Gaming

Senua’s Saga: Hellblade 2 comes face to face with past demons

Finding new meaning in suffering

Published

May 24, 2024

Gab Orlina

Imagine yourself rising from the dead with an insatiable thirst for revenge, only to carry a curse of a literal thousand voices upon returning. To deal with the burden of having an entire community of souls scream in your head about how you failed them, how they’re guiding you to where you need to be — it’s just all too much for any regular human being.

Hellblade introduced us to such a character in Senua, who was willing to go through hell and back for a person she loved. In a near twist of fate, she was consumed by darkness and the souls of her entire clan lost in her thoughts. However, she had learned to accept her reality. She hoped that this newfound power would lead her to a bigger purpose ahead.

I had zero expectations heading into Senua’s Saga: Hellblade 2 other than what the title screen would show me. Honestly, I saw that ominous image with a face and just thought of how horrifying this game was going to be. I didn’t realize that there was a whole lot more to this journey than I thought.

A foiled revenge plot

I didn’t get to play the first game in the series. So, the fact that the game starts off with a recap was great. Admittedly, I was still trying to sort out a lot of the details since it happened within 10-15 minutes of me playing. Still, I got caught up to what was happening pretty fast, especially to the aftermath of Senua’s actions after Hellblade.

The story begins as Senua finds herself washed ashore on an island she’s completely unaware of. In an attempt to get some clarity, she is met with the shadow of her past, reminding her of who she is and her place in the world. Her plan of revenge is falling apart, and to make it worse, the voices in her head just won’t stop talking. At the end of the opening sequence, she comes face to face with the man that took her in as a slave, and she is roaring to strike.

And then, the moment to strike was cut short because other things came into play.

One of the things I noted about the story was that it took such a short time to just get everything patted down. I didn’t feel like I got sidetracked way too many times. Every little detail made sense to what Senua will eventually do for the rest of the game. I can’t say much else about the story that would spoil things. But it does get good the deeper you go into the island.

Heaven and hell in full glory

Speaking of said island, on the Xbox Series X, the entire overworld is absolutely stunning. Yes, even the desolate areas in the game. A lot of the areas in-game popped out during the day scenes. They received proper lighting when things got dark most of the time. Even in a game with a not-so-open world map, every little detail was given enough thought.

This one area in particular with Senua exploring the fauna through the Hiddenfolk stages was a prime example of how the developers went all out with it, design-wise. Honestly, the colors were stunning and the elements you interact with on the overworld mixed well. When I went into Photo Mode to grab this, I just took time to get as many shots in this area.

Also, I have to applaud Ninja Theory for actually having a Photo Mode that you can use even in the cutscenes to capture some amazing highlights and sceneries! I wish everyone else did it like this, instead of just giving it to live gameplay.

Puzzled minds with extreme overthinking

A core mechanic of the Hellblade games involves the player solving a series of puzzles at critical moments in Senua’s journey. Even in Senua’s Saga: Hellblade 2, the puzzle solving continues with multiple visual cues to guide you on what elements you need for each puzzle. These added another dimension to the whole experience for me, plus it even increased my stress levels too.

As you progress deeper into the game, the puzzles actually become more challenging and hard to crack. It forces you to explore the entire area. There are moments in which the game tells you you’re on the right track. That’s when you rely on Senua’s focus abilities. Also, the voices in your head can come in handy. There are times that they even tell you that you’ve been stuck in a spot you’ve already visited.

It’s overthinking at its finest, but at least you don’t have to juggle that while fighting hordes of enemies and there’s no time pressure.

Fighting your demons, literally

Combat in this game is different from what I’m used to, especially in semi-open world games with multiple enemies rushing you. Unlike other games wherein being aggressive is the name of the game, Senua’s Saga has a timing approach to it with visual cues. Essentially, you just have to know when light and heavy attacks come in, block or dodge accordingly, then fight back.

It took a while to master the timings of some enemies. It was nearly impossible to stay alive in most fights. Once you have it down to a tee, every fight scene feels less of a hassle to deal with. However, the enemies also get harder and have added gimmicks like breathing fire to stop you. Dying isn’t an option either because each death results in resetting every fight scene.

