Hades II [Review]

Every run of Hades II feels intentional. Every win and every loss is well placed, in a game that has perfect pace and progression, with action that reinvents itself several times over a 60 hour long campaign. A clear and insane level of detail and care makes even the still moments feel as big as thunderstorms at sea.

And it is no accident.

Hades II is a sequel in the same vein of the great videogame sequels that happens from time to time, like Portal 2, Tears of the Kingdom, Bayonetta 2 and Death Stranding 2: On The Beach. It iterates on what was lain before without being derivative, because it challenges the structures of the previous games with brilliance, new ideas and a whole lot of experience.

Now, the story is about the forgotten Princess of the Underworld, daughter of Hades and Persephone, Melinoë, and she's in a crossroads of sorts. Since she was a baby, she's lost everything to Chronos, the Titan of Time, and now, she's in a constant and almost endless struggle to Kill Him and in the process save her lost – but also unknown – family.

This vengeance is not only the main motivator of the game, but it is core to the gameplay loop itself, as Melinoë returns to her safe grounds in the shadows of Erebus every time she faces death. Being indoctrinated to Kill Chronos by her Headmistress, Hecate, the coven is set with a goal even if the Fates are unknown to it.

The whole Witchcraft setting is really well implemented, as Melinoë feels like a caster even when using melee weapons. There are several weapons choices and aspects to choose from, and while all of them are vastly different one from another, Melinoë always has a cast circle that ensnares her foes and do other nasty stuff. Playing with her is fundamentally different than what Hades 1 proposed with Zagreus, and because of it, the whole structure of the game is challenged by this powerful witch.

At first, there are indeed many similarities with the first game, but it is right in the first 5 (of 60) hours that the games start to play very differently. Melinoë can receive boons from the Gods just like her older brother from the first game, and while some of the boons can feel similar, they all work in different ways, mostly because of the Witch aesthetic of Melinoë and what that entails.

Every second of it is gorgeous. The Gods and Allies are absurdly well designed, every new boon-giver exclusive to this game is superbly well done and voice acted, as the returning cast. There's an uncanny amount of reactive dialogue to the choices in each run, the characters felt more realistic, as the whole world is suffering with the Titan of Time heist of the House of Hades, not only the Witches of Erebus.

The action here is pristine. Each of the several areas of the game feel unique and have their own monsters, bosses, sub-bosses and boon-givers. It is roughly twice as much content as Hades 1, but it never felt like that. It never felt like content. Melinoë's journey is adorned with her relationships and with the mysteries and complexities of a story that faces Time itself.

Every win is a dopamine rush while every single failed run is less of a problem, since the relationships and story can only be progressed once per night. Not only that, but as Witches, nature is the source of magic, so gathering and gardening is also part of the run-to-run loop. Embellished with hand draw 2D environments and dynamic 3D character models, the time at the hideout is as exhilarating as the runs themselves, and the progress of it all felt intentional and emotional.

I know that there was some drama regarding the original ending of the game that was patched about a month later after its release. I never played that version, but what I've got was very well done and executed. Even the last twist was well earned and, honestly, a bit predictable. Still, it works so much, and feels like mythology being made. The writing is that good.

All the Gods and other Boon-Givers are unique and interact with one another, in the most unexpected ways, and the trickle nature of its narrative makes everything that much more digestible, even in a game with this much reading. The amount of music tracks, including vocal ones, is staggering, I feel that even after that much time after I've played there are still songs that I've never heard. The reactive soundtrack also works very well, with lengthy and heavy bass on moments of respite while the action is packed with electrical and bombastic guitars and drums.

I mean, everything works in this game. The story is heartfelt, what returns is better, what is new is REALLY different, there's twice as much stuff to do and everything is better tied together in an epic, world-ending story. Maybe the biggest problem with this game is how it doesn't have a good narrative excuse to keep the player playing after the epilogue.

So what can I say? The worst thing about this game is that it ends. Everything in between is just amazing.

10/10

The images on this post are from iGDB.