Senua’s Saga: Hellblade 2 was released on PC and Xbox Series X/S last week and stood out as a captivating narrative-driven adventure starring a character with psychosis. It’s a tale about Senua getting revenge on the slavers who destroyed her village and killed her partner, Dillion, prior to the events of Hellblade: Senua’s Sacrifice. After a shipwreck, though, she’s swept up on a quest to defeat the giants plaguing Midgard while continuing to learn how to live with her condition.
Because of how Hellblade 2 aims to portray Senua’s psychosis realistically, the game is intentionally a bit disorienting to play. You might have come away a bit confused by what exactly happened over the course of this seven-hour adventure. That’s why we’re laying out what exactly happened over the course of Hellblade 2 and how the game literally and thematically wraps up.
How does Senua’s Saga: Hellblade 2 begin
Hellblade 2 starts an undisclosed amount of time after Hellblade: Senua’s Sacrifice. After defeating Hela, accepting the death of Dillion, and conquering the inner darkness represented by her father, Senua decides to take the fight back to Midgard and the raiders who destroyed Dillion’s village and sacrificed him. She got herself caught as a slave, The Northman-style, but at the start of the game, a fierce storm causes a shipwreck. Emerging from that, Senua slowly climbs and fights her way out of a rocky beach.
In the process, the inner darkness represented by her father returns, but she is still able to defeat Thórgestr, the captain of the slave ship she was on and the son of the Goði, who is in charge of the raiders and slavers plaguing Midgar. Senua chooses to not kill Thórgestr and forces him to start leading her to the town of Borgarvirki. Not long into their journey, Senua is compelled to stop at a village that was clearly just attacked by cannibalistic Draugar. She enters the town, fights the Draugar, and manages to save a man named Fargrímr.
Fargrímr recognizes Senua’s psychosis and tries to encourage her, calling her a seer. Unfortunately, freeing Fargrímr also woke up Illtauga, one of the giants who torments Midgard and prevents anyone from leaving. After narrowly escaping Illtauga’s attack, Fargrímr tells Senua to find the Hiddenfolk in order to learn how it’s possible to kill giants.
Senua’s journey to find the Hiddenfolk brings her to a cave, and after descending further and further into it and confronting her inner darkness again, she learns the truth about Illtauga. The giant was once a human woman named Ingunn, who got turned into a giant after trying to leave her daughter with the Hiddenfolk when turmoil struck Midgar. The daughter did not survive, but Ingunn did as Illtauga. Now, knowing the giant’s name, Senua understands that is how she’ll defeat her.
The quest to defeat the giants
Armed with the knowledge of Illtauga’s real name, Senua confronts the giant in the heart of a fiery volcano and defeats it, earning the respect of Thórgestr. The three continue their journey to Borgarvirki, but have to make a pit stop at a coastal village. The people there want to kill Thórgestr, but Senua convinces them not to and works with their leader, Ástríðr, to take on the giant called Sjavarrisi that is attacking this town.
Senua eventually learns that Sjavarrisi was actually a man named Saegeirr who lived in the town, but betrayed its leader to the slavers that torment Midgar. He was exiled and turned into a giant. Draugur then attack the village, and Senua almost persuades herself to stop her quest because of all the loss she’s experiencing and causing, but she overcomes that battle with the help of her newfound friends.
Having learned Sjavarrisi’s real name, Senua, her allies, and the people of this village draw Sjavarrisi out of the cave in which he resides by performing a ritual. Senua confronts Sjavarrisi in the heart of a storm and calls him Saegeirr, turning Sjavarrisi to stone and winning this battle. Ástríðr decides to continue journeying with Senua and they head toward Borgarvirki. Before they can get there, they come upon a haunted forest. While Senua’s allies suggest they walk around it, Senua makes the group walk through it so they don’t lose time.
The forest messes with the minds of Senua and her compatriots, making them all see and hear things that aren’t there. Senua is able to come into her own as a friend and leader and guides them out of the forest. At this point, it’s very clear that Senua has a group of friends who respect and trust her as they approach Borgarvirki. Thórgestr tells Senua to trust him as he can convince his father to stop taking slaves and terrorizing the people of Midgar.
How does Senua’s Saga: Hellblade 2 end
Senua and Thórgestr enter Borgarvirki, while Fargrímr and Ástríðr free the hostages. Thórgestr tries to reason with his father, the Goði, to stop what he is doing, but during the conversation, it quickly becomes clear that Goði is playing a part in controlling the giants because he understands that fear is what gives him control. The Goði tries to subdue and sacrifice Senua after learning the slaves have been freed, but he ends up stabbing and mortally woundingThórgestr.
In another dreamlike sequence, Senua learns that the Goði created the giants and blamed them for everything bad that was happening, causing people to fall in line and follow him. With his dying words, Thórgestr tells Senua that someone equally bad will take the Goði’s place if he dies and that she needs to “show them a different way.” He dies after telling Senua that his father’s real name is Áleifr.
Senua then faces off against Áleifr in a final battle, but as she’s doing so, the darkness in her head tells Senua that she’ll become like her father if she’s a leader. She decides not to kill the Goði’s followers, as it’s clear that they have turned against him after learning what he was doing. Senua realizes she’s no longer alone and that those around her lift her up and give her the power to make her own, better choices than those who came before.
The plot of Hellblade 2 is more interesting on a thematic level. It’s a game about how fear can control our lives and influence our choices. Senua and many of the giants acted out of fear and were punished and considered monsters for it. Ultimately, forming positive, deep connections with others is what freed them from that cycle caused by negative past relationships. The ending certainly leaves a lot of unanswered questions as to the fates of the Áleifr, Fargrímr, and Ástríðr, but caps off Senua’s arc of accepting and choosing to live with her psychosis in a very satisfying way.
Senua’s Saga: Hellblade 2 is available now for PC and Xbox Series X/S.
