This review contains spoilers for Supergiant Games’ Hades, but not for Hades II.

The original Hades took the world by storm so fiercely that Zeus himself may have had a hand in it. With 98% positive reviews on Steam as of writing this review, Hades left big shoes to fill for its sequel.

The game is a self-contained narrative within a significantly less incestuous world of Greek myth: a retelling of the marriage between Persephone and Hades, framed through the eyes of their rebellious son with a bedroom and demeanour comparable to a teenage boy in his ‘You can’t tell me what to do, dad!’ phase, yet it only added to the charm. After its happy family reunion ending, what could one possibly do to continue this story? Tear the family apart once more, apparently.

Hades II revolves around Chronos — a fusion of Greek mythology’s Chronos and Kronos — breaking into Tartarus and taking it for himself, several years after the preceding game. This happens when the Goddess Hecate rescues the then newborn protagonist, Melinoë, from the carnage. Hecate’s role is somewhere between a surrogate mother and a military general, raising Melinoë to kill Chronos from her infancy. This makes for extremely high stakes that unfortunately do not get an equivalently grandiose ending.

Part of the problem comes from the restrictions of the roguelike genre — the player must be able to play indefinitely, so nothing can change too significantly. However, while this is not a strictly comparative review, the side-quests in Hades II pale in comparison to its predecessor. This is primarily due to the seeming lack of impact on the NPCs’ lives — there is little or no visible change after finishing their quests, which I found a strange choice given that Hades was more than capable of it.

Reuniting lovers from centuries’ long dispute or separation, as the player does with Orpheus and Eurydice as well as Achilles and Patroclus, is much more compelling than Hades II’s approach. At times, it felt far more tedious than enjoyable to engage with the NPCs’ stories.

The player’s goal is to get to Tartarus and find a way to prevent Chronos’ return forever. His troops are also leading an attack on Mount Olympus, and the player may go up to the surface to help the Olympians defend their mountain after enough progress with the story. Not unlike other fans of Hades, my Hades II journey began in early access, a year before the game’s release. Seeing the game come to life and change due to player feedback was a very unique and rewarding experience, helping the game’s mechanics to become very well-polished.

Indeed, where Hades II really shines is in its combat. The addition of Magick practically doubles the possibilities on top of the already high amount of boons this game offers. Between Infusion and Duo Boons, and four character encounter types per region, players may enhance Melinoë’s skillset to their content. For the more adventurous players, there are even Chaos Trials designed to randomize your entire loadout.

I hope it is utterly uncontroversial to say that this game is visually beautiful. The entire art team deserves applause for skilfully combining different aesthetics and building on the iconic art style of Hades. The attention to detail was particularly striking — character assets occasionally blink, move, or flash with a shine of light.

Ultimately, the only thing Hades II fails at is maintaining stakes and resolving them. However, is it a cardinal sin for the story to fall flat for the game to justify its mechanics? That is a subjective question with an even more subjective answer, and one I will not engage with. I will say instead that, despite being a story-driven gamer, I currently have 161 hours in Hades II. Still, if I were Persephone, I would be furious that I did not get to raise another of my children, nor was I allowed to be that upset about it. Make of that what you will.

Rating: 8/10

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