Family is always complicated, but rarely as complicated as “grandpa has mom and dad frozen in time so now his secret granddaughter has to take him out to set them free.” Immortal family drama is at the heart of Hades II, just as it was its 2020 predecessor. This time, though, the stakes are higher, the cast is larger, and the action is more demanding, mostly for the better.
In some ways, Hades II is a victim of its own success. Supergiant Games’ smash hit roguelike is rightfully beloved for the way it uses the repetition baked into the genre to tell its story. That story follows Zagreus, prince of the Underworld, as he breaks out of the Underworld to form a relationship with his mother, whose existence has been hidden from him his whole life. Hades would go on to influence half a decade of roguelike design, with parts of it showing up in countless games since its release.
That all sets expectations extremely high for Hades II. For its second trip through the afterlife, Supergiant puts players in control of Melinoë, Zagreus’ young sister, who was spirited away by Hecate, goddess of witchcraft, just after her birth. It’s a good thing, too, because Chronos, the titan of time and father of the gods, turns up just afterward to take over the Underworld as revenge for a little family feud that left him chopped into bits eons before, leaving Melinoë to train in secret for years to dethrone him once again.
Family drama
So there’s a lot more going on in Hades II’s story, and not all to its benefit. Part of what makes Hades unique is that its story is ultimately a small and personal one, with Zagreus forced to fight his own father (not to mention his ex-girlfriend) to complete his quest to reunite with his mother. Melinoë’s vengeance is certainly personal as well, but with its world-ending stakes and more straightforward villain, her story becomes one we’ve seen countless versions of before.
Despite not being particularly captivating on its own, Melinoë’s quest to beat up her grandpa is still a joy to follow thanks to the strength of Hades II’s writing. Gods, ghosts, and other mythological beings populate the game’s world, all bringing life to the realm of the dead. Every opportunity to speak to an NPC is a treat in Hades II thanks to their sharply written dialogue, which makes each and every one feel unique. And while the game’s central story isn’t particularly inspired, it’s woven well into Melinoë’s journey through the Underworld and the surface. NPCs that appear throughout runs to grant bonuses can also sometimes help advance the main plot as well as smaller character stories, building a bridge between the game’s combat and its story.
Melinoë herself is as stoic and determined as can be, having trained her whole life for the sole purpose of defeating Chronos, which makes for a hilarious contrast with most of her family, who remain fairly blasé about the monsters besieging their home on Mount Olympus. Several comment on how different she is from her devil-may-care brother, some even noting without a hint of shame that they like him better. Back at the Crossroads, where Melinoë returns after each journey, she has time to get closer to a few central characters by soaking in a hot tub or indulging in other social activities using resources collected on her quest. Standouts among them include the amnesiac shade Dora and Nemesis, the god of retribution, who’s basically an enemies to lovers fan fic just waiting to happen.
Give’em Hell
As great as a game entirely about flirting with your friends at camp would be, most of Hades II happens in more hostile environments. To free her family, Melinoë must descend into the Underworld to unseat Chronos and climb Mount Olympus to defeat Typhon, the father of all monsters. As with any roguelike, you won’t be making it to the final bosses on your first try, instead spending attempt after attempt just getting as far as you can to learn what’s waiting for you ahead, hone your combat skills, and search for resources that will let you gain permanent upgrades for each future run.
Hades II closely follows the pattern set by the original Hades. You fight your way through a series of rooms, each offering a bonus like additional health, upgrade resources, or a boon from your godly family, which might grant you anything from an attack speed boost to a lightning bolt that smites enemies whenever you dash near them. Instead of straying too far from the first game’s formula, it builds around the edges, adding new powers and upgrade systems, ranging from Arcana Cards, which offer bonuses you can toggle on and off for each run, to adorable but somewhat underpowered animal familiars to accompany you.
