Ninja Theory has announced that Hellblade: Senua’s Sacrifice, their “Independent AAA” action-adventure game, will be released for the PC and PS4 on August 8.
In a brand new post on the PlayStation Blog, Ninja Theory’s “Product Development Ninja,” Dominic Matthews, revealed exactly what the team is trying to accomplish by creating an “Independent AAA” game:
In Hellblade, we are aiming to revive the lost space between indie and AAA gaming. Where creatively diverse experiences made with AAA values can thrive once again.
We’ve taken a small team of around 20 people and created a focused and rich experience that looks and feels as good as any blockbuster title. Hellblade is about half the length of a regular AAA game and priced at about half the cost. A price that we think is fair to both you and us.
Our hope is that if we make our Independent AAA work with Hellblade, other developers will follow, leading to a more creative and diverse gaming world for developers and players alike.
Matthews also reiterated Hellblade’s plot, which focuses on the trauma and psycosis experienced by a Celtic warrior named Senua:
For those new to Hellblade, the game is the story of Senua, a traumatized Celtic warrior journeying into the Viking underworld of Hel. We have created the game in collaboration with neuroscientists as well as people who live with psychosis. We hope Hellblade is an experience like no other.
You can get a short taste of Ninja Theory’s Hellblade: Senua’s Sacrifice in the new trailer embedded above.
