

Wrong, Redfall was hated by all and it got gutted.

@klulu-kun

24 күн бұрын

I think you mean the studios* not their games.

@anrc5439

24 күн бұрын

343 still around

@nicj_art

24 күн бұрын

​@@anrc5439for now...

Be Metal Gear minus an hour long cutscene. Have gameplay that fits and supports the narrative. Doesn't matter if it's pretty if it's also not playable, I thought the point of the lovely mofern tech was for the games in motion to look as good as cinematics; not to just be nothing but good looking cinematics.

I won't pay £49.99 for a 5 hour stint. I loved the first one, and will get the second but will wait for a sale. I would have paid £29.99 instabuy, and probably gone £39.99 but have now watched the whole game on youtube (sigh)

Walking simulators are a niche genre. Not surprised by the low steam numbers.

@The_Punisher

24 күн бұрын

What is a Walking Sim?

@M00nlightOfficial

24 күн бұрын

​@@The_Punisher Essentially a game with minimal gameplay where narrative is the main focus, and you need to push forward to continue. Sometimes interrupted by a puzzle or light combat, but very linear.

@bigbeefy111

24 күн бұрын

Which is funny cause even for a walking simulator, I heard it doesn't have much to offer as far as compelling story telling.

@IndicatedGoodLife

23 күн бұрын

Its a shame that Kojima did'nt produce this game.

@dinohermann1887

23 күн бұрын

Can Shenmue for example be considered a walking simulator of some sorts?

They're probably gonna be shut down sadly. Feels like they're expecting every release to have helldivers 2 or fortnite numbers of players regardless if its a live service or single player game.

Is it true theres 3 hours of cut scenes in this 5 hr game?

@MinosML

6 күн бұрын

3 hours of cut scenes, 1.30 hours of walking and 'solving' boring puzzles, and 30 mins of total combat, pretty much

I played the first game and it looked really pretty but was flat, I found more substance in a game like the Cat Lady, it had a stronger grasp of the mind and was an indie game. That’s part of the problem with modern games they look shiny and nice but underneath they lack character and story.

No physical disc=No buy games

@iwouldntlikemeeither

24 күн бұрын

You will own nothing and be happy 🤣

@CyborgSelZero

24 күн бұрын

Jack Sparrow: But I will be happy.

@youamazing41

24 күн бұрын

paying 70 dollars is better ?

@youtube-kit9450

24 күн бұрын

​@@youamazing41i'd rather pay 70 bucks and own the disc than pay 60 and own nothing

@jacksnuller4867

24 күн бұрын

This is the last console generation where they will print physical media so have fun quitting gaming after 5 years.

I really tried to like Hellblade 1, but it feels more like an experience than a game. That's fine if that's what you're looking for, but I hope their next game leans more towards being, well, a 'game.' There's definitely potential there.

@samc9133

24 күн бұрын

I want it to stay as what it is, honestly! The first game was precisely what I was looking for. In many ways they are both "art games" and viewed through that lens, these are crazy high quality art games.

@irecordwithaphone1856

24 күн бұрын

At the very least I appreciate that you can acknowledge it's not your cup of tea but other people are into that. I've seen a lot of people acting like it's ridiculous to enjoy playing this, but different types of games are for different types of people. Someone doesn't want to play it because it looks like a walking sim to them, that's fine. But it's not my problem if they try calling me crazy for liking it, I am not going to let someone insult me for enjoying something that lines up with my preference. The world would be better if we could just leave people alone

@jgooner894

24 күн бұрын

A game can be anything, we can’t just say more a game. I’m guessing you mean a game with more interactive systems.

@troin3925

24 күн бұрын

Even people who liked the first game didn't like the second (it seems to be mixed though).

@ironiccookies2320

24 күн бұрын

Everyone likes what they want. Hellblade was made for a very niche audience and obviously you're not it.