To aid you in your battles, the trusty Focus mechanic also acts as a timely boost by simply stopping time. This was super helpful to get you to do multiple attacks. It cuts the battle time and take down stronger enemies.

Confronting your past

Senua’s Saga: Hellblade 2 is a rollercoaster of emotions and controller-button mashing that was simple enough to go through every step of the way. The linear storyline with great overworld visuals and equally solid gameplay mechanics just suits this type of game well. As somebody who didn’t even get to play the first game, this was definitely something new and unexpected.

If anything, I felt that this game had too much going for it. For some people, this may not be their cup of tea. For one, the story, while linear in progression, can feel a bit rushed especially when building character relationships all throughout. Second, combat mechanics can take a while to get used to, especially on the timings of enemy attacks. These aren’t total dealbreakers in the grand scheme of things, but they do make the game a little bit frustrating.

Overall, the game is simple as it should be. But fair warning: this game has too many voices for you to listen to. If you’re not a fan of that, you can definitely tune them out and focus on the demons you have to slay!

Gaming

HoYoverse’s first life sim, Petit Planet, opens Stardrift Test sign-ups

Closed beta begins April 21st, introduces more features

Published

April 10, 2026

GadgetMatch

HoYoverse is expanding to the life sim genre with Petit Planet, and sign-ups for their Stardrift Test are now open.

This new round of closed beta testing is available on PC, iOS, and Android. It will start on April 21, and will introduce new Neighbors, enhanced Starsea Voyage experiences, and additional Galactic Bazaar activities.

The title blends the joy of creation, companionship, and community-driven experiences, transforming the universe into a canvas of infinite possibilities. To sign up, simply visit the website here.

HoYoverse has also dropped Petit Planet’s latest trailer:

In the game, players take on the role of Planet Tender, stepping into the vast Starsea with a planet to call their own.

As planets connect to form galaxies, new stories begin to unfold. Here, you can live however you like. There’s farming, fishing, beachcombing, cooking, and more activities.

You can spend relaxed and fulfilling days on your planet alongside fuzzy Neighbors, and let your imagination run wild by decorating your home and shaping your landscapes.

Moreover, you can explore the Starsea to forge connections with people and things at the Galactic Bazaar.

Each bond formed weaves into an ever-growing web of connections that keeps the universe flourishing. Luca, the vitality that flows through all things, also shapes new landscapes and brings wondrous changes to the world as the bonds deepen and the planets thrive.

In the new closed beta, new Neighbors make their debut. Players can hop on their vehicles at the Starsea Map and set off to explore a variety of vibrant Islets.

Beyond the exploration remains a lively social hub where players can gather for coffee, relax by the bonfire, or even try fortune-telling or dancing with friends.

Gaming

Forza Horizon 6 already hits the mark

And it’s only just the preview build in the Tokyo area

Published

April 9, 2026

Gab Orlina

Up next on the Forza Horizon World Tour is a place filled with rich history. And an even richer cultural background. Tradition blends exceptionally well with the modern worldview, whether it’s the environment or the cars available on the terrain. For the first timers, it sounds like a riveting experience. For the returning players, it feels like a trip down a familiar path even if they’ve never been to the place at all.

When Playground Games announced Forza Horizon 6, I just knew that I needed to play it for a variety of reasons. From the trailer alone, there are things to be excited about, especially with how they will carry over the Horizon system of gameplay to a more car-centric cultural location in Tokyo. The driving, the cars, the sights, and even a preview of the Horizon events — all these are gearing up for a grand release on May 19.

And the special preview from Xbox alone has already surpassed initial expectations in my book!

Hot like rising sun

Right off the bat, the game wows you with the breathtaking scenery and the equally cool-looking cars to match. Even as someone who has never been to Japan in this life, I felt that they perfectly captured the hustle and bustle of Tokyo. Including highly visited tourist spots. The developers wanted to reflect a more realistic feel of the city. And I appreciate that a lot.