Melinoë herself is the big change to combat. By default, she always has a cast ability, which draws a circle on the ground, damaging and slowing enemies trapped in it, as well as a primary and secondary attack granted by her choice of weapon. Any of these moves can be boosted by holding down their assigned button, draining mana for a significantly more powerful version. Combat generally feels faster and tougher in Hades II, which is offset by how much stronger Melinoë can feel with the right combination of boons. There are a tremendous number of ways to build Melinoë’s skills, and I found it much easier than in the original Hades to find new synergies between boons and keep every run feeling different. Even weapons that initially feel underpowered, like the ranged fire-flinging torches, can become absolutely devastating once you work out how to best augment their unique capabilities.
Both the Underworld and surface paths consist of four different regions made up of multiple encounters, each capped off with a boss fight. Encounters with normal enemies are still plenty of fun, but it’s in these major fights where Hades II shines. I can’t say I enjoyed every one equally (looking at you, Polyphemus), but for the most part, Hades II boss fights are phenomenal. Each feels wholly unique and they often include a clever play on the theme the boss represents, like Prometheus, titan of foresight, showing you where his attacks land before launching them and asking you to memorize their order to avoid them.
Prometheus also exemplifies another thing I grew to love about Hades II’s best bosses, which is how they can go from seeming almost incomprehensibly chaotic to revealing predictable patterns to exploit the more you study them. Some of my favorite fights in the game now are ones that I hated initially, all because I took the time to learn them, as the game’s multiple runs force you to do. These bosses in particular benefit from Hades II’s God Mode, returning from the original, which grants you additional damage resistance with each defeat (along with the option to cap the bonus at any amount you choose). Even if you don’t want to play the entire game with it activated, God Mode can be a potent tool for learning boss fights if you toggle it on just before fighting whichever one is currently giving you trouble just to buy a little extra time to learn its quirks.
Lining your pockets
As much as I enjoy fighting through hell and back in Hades II, some of the ways it incentivizes you to keep playing ended up backfiring for me, turning the game’s repetitive nature into a bit of a chore. Compared to the original game, there’s a much higher demand on you to collect different resources, either to upgrade elements of your character build or to progress the game’s story. A cauldron at the Crossroads lets you perform incantations that can add new room types to the world, alter rewards, or advance the plot along.
This last category in particular means that at certain points, you can’t make meaningful progress unless you collect a specific material, each of which is found only in one region. That often left me wanting to pursue a particular boss in the Underworld or the surface, but feeling compelled to choose a different path to complete a plot-critical incantation. The hunt for resources is also crucial for upgrading each of your weapons and Arcana Cards. At its best, knowing which resources you need can help guide you down a particular path when you don’t know where to go, but at its worst, it means putting your own motivation on hold to chase after whatever materials you’re being told to collect.
Hades is an extremely tough act to follow, and Hades II does it admirably, though maybe a little too predictably. Its heroine’s less compelling motivation is balanced by more interaction with side characters for fans to obsess over, and more flexibility in build crafting keeps combat fresh without changing its core too much. Melinoë’s turn in the spotlight is ultimately more of what players already enjoyed about the first game, for better or worse. Supergiant Games is at its best when it’s exploring new and unexpected territory with its games, and while Hades II is neither, it’s still a blast to play from start to finish.
8/10
Hades II launches on September 25 on Nintendo Switch 2, Switch, PC, and Mac. Inverse was provided with a Nintendo Switch 2 copy for this review.
INVERSE VIDEO GAME REVIEW ETHOS: Every Inverse video game review answers two questions: Is this game worth your time? Are you getting what you pay for? We have no tolerance for endless fetch quests, clunky mechanics, or bugs that dilute the experience. We care deeply about a game’s design, world-building, character arcs, and storytelling come together. Inverse will never punch down, but we aren’t afraid to punch up. We love magic and science-fiction in equal measure, and as much as we love experiencing rich stories and worlds through games, we won’t ignore the real-world context in which those games are made.