I always wondered why Hellblade 2 wasn’t available on the PlayStation store since I’ve loved the first game 🤷🏼. Hopefully soon, it will be available on PS5 as well.

13:25 - When??... They've been at this for like 20 years and, if you ask me, while I like that they're doing unique things, I feel like they're going backwards in terms of game-design. - "Heavenly Sword" was their first big game and it's still one of their best in terms of being a GAME, alongside "DMC" and "Enslaved" probably. - I mean, where is THAT stuff??... If they keep making these sort of niche experimental titles, yea, they'll be considered a money-sink by companies. - I wish for them they'd just be independent or seek out other publishers, but this is not the right direction for them. - Or maybe it is, but they're not making good games, they're doing experiments. Again, I'm a creative, I do like that kind of stuff, but these are not games. - If they aren't a "Naughty Dog" after two decades, they never will be. And look, I don't think they WANT to be just like that. They're not gonna make Uncharteds and Last of Uses. They had their chance early on, but they only scaled DOWN in a way. - I think their former eccentric head is probably to blame for that. He seems weird. And now he took the money and ran. - Seems like a proper dbag...

You sure it's not because anyone who wanted to play are already finished with it?

@techno_otaku

24 күн бұрын

That's always a possibility Though, considering how money they seemed to put into it, Microsoft probably wanted much bigger numbers on platforms. At this point i worry for developers under such a company's thumb....

@ZacHalls

24 күн бұрын

Exactly, you can't look at these live statistics all day long like a crystal ball. People play games in spurts.

@FernyFernsworth

24 күн бұрын

It also leaves players with little reason to return to the game once finished so these numbers will likely only go down. I have a feeling that in the long run this game will be talked about as much after release as it did before it launched.

@troin3925

24 күн бұрын

The game had little to no advertising. No one (including me) even realized this game was coming out so soon unless they actively looked for it and remembered that it was being made, which is not what the marketing department should rely on.

@maverickrx8

24 күн бұрын

You're asking Yong to do more than the bare minimum and to look deeper than face value for everything. He doesn't know what he's doing after all this time.

3.9k players? The game could have 3.9m players and the studio would still get gutted for "underperforming."

@ryguy1483

24 күн бұрын

This isn't SquareEnix

@marybdrake1472

24 күн бұрын

Exactly.

@iplyrunescape305

24 күн бұрын

​@@marybdrake1472Megan in your pfp? Wild find.

@marybdrake1472

24 күн бұрын

@@iplyrunescape305 I'm honestly surprised you know who she is. Despite this being, you know, the internet, she is not a well known character.

@iplyrunescape305

24 күн бұрын

@@marybdrake1472 I'm more surprised I found someone having her as a pfp. I used to draw her a lot. Yeah man she's epic, too bad she is very ignored even in the brony fandom. I was the few trying to get her some appreciation. I still have great respect for her, and G1 is my favorite generation. Even above G4, even if it's objectively better

You walk, jog, stare and once in a while fight some dudes one at a time. 5 years to make and I’d say 4 of them were mainly focused on visuals I don’t want a 3rd game if they still put little effort into anything that isn’t visuals

I picked up Hellblade 1 last month for a couple bucks. Plan on playing in October.

Life hack: -grab controller -look up 4k playthrough on youtube -imagine you're playing the game -ENJOY

@Lunaria.Praesentia

24 күн бұрын

I get the joke but at the same time, why is it so hard for some people to understand and RESPECT the fact that there are players that really enjoy this kind of heavy narrative experiences? If you want to play something like God Of War, then you have that, or something like Elden Ring or Stellar Blade then you have that too, Hellblade has its own identity and doesn't need to be something else

@Xerodm

24 күн бұрын

Ye ole sibling with a disconnected controller trick.

@UlyssesM

24 күн бұрын

​@@Lunaria.PraesentiaIt's a 5 hour game for $50.

