Hades 2

Hades 2 is a direct sequel to the superbly received roguelike, which was released on PC and Switch in September 2020, and on PS4, PS5, XOne and XSX/S less than twelve months later. The game was developed by the Supergiant Games studio responsible for the original, for which this is the first sequel in their portfolio.

Plot

The action of Hades 2 takes place some time after the events of the first part. The two titles are strongly connected, but the developers assure that knowledge of the original is not necessary to be able to understand the plot of the sequel. Unlike the first part of the series, the protagonist is not the son of the title god of the Underworld, Zagreus, but his sister - a princess of the Underworld named Melinoë. Like her brother, she cannot be permanently killed, so that after each death she comes back to life.

The location of the action has also changed. For Melinoë must leave the realm of the Underworld and set out on a mission to kill Kronos - the titan of time, who is also her grandfather, who escaped from a prison located in the depths of the Underworld to start a war with Olympus. Hades' daughter must find him and stop him.

Hundreds of minor opponents, as well as powerful bosses, stand in her way. To fight them, Melinoë uses both a rich arsenal of shadowy weapons (shadowy weapons), as well as deadly skills and dark magic. In learning the arcana of the latter, the princess of the Underworld is assisted by Hekate - the goddess of darkness, sorcery, supernatural phenomena and crossroads, known from Greek mythology.

Mechanics

In terms of gameplay, Hades 2 is very similar to the original. The game's action is shown in an isometric view. The player begins each approach in a safe starting location, where he can select equipment and skills. After leaving it, on the other hand, he traverses successive arenas, in most of them fighting hordes of enemies. Passing each chamber is rewarded with special powers, health upgrades, gold, etc.

The powers mentioned are mainly derived from gods and goddesses known from Greek mythology. There are more than a dozen of them in Hades 2 - Zeus, Poseidon, Athena, Aphrodite, Artemis, Ares, Dionysus, Hermes and Demeter, known from the "one", return, but there are also new characters, such as the god of light, Apollo.

After each death, the player returns to the initial location and must start the game from the beginning, as it were. As it were, because some of the progress - following the pattern of the "one" - is retained. In Hades 2 both every success and every failure are rewarded in their own way. In addition, they advance the game's plot, as after death Melinoë can meet different NPCs than in the previous attempt. Some of them - such as Moros and Dora - we meet for the first time in the series. However, there is no shortage of some familiar faces from the first Hades.

Trivia

Like the protagonist of the "one", Zagreus, his sister Melinoë was not invented by the developers from the Supergiant Games studio. Her name appears in Orphic hymns, as well as on a certain metal tablet, where Persephone is also mentioned. The developers felt that the mythological sources sufficiently link Melinoë to the realm of Hades, so they were able to take this theme into the game and fit it into their own vision. Interestingly, the character is often described in similar terms to the aforementioned Hekate or erinas - Greek goddesses personifying vengeance, punishment and remorse.

Technical aspects

Graphics in Hades 2 is very similar to that of the original. The soundtrack of the title has also been kept in a similar climate, again the responsibility of Darren Korb and Ashley Barrett.

Supergiant Games studio began production of the game shortly after the release of the first Hades on PC and Switch. However, work on it did not start in full swing until early 2021.