Hades 2 continues developer Supergiant Games’ reign of isometric action dominance, which began with Bastion back in 2011 and was firmly cemented by Transistor in 2014. Building on the foundations of 2020’s excellent original Hades, the sequel to that godlike roguelike features the studio’s sublime music and art direction, and ups the ante quite considerably in the gameplay department.
In Supergiant’s very first sequel, the story setup is simple but compelling. Players are cast in the role of Melinoë, the sister of Hades’ protagonist Zagreus and daughter of the titular god of the dead and king of the Underworld in Greek mythology.
Chronos, Titan of Time and implacable enemy of the gods of Olympus, has returned, conquering the Underworld and imprisoning Hades, Persephone, and Zagreus. Hecate, the goddess of magic, spirits away the newborn Melinoë and trains her for the day when she can take revenge on Chronos and free the family she has never known.
The vast majority of gameplay involves Melinoë smashing through the various hordes of hell in an attempt (initially) to reach the House of Hades, in which Chronos has taken up residence.
This loop is among Hades 2’s greatest strengths, as each run feels meaningfully different, despite taking the same path through four biomes, each progressively more difficult but commensurately offering greater rewards.
Unlike the original Hades (which followed this same structure), there’s another route via the surface, which takes players through an additional, even harder set of biomes, but this is gated behind the story and some resource requirements, and we won’t spoil it here. Suffice it to say, Hades 2 is bigger and badder than the original in most ways.
Melinoë has access to a primary and special attack, a dodge, and an area-of-effect magic attack, each corresponding to the face buttons.
There’s a bewildering number of variations that each of these four inputs can take, depending on factors like the weapons wielded, Boons acquired, or Keepsake chosen, in a particular run, which is where much of Hades 2’s near-endless replayability is derived.
Nocturnal Arms are Melinoë’s primary means of attack, and there are a half-dozen to unlock over the course of the game’s progression. Each meaningfully changes the way you play, offering different movesets and playstyles, and eventually players will unlock Aspects that alter and upgrade each in various ways.
Boons are essentially gifts from the various Olympian gods that Melinoë encounters in her quest.
They serve as powerful gameplay upgrades, boosting or altering one of the four face button’s functions in extremely satisfying fashion. In addition, you get to interact with the god in question, with Supergiant’s witty writing making each feel unique.
In each run, the Boons you’ll encounter are largely randomised (although there are certain ways to increase the likelihood of encountering a specific god).
Each Olympian offers certain advantages that allow players to customise their build; Aphrodite’s Boons tend to apply status effects like Weak or Charmed, as well as boosting raw damage and survivability. Poseidon’s, meanwhile, usually allow for powerful knockback effects and splash attacks, as well as improving location rewards.
Similarly, Keepsakes are items obtained by interacting with the various gods encountered or the NPCs that inhabit the hub world of the Crossroads.
These can be equipped before a run (and later, can be changed between biomes), allowing for specific benefits, like increased damage against the last enemy that defeated you or the ability to defy death once per night.
Progression is a critical factor in any good roguelike in order to make the pain of a lost run more palatable, and as was the case with the original, Hades 2 knocks this aspect out of the park. There are a variety of resources to collect that are used to purchase upgrades that make each successive run a little bit easier.
There’s almost always some new snippet of dialogue from characters back at the Crossroads; the after-run check-in with NPCs and planning for the next stage are often as satisfying as the moment-to-moment gameplay.
Special mention must be given to the characterisation of the various gods and larger-than-life personalities Melinoë encounters.
From Hermes’ speedy line delivery to the subtle wit of Odysseus, to the overbearing arrogance of Zeus, or the melancholy Melinoë herself, the voice work is top-notch, and the accompanying character art is out of this world.
In fact, the audio design is excellent across the board, with Supergiant’s masterful music accompaniment ranging from broody synths to electrifying guitar solos and back again.
Without spoilers, there’s a particular boss encounter built around music and fighting a band, and as you defeat a member, the others will have to pick up the slack or perform solo; it’s one of the more creative uses of music in a boss fight we can recall.
Speaking of bosses, the climactic encounters that act as capstones at the end of each area in Hades 2 are suitably impressive and can be extremely tough.
One of our few complaints is that these can become somewhat repetitive over repeated playthroughs; thankfully, there’s more variety and an element of randomness when it comes to the sub-bosses Melinoë encounters along the way.
It’s by design, but the level of difficulty Hades 2 imposes may be off-putting for some, although it does make eventual victories all the sweeter. Returning from the first game is the God Mode option, which we would actually recommend.
With God Mode, after each defeat, Melinoë gets a permanent 2% resistance to damage, eventually capping out at 80%. It’s by no means an instant-win cheat code but ensures that you will, over dozens of runs, make progress and, in turn, unlock the systems that make Hades 2 so satisfying.
