Hades II marks a first for Supergiant Games. This is the first time the studio has revisited the world, its characters and their stories, and as a result, it’s its first direct sequel. In some ways, that might seem disappointing, but this is Supergiant Games we’re talking about. Hades is a masterclass in narrative design, addictive gameplay, rewarding, beautiful art, etc. It’s excellent in every aspect. However – this will shock you – Hades II also it happens to be brilliant, and it’s not even finished yet!
After 20 hours of gameplay through the Early Access version, available via Steam and Epic Games Store, we can say that Supergiant already has another hit. The studio can’t yet reveal which consoles it will be released on — Switch Successor, perhaps? We sure hope so – but we couldn’t wait that long. So we loaded up our Steam Deck to check out this god-like, goofy sequel.
Hades II begins in a familiar way. After the title screen, Melinoë (or Mel, as some call her)—daughter of Hades and princess of the underworld—is lowered into Erebus, a waiting place for the souls of the recently departed. From here it becomes clear what you need to do — descend, fight tons of ghosts and creatures, and keep descending until you reach your goal: Chronos, the Titan of Time.
As you descend from the Crossroads into the Underworld, that tried and true Hades gameplay loop kicks in. Fight enemies, grab rewards, accept boons from the gods and carve your way through various biomes. If you die, you’ll be returned to your quarters at the Crossroads—a place hidden between the Underworld and the Surface. Here you can equip different Nocturnal Arms, talk to your mentor in Hecate, the goddess of sorcery, or befriend Odysseus. Oh, and Skelly returns as Schelemeus with some pretty amazing brilliance.
However, while Hades II can feel famously, if you play exactly like Hades — fast, furious, and in the face of the enemy — you’ll soon find yourself dying, very quickly.
Melinoë is the place where the greatest differences of Hades II come from. She is the complete opposite of her brother Zagreus — while Zag is brash and rebellious, Mel is hardworking, dedicated and methodical. For starters, she feels slower than Zagreus: her dash takes a little longer to recharge, and she can only run once. In return, holding the dash button will allow her to run faster, which is where many of the dash-based advantages come into play. Mela’s cast is also different and allows her to drop a magic circle to slow enemy movement. This means you can’t be as aggressive in your play style and you have to think about little a little more about how all the pieces work together. And then, when you get that magical combination of grace where everything clicks, it feels so good.
Speaking of magic, being Hecate’s apprentice, Mel is a witch and is extremely skilled with spells and mana. Mel can consume magic by charging (called an Omega Move) with his standard attack, a special – usually a ranged attack or guard, depending on the weapon – or a throw. Your magic regenerates over time, and you can increase the rate at which it regenerates with boons or effects. It took us more than a few runs to adjust, but the shift in focus from close to magic and distance is genius. Hades II might look similar, but it plays quite differently.
Mel’s cast especially came to meet us in multiple performances. Sometimes it was enough to simply throw it at enemies to slow them down, but when we upgraded it with Aphrodite’s boon, which sucks enemies and inflicts Weak, it allowed us to trap enemies and deal extra damage to them. , a boon from Hestia, the goddess of fire, creates an explosion where the cast circle is located, dealing massive area-of-effect damage to all enemies affected by the explosion. These benefits, paired with Mel’s unique skills, create a whole new level of satisfaction for us that keeps us experimenting.
Hades II encourages experimentation even more than its predecessor. There’s still a lot to sort out with Mel, but not in a way that feels overwhelming. Mel can equip tarot cards that give various positive effects, but you have to collect ash to buy more. You can also cast Enchantments from the Crossroads to unlock new objects at the Crossroads and during your journey through the Underworld. Selene, the Moon incarnate, can appear and grant boons that give Mel a brand new skill — Hex — that can be activated after spending a certain amount of magic per floor.
If that’s not enough, Mel’s weapons are also vastly different from Zagreus’ arsenal. A witch’s staff is like a spear, but with a short range and a slow, heavy special strike. The Moonstone Ax is extremely slow and powerful and allows Mel to block attacks. We still can’t quite figure out how to use Spectral Flames, but there is no other weapon like it in Hades or the sequel.
Still, this isn’t Hades without a fantastic cast of characters. And while there are plenty of returning faces, like Aphrodite, we want to focus on some of the newcomers, all of whom are as charming, adorable and hilarious as we’ve come to expect. Hestia is already one of our favorites: as one of Hades’ siblings, she’s basically the “cool” aunt, with a warm but biting sense of humor that Mel calls “hot stuff.” Apollo also makes his debut, and Artemis’s twin couldn’t be more different from the hunter, with his love of the spotlight and chivalrous nature. Their first interactions with Mel are wonderful and it seems like they will play a bigger part in the big story. Oh and, spoilers, they’re all hot. Again.
Mel’s companions at Crossroads also shine. Nemesis is jealous of Melinoë because the princess was chosen to fight Chronos and not her. So she causes a bit of friction at the Crossroads, and sometimes on your journey to the Underworld. In fact, sometimes she’ll challenge you to kill more enemies than her — lose and you’ll lose all your money. Other times they will offer items at a high price. And sometimes they will leave the room and take one of the doors, taking away your ability to choose an upgrade. Special praise goes to Dora, the sarcastic shade that lives in Mel’s room who is trying to be scary, but really, she’s just too cute.
Would you believe us if we told you that we’re only scratching the surface of the Early Access version of the game? Well, we are – there’s so much more to it than simply looking for Chronos. There are new gods we haven’t even talked about, certain areas to explore, and what happens after defeating the final boss in early access. However, Supergiant Games said that “Hades II in Early Access already has more environments, enemies and fully voiced characters than the full version of the original Hades game.” This is potentially going to be huge.
As it is now, Hades II is already like that, so much more than just “more Hades”. There are enough differences, tweaks and gameplay changes to make it exciting to climb through the underworld – albeit down instead of up – all over again. The team plans to update the Early Access version every few months, and it’s expected to stay with the EA developer “until at least the end of 2024.” So obviously, that makes us dream of a Switch successor release in 2025. We’ll be there day one, you can count on it.
Have you checked out Hades II in Early Access yet? Or are you replaying the first game to satisfy your appetite? Let us know in the comments.