@Lunaria.Praesentia

24 күн бұрын

@@UlyssesM You feel like you're getting robbed? Play it on Gamepass then

@bigbeefy111

24 күн бұрын

​@@Lunaria.Praesentia you realize that by saying that, you are endorsing the very problem that is killing high quality games coming out of Microsoft? Oh new game comes out, it's mediocre. Least I can play it for free on game pass 🤷.

They also need to be sharing more technology and assets between developers instead of shutting them down.

@irecordwithaphone1856

24 күн бұрын

Can't understand for the life of me why instead of selling tango game works they opted to shut them down entirely. At the very least then everyone could keep their job security and studio endeavors in tact. If Microsoft's goal is to make money/returns on these investments, then selling the studios would surely make more money than just outright canceling them. Even if it's a small amount relative to what they spent on acquisitions, end of the day it makes more money than shutting the studios entirely They must seriously be drinking stupid juice up the corporate ladder at Xbox

I played the first one for about an hour and gave up. The voices thing gave me a big headache and was immensely frustrating.

I never realised they made Heavenly Sword, I loved that game.

I think Death Stranding, "The Walking Simulator" everyone is stamps about, is a pretty balanced Cinematics presentation and gameplay aspects compared to this.

@troin3925

24 күн бұрын

The word "walking simulator" has lost all meaning. Usually, when people use that word, they refer to games like Dear Esther, Gone Home, The Stanley Parable, Firewatch, The Beginner's Guide, The Path, What Remains of Edith Finch, Everybody's Gone To The Rapture. Games that have no weapons, no enemies, no threat of death, just walking around with a bit of interaction (Dear Esther doesn't have any environment interactions aside from walking and triggering certain things by going to certain locations. I'm not dissing Dear Esther, I love it, I'm just presenting the facts about what interaction it has to offer compared to the other games I listed). I guess you could take the term literally when describing Death Stranding, but that wasn't the original definition that people typically used.

@Evonymus

24 күн бұрын

Death Stranding has like a million of little game mechanics. You don't call a game a walking simulator because you need to walk during the game.

@riddif

24 күн бұрын

@@troin3925 I think Stanley Parable is actually the most fit for the walking simulator, and that game is actually good too as meta as it is that carrying the game through. That's why i said DS, the walking simulator everyone so pissed about is pretty much have rich gameplay mechanics and the cinematics of it just a cherry on top. While Hellblade 2? is barely even a game. Visual and sensor experience "game" is so bizarre and niche. No hate, but my hope shatters when i hope this sequel can do "more", but no. I think P.T. is a better representation of Visual and Sensor experience, and barely even a "game" too.

@troin3925

24 күн бұрын

@@Evonymus Exactly!

@riddif

24 күн бұрын

@@Evonymus To clarify i like DS. I'm just saying it as a comparison that alot of people stamps the game about - is literally rich of gameplay mechanics. Not just a "Hallway Walker".

time for Sony to bring to back Heavenly Sword

@da_ocsta1452

24 күн бұрын

That was a flop too.

@cokeweasel1064

24 күн бұрын

​@@da_ocsta1452better than this skeleton of a game

@OrionDawn15

24 күн бұрын

@@da_ocsta1452 It would’ve been a much better game to bring back.

@nabieladrian

23 күн бұрын

MS would rather shut the studio, scramble the devs while keeping all the IPs. Actually, that's the main goal. Extinguish competitor's chance without even trying.

@dantran9962

20 күн бұрын

Heavenly Sword is a mid game. It was only good because there wasn’t anything else to play at the time it came out.

Lack of appreciation for hellblade 2 shows that gamers are just as broken as gaming industry itself. We are so spoiled with entertainment we value our undefined and never enough expectations more than the value we are receiving every now and then. I remember people hating on death stranding just as much.

I loved the last Hellblade and I had zero idea this game was finally out.

I’m not going to pay $50-$70 on any digital game. Has to be physical for that to happen

@barbe00brune

24 күн бұрын

if its on steam or gog, digital is better if you are concerned about game preservation though. But iget that some ppl like to see their games on a shelf

@mobi1etone

24 күн бұрын

@@barbe00brune I'm one of them people, over 300 boxed games on show. 😁 More digital now since getting the SX and GamePassUltimate.

