Development on Hellblade: Senua’s Sacrifice has reached the alpha stage of development and the entire game is playable from start to finish, developer Ninja Theory announced.
The game itself, however, is not finished. According to the studio, “there’s still a huge amount of work to be done.” While some parts of the game are beginning to look and feel as the studio envisioned, others are still “only built to a basic level.” But all of the areas are laid out and the design clearly defined.
All of the game’s performance capture scenes have been shot, which are in the process of being implemented into the game, and all of its voice-overs have been recorded, captured binaurally so that you’ll be able to place the voices in the 3D space around you when listening through headphones.
All of the gameplay mechanics are in place and being refined, the combat system is complete and set for testing, and the psychosis-based puzzle experiences are ready for final polish.
Ninja Theory’s vision for protagonist Senua’s movement is “starting to be realized,” where she reacts realistically in all situations, and the game’s music is complete and being mixed into the game world.
Hellblade was announced two-and-a-half years ago. Its next stage is beta, where Ninja Theory will focus on the player experience, “looking at the game step-by-step, improving it along the way, honing how the game will look and feel.” It is the beta stage where it will add “a lot of small details that make a big difference.”
After beta, the game will move into its final stage of development, the mastering process, where Ninja Theory will iron out any remaining bugs and ensure the game performs optimally to prepare for launch.
Hellblade: Senua’s Sacrifice is due out for PlayStation 4 and PC later this year.
Watch the latest developer diary below, which focuses on the game’s themes of myths and madness. View a new set of screenshots at the gallery.
