115 people found this review helpful
1 person found this review funny
2
5
Recommended
0.0 hrs last two weeks / 39.7 hrs on record (22.5 hrs at review time)
Posted: 16 Jun, 2024 @ 8:53am

Early Access Review
Supergiant's highly anticipated roguelike, Hades 2, exceeds expectations whilst still preserving the essence that made the original so beloved to begin with

For their first sequel, Supergiant had to choose a truly special game and Hades was the perfect choice. Even though the game is still in its Early Alpha stage, it shows tremendous promise. As the game evolves I just wanted to put down a few words what has captivated me so far into my many runs in my never ending trials to take down Chronos.

https://steamoss.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3269124501

Doesn't skip a beat

Hades 2 has completely enchanted me, gripping me with every mythological element it can muster. Developer Supergiant has nailed the genre's 'one more run' loop so effectively that I find myself wanting to squeeze out that extra time whereever I can find it just for another encounter with Chronos.

For the sequel, they have truly gone all out, refining everything that made the first game great. As a series veteran, comparing the early access of Hades 1 to the current state of Hades 2 is like night and day.

Unlike starting from scratch with the original, Hades 2 feels almost like a fully complete game even in its current state. Hades 1 began with only one level and a single boss encounter, requiring months of updates to expand. Hades 2, however, jumps straight to the logical next step for the series. It feels like a 2.0 update, packed with additional content and variety, making every run meaningful and significant for progression.


Out with the old in with the new

Supermassive has never been afraid to acknowledge the shortcomings of their previous titles. Personally, I always appreciated the variety of weapons they offered, especially the bow, which stood out with its unique mechanics and required precise timing for it to be effective, if you managed to master it then it would prove to be a formidable and unique weapon to have in your toolkit.

In this installment, they are taking a more cautious approach by directly incorporating fan feedback. However, I believe some of the criticisms from the first game, like the decision to remove the bow, were unwarranted. Interestingly, I did recently come across a fourth wall break in the game that references the negative reception of the bow in the first game, which did manage to get a chuckle out of me at the time, despite my positive experience with it.

https://steamoss.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3269116729

What's next?

As this game is still in very early Alpha and things are continually evolving I am not going to be able to go into further detail on it and reluctent to post screenshots and information that may spoil things for newcomers to the series and the sequel alike. However I can say with certainty that not many games have managed to captivate my attention to this degree for a long time, therefore this game warranted a brief blurb to deliever a thumbs up from my end as Hades 2 has already far exceeded my already high expectations I had for it.

https://steamoss.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3269117312

I hope to be able to do a full review on everything this game has to offer once it is actually out but I can say without a doubt that if you enjoyed the first you will love this game and if you never played it but enjoy roguelikes it's a must buy. It's more of what you love plus making it different enough to be it's own thing alltogether. So far it's shaping up to be one of the best games I have played in a while and it may just be the game to shake me out of my burnout rut I have been stuck in for a little while now.

Death to Chronos!
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31 Comments
Galactic 25 Dec, 2024 @ 10:44pm 
If this isn't from AI this guy really writes like one ngl. Still a good review tho!
wasabi™ 5 Oct, 2024 @ 12:46pm 
Thank you all for your comments and the awards :zagwow:

Just to mention that I'm still having an absolute blast with Hades 2. It's a great game all round and there is still plenty of content yet to come :zaggrin:
Klaus 5 Oct, 2024 @ 12:40pm 
:ontoagoodthing:
RedWITT 1 Oct, 2024 @ 9:58am 
Thanks for the review, looking forward to seeing how long it takes for hades 2 to come out
Fomin 27 Sep, 2024 @ 8:30am 
Great review! I've wishlisted this game.
2MULT 6 Sep, 2024 @ 12:35am 
:tbu::iloveu:
✦Etherion✦ 13 Aug, 2024 @ 2:24pm 
Wonderful Review. +Award!:Bronze__Medal:
S.T.A.R.S Leon S. K. 17 Jul, 2024 @ 2:59am 
:cure:
Forever 13 Jul, 2024 @ 8:48am 
Thank you for game review! Awarded :lucky:
hjiibbh 23 Jun, 2024 @ 2:46am 
holy yap fest