@saschaberger3212

24 күн бұрын

@@barbe00brune I have 10 titles in my steam list that got delisted. How is this pro conservation? Rethink your stance son

@barbe00brune

23 күн бұрын

@@saschaberger3212 you can archive your games, and even if your games get delisted you can still download them. But archiving your games with day one patches which is required for a lot of games to even work, can only be done digitaly. Know what you are talking about son

They flaunted it for years like it was always around the corner. I always thought it looked good but there was nothing about the premise or story that intrigued me.

You mean a studio that spent 7 years making a 5 hour commercial lost game might get shut down?! No way!!!

Last one standing is going to be Beth with it's Fallout and Elder Scrolls. They are going to churn those out with all kinds of weird money grabs and no mod support. Also I get that the studio has the right idea but their execution is as someone put it "An interactive movie" and that just won't do well. Their market is a niche one (which you mentioned) and there is no way they didn't know that going into it. If Ninja Theory just wants to keep on this path then I don't see how they would survive with or without Microshit. Fingers crossed the ones with the talent get absorbed into other companies to hit their full potential and do well.

They really need to fix their production level issue. 5 years of development with reuse assets only came up 5 hours of gameplay? Some body needs to get their salary cut. And btw no physical disc 😢

@cokeweasel1064

24 күн бұрын

They're simply lying about how long they worked on it. There's no way in fuck it took that long to produce this.

@britishyankee961

23 күн бұрын

I suspect that they put 90% of their tiny little Gamepass budget into the graphics.

@SmBdgsDtStndgsndS

23 күн бұрын

Stop blaming the disc thing on devs, both MS and Sony keep forcing that bullshit now so they can phase out digital. I remember Spider-Man 2 Premium sdition didn't have physical either, they only mailed the action figures to whoever bought the game, which was insane

@SmBdgsDtStndgsndS

23 күн бұрын

Multiple distributors in fact, they didn't let Remedy ship Alan Wake 2 with physical copies either

@SmBdgsDtStndgsndS

23 күн бұрын

*publishers

Dishonored died for this…

@Maggbba

24 күн бұрын

Arkane Lyon made Dishonored, not Arkane Austin so there's still hope for a future game.

Waiting for the weekend to play this nonstop! Loved the first entry

I love what Ninja Theory has been doing; I was following all the dev diaries since the first Hellblade. I also love the fact that they brought in the band Heilung to do the score and help the mood so significantly. This studio has so much heart and potential, I hope for nothing but the absolute best for these devs; here's hoping they don't get axed, that would be a tragedy for the gaming industry, as I do believe they have potential to make something magnificent if allowed to direct something at a AAA level as you've implied. Here's hoping for the best.

Is a steam deck oled worth the extra money or should I just go for the LCD? Also how easy is it to set up emulators on a steam deck?

@smurfie8412

24 күн бұрын

Get oled stop being cheap

@sushiifoxx

24 күн бұрын

very easy, tbh

@MikoYotsuya292

24 күн бұрын

Worth. But if you can find a used steam deck lcd for way cheaper, ill say go for that.

@sunumaudio

24 күн бұрын

Looking back, I got one a month before the oled. I wish I would have waited, its a great device to own. Emulators work almost flawlessly. Ps2, gameboy, n64, all have worked for me so far. Highly recommend!

@jinstinky501

24 күн бұрын

How black do you like your black to be? Oled is for people who really like black.

Them being shutdown was my first thought when I saw the mixed reviews coming in. They won't touch the studio they should be trimming (Activision) out of fear of the FTC but all the others they've acquired are fair game. They'll destroy everything they've built to save that monstrosity.

@CadillacBoss30

24 күн бұрын

Activision pays the bills it creates. And is a cash cow

@chamaragayan4011

24 күн бұрын

The birth of Activision-XBox.