As you immediately jump into action, the familiar mechanics start kicking in. Simply put, Forza Horizon 6 didn’t change too much in terms of how you play — from the controls in races to the customization. If anything, they mostly applied clarifications to previous descriptions of existing mechanics. Furthermore, real-world feel for the cars still exists especially when you take cars only meant for city driving off-road and into harsh areas.

Of course, the Forza Horizon experience wouldn’t be complete without the free-driving across an entirely vast area, exploring nooks and crannies and engaging in all the quests. Similar to previous releases, the Horizon events were tailored referencing car culture in the country they roll in, which they nailed even in this preview. Also, they added even more breakable elements to collect and work towards potentially earning more cars, spendable credits, or other cosmetics.

Exploring Tokyo with ease

Even with keeping things roughly the same in game feel, Forza Horizon 6 felt substantially different, catering to both new and returning players. For starters, they divided the entire map of Tokyo into their own regions, each with a designated checklist. Instead of aimlessly wandering about the roads, you actually get an idea of what you should be looking for this time.

Second, remember ANNA, your guide to Horizon? Well, she got several significant upgrades that help out content creators immensely. One of which is adding in a Drone Mode. This allows exploration without driving and can help with video recordings on Xbox. The other is having a dedicated Auto Drive Mode. It takes inspiration from Waymo and Tesla in driving routes for you. Though, I still think that they need to work on the automatic driving just a bit. Sometimes the cars would just take the weirdest routes to get to your destination.

Finally, though there wasn’t access to the Buy and Sell market in the preview, you could get other cars in the overworld called Aftermarket Cars. These basically replaced Forza Horizon 5‘s car barn-hunting by basically just showing you the car, and it’s sold at a much lower rate. I love that some of these cars truly represent some of the more famous brands in Japan, both for casual travel and intense races. Hopefully they add a lot more in the final build, especially vintage Japanese car models!

A furious Tokyo drift over the horizon

So far, Forza Horizon 6 promises to be another exhilarating edition of a franchise that prides itself in celebrating car culture to the fullest. Playground Games kept everything mostly intact for overall gameplay yet fully poured in the effort to perfect the environments and activities well. It’s obvious that they did justice to Tokyo as a whole, to the point that even someone who hasn’t been there will enjoy the experience very much.

Hopefully, they continue to work on some of the wonky mechanics like Auto Drive and apply a deeper integration of the four seasons into accessible events. Also, it would help out immensely if players get better rewards for clearing all the hazards – similar to what was present in previous games. Overall, there are a ton of things to be excited about with Forza Horizon 6 when it finally gets released on May 19 for the Xbox Series X|S, Steam, and as a Day One Release for Xbox Game Pass subscribers.

So, time to dust off those racing wheels and, maybe, hold off on booking that flight to Tokyo for now!

Gaming

PlayStation can now scan you and put you inside a game

The limited feature will be available for Gran Turismo 7 for now.

Published

April 8, 2026

Luigi Leonardo

A staple of sports simulation games like the NBA 2K series, one of the most interesting developments in gaming today is the ability to scan faces and import them into an avatar. The feature lets players fully live out the fantasy of being inside their favorite sport. It has since made its way to more genres, such as in Where Winds Meet. Now, PlayStation wants to add its own native face- and body-scanning technology — called The Playerbase — into its repertoire.

Announced today, The Playerbase will bring PlayStation’s dedicated fans into cyberspace. It’s more than just uploading a face into a game’s files, too. PlayStation will fully scan a fan and import their entire body into a game.

Being more rigorous than just a facial scan, The Playerbase’s uses are still very limited today. PlayStation will start by importing a selected fan into the world of Gran Turismo 7.

Interested fans from selected markets all over the globe can sign up starting today for a chance to be featured inside the racing game. Once selected, the lucky fan will participate in video interviews before being scanned into the game in Los Angeles.

The player’s avatar will be available in a limited-time basis, but their livery, which they will design, will be a permanent fixture in the game going forward.

Afterwards, PlayStation will look to add more of its studios into the initiative tailored for their specific worlds. As of now, it’s meant as a special thank you for its dedicated fans, rather than an easily available feature for all of their games.