Senua’s Saga: Hellblade II Is Once Again Digital Only, But It Will Cost More

gameranx.com:

Ninja Theory just confirmed they were repeating a major detail about Senua’s Saga: Hellblade II’s upcoming release.

As Ninja Theory studio head Dom Matthews revealed in a new post on Xbox Wire:

“Senua’s Saga: Hellblade II will be a game crafted from the heart – a game similar in length to the first Hellblade, with a focused narrative, and sold digital-only at a price of $49.99 USD.”

Some gamers may not realize this, as they had only heard about Ninja Theory’s good work on the first Hellblade: Senua’s Sacrifice. But as it was ported across PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Windows, and even the Nintendo Switch, Hellblade: Senua’s Sacrifice was only released on digital and was never put on disc, or cartridge. The original game also retailed for $ 29.99, though of course it can now be bought heavily discounted or as part of Game Pass.

In this, Ninja Theory mirrors the actions of Remedy Entertainment, when they chose to also make Alan Wake II a digital-only release. Now, usually, it makes sense for games to be digital only, for example, if they are live service games. Games like Fortnite Battle Royale and PUBG can only be played online, with other players, and are constantly updated. In fact, when Blizzard decided to make a retail release for the first Overwatch on the Nintendo Switch, gamers were left in the lurch, as it turns out that the box didn’t have a cartridge at all, and the box only came with a code.

The reason fans want physical copies of their games to continue is well trod and understood in the industry. Gamers want to be able to play the games they paid for permanently. Some gamers are also likely to mirror discourse about video game preservation. But the industry has to face other realities, and so many games, even single player games with no online component, are sold digital only.

Let’s go back to Alan Wake II. While Remedy initially argued they didn’t want to make gamers download the game again after buying a disc, they later revealed what is probably the big