@nbomberguy44

24 күн бұрын

how does this studio not deserve to get shut down when it took them 5 years to make a dogshit 5 hour movie game?

@bigbeefy111

24 күн бұрын

Money talks unfortunately. Millions of skin bundle sold for $20 is a lot more profitable.

There was like zero marketing for this game. It was a coincidence that a friend mentioned it and I was like "Hellblade 2 comes out next week?". An all-time peak of not even 4000 players on Steam is really concerning for the studio. It took them 7 years to make this niche game and Microsoft will not be pleased, I can imagine.

If HB 1 and 2 are they best they can do, they SHOULD be closed tho.

Legit didn't even know this game was coming out.

@r_thekingslayerx4352

24 күн бұрын

Same tbh.

I was hyped when I saw this game was announced like 6 years ago. Now there are so many other games with just as good if not better graphics which was its big selling point. Knew this would flop lol

@Lolatyou332

24 күн бұрын

I don't think any games look as good and polished.. it's just they needed to make the game longer and add more playability. I can rarely beat a game 100% achievements in a single day, but I was able to with hellblade 2.. Just spent too much time on the graphics but could of done slightly less detail and focus more on adding slightly longer story and more combat scenarios and use some of the things from Hellblade 1

Jez Corden also said there was no way Xbox was going to release their exclusives on PlayStation

@Dead_Last

24 күн бұрын

Except sea of thieves

...looking at the data...any company will probably shut them down

Where's Phil Spencer in all this? He's been hiding out for the past two weeks letting Sarah Bond speak for him when she would be the easy target for ridicule among the media. Another Xbox game where the executives clearly weren't watching what the dev team was doing or making for years until right before release time when they realized something was wrong, so decided to either not or barely market the game coming out in an attempt to settle down expectations they themselves set for this game years ago as one of their big exclusive titles for their newest consoles. It's insanity how incompetent the leadership and management has been for so long now at Xbox. Its why console sales are plummeting and gamepass subscriptions are getting stagnant.

@jynxce

24 күн бұрын

It's one thing to have management breathing down your neck micromanaging, but it's another thing altogether when they have no idea of how to run the ship. MS might have some grand studios under their wing, but their record for managing them is bleak at best.

@saschaberger3212

24 күн бұрын

Don't worry, he'll be back saying exactly what everyone wants to hear and all is forgotten and forgiven

@elhazthorn918

23 күн бұрын

He's cleaning out his office.

@user-bk8uy6gb1f

23 күн бұрын

Too busy fixing his Fallout camp after it got nuked

The issue is, what is a successful game in today's standards. Hellblade 2 is another nail in the coffin for companies that take far to long to develop a game with a far to short experience with lackluster gameplay. I cant tell you how many times I've said develop time has got to be shortened. The cost of the games to develop plus the advertising has grown to the point where the game has to sell like hogwarts or elden ring to get any sort of head turns from the industry.

@Walt_Xander94

24 күн бұрын

Elden Ring is a bad example. Unlike Hogwarts, the majority of players quit ER because its FromSoft. Especially new players that dont know their lazy & outdated 80s game design shtick.

@Mac_Omegaly

24 күн бұрын

Yes we can have very detailed characters in video games. There's a reason Nintendo with their lower power system has done so well, Fun games over graphics. But now that's also going away somewhat. Yes there's always going to be a place in the market for cutting edge presentation. But It can't be every studio that's just unrealistic. Also those graphic intensive games take a boatload more installation space over crazy well thought out engines created by indies with artistic art presentations 1000% less graphically intense. Hellblade 2 juxtaposed to Animal Well.

@Jamesgates355

24 күн бұрын

@@Walt_Xander94found the dude who talked to the no maidens npc and got offended by reality

@rendox

23 күн бұрын

@@Walt_Xander94 Elden Ring was GOTY wtf are you talking about. 53K people are playing it right now, and at it's peak it had almost 1 mil on steam alone. Hell blade 2 has 1655 players.

