Summary
Recently published sales data shows thatSenua’s Saga: Hellblade 2isn’t faring too well commercially in the United States. The long-awaited follow-up to 2017’sHellblade: Senua’s Sacrificeand the only Xbox first-party title released so far in 2024,Senua’s Saga: Hellblade 2launched for Xbox Series consoles and PC on May 21.
AlthoughHellblade 2features top-tier graphics created using Unreal Engine 5, its overall scope is very much in line with its predecessor. The story comes in at around 7–8 hours and the game costs $50, which is a far cry from many $70 AAA games that can provide hundreds of hours of gameplay. Developer Ninja Theory previously announced its intention to offerHellblade 2 as a smaller-scale experiencethat focuses on immersion over everything else. Reviews forHellblade 2were mostly positive, but even after almost two months since its release, Ninja Theory has yet to report any player numbers or sales figures.
However, Mat Piscatella from US-based analytics firmCircana recently revealed some sales datathat offers a glimpse into howHellblade 2has performed commercially since its launch. In terms of full US dollar game sales (physical and digital),Hellblade 2ranked 37th overall and 21st on Xbox Series consoles for the month of May 2024. It’s worth mentioning thatHellblade 2launched on Xbox Game Passon day one, so its sales will have been impacted as a result. However, when looking at Game Pass player engagement,Hellblade 2came in 12th place, falling one spot behind 2018’sFallout 76.
Hellblade 2 Ranked Lower Than Fallout 76 On Game Pass
The somewhat lukewarm commercial performance ofHellblade 2has many fans worried about Ninja Theory’s future at Microsoft, especially afterthe company shuttered four Bethesda studiosearlier this year. Neither Ninja Theory nor Microsoft have commented on the sales reception ofHellblade 2, and it’s unclear if the title met its internal revenue estimates, as that information isn’t publicly available. Ninja Theory and Xbox may not have seenHellblade 2as a massive seller, so the game’s performance may be entirely within expectations.
Hellblade 2may be intended to be a concise, well-crafted experience that’s capable of showing off the capabilities of Xbox hardware, which many players believe it accomplishes. Reports also suggest thatNinja Theory’s next game has already been greenlit, so the studio doesn’t seem to be under any form of scrutiny at the moment. Only time will tell whetherHellblade 2met Microsoft’s sales targets or not.