I won’t be surprised if this studio gets axed. I will be surprised if they don’t, while tango got axed.

I wonder if some part of that is intentional. Like; it feels almost like they're holding these game studios hostage. "Better buy all of the extras on the next game release or we might close this one down too". Y'know?

3:54 idk how to feel about this level of coddling and sympathy for a company. I get being apprehensive about microsoft/ xbox decisions and management of studios but this is a very competitive and expensive industry. We as consumers arent supporting these games out of charity and neither are these publishers. Even the best regarded “thing” of today will eventually die and new “things” will come after.

Its ok if a game only last 5 hours. What's not ok is said game costing almost full price.

@Walt_Xander94

24 күн бұрын

No its not. Not in 2024. 6th Gen could get away with that.

@jasperwildlifeassociation5828

23 күн бұрын

@@Walt_Xander94screw visual novel type games huh?

Not Internet, its just 3982 people who perhaps worry, others dont care.

I'd be more concerned about the day 1 crack if I were them! 😂 Great work FLT! 👏

I watched a play through of the game. Took 15 minutes of cutscenes from hitting start to actually move your character and an extra 8 minutes of walking to encounter your first combat. If you want a video game and not a movie, this ain't it.

@troin3925

24 күн бұрын

I guess you wouldn't like What Remains of Edith Finch or Firewatch then (if you even know what those are).

@bigbeefy111

24 күн бұрын

​@@troin3925no one is saying games like this can't exist. Just don't expect them to be financially successful when they had 5 years and millions to make it. Then charge what they are for a 5-6 hour "experience".

@karmaascendant3936

24 күн бұрын

@@troin3925those games were made by small teams in fairly short amounts of times with highly stylised graphics and great stories . Ninja Theory 6x their headcount and spent 5 years making the cutting edge of visual fidelity to not tell an particularly satisfying tale.

@troin3925

23 күн бұрын

@@karmaascendant3936 That’s another thing with walking simulators (or at least, what people used to refer to them as before using the word for multiple things), they’re usually made by indie studios with smaller budgets (occasionally, you’ll probably also get AA games).

@wu-bangya4486

23 күн бұрын

Keyword: WATCHED a playthrough. U TOTALLY missed the point of game by WATCHING IT. The audio is HUGE part of game

1 year of development per hour of game. High budget, 142 employees, and backed by Microsoft. They did make that god-awful DMC game with a "Young Alternate Universe Edgelord Dante" and rewards you for mashing every button in existence as long as you didn't get hit. I guess they started falling off then.

@thereseemstobeenanerror1219

24 күн бұрын

To be fair the whole Dante debacle wasn't 💯 their fault. It was Capcom that pushed them to radically remake everything. In fact, their test images, while still "American" were notably far more faithful.

@bradams1854

24 күн бұрын

@@thereseemstobeenanerror1219 This and, their take on the combat system wasn't bad either. Being able to string hits from one weapon into the next hit of another weapons combo was actually a really interesting way to give a lot more combo potential without adding insane amounts of complexity. The only real thing Ninja Theory did wrong with that DMC game that was their fault was making it extremely easy to raise style in the original release version of the game, and a bunch of instances of really bad writing and the odd mishandling of almost everything relating to Vergils character and his actions in the story.

@w12266

24 күн бұрын

142 employees + God knows how many contracted external worker

Next time, they should try making a game instead of a movie Well, assuming there is a next time

Imagine if you worked at a fast food company and anytime you didn't get an order /just/ right or your store got a less than stellar review, you had to worry about your location/job being snatched away at a moments notice..all the while reconciling with the fact that your company was worth $3 friggin trillion dollars..maddening. Its gotten to the point where the audience has to be more worried about the prospective jobs of the studios whose games they buy than that of the company that bought said studio all the while reaping non of the benefits these companys will rake in.