🎮 Hades II has emerged from early access and the verdict is in: Supergiant has crafted another masterpiece, though this time with some growing pains. After 15 months in early access, the game launched its full 1.0 version on 25 September, delivering the complete story that players have been waiting for.

The good news: Combat remains exceptional. Reviews consistently praise the moment-to-moment gameplay as thrilling and technically excellent. Melinoë’s witchy arsenal feels distinct from Zagreus’s approach, demanding more tactical positioning and careful use of Omega attacks. The dual-path structure — fighting both down to Chronos in the underworld and up to Mount Olympus — effectively doubles the game’s scope while preventing the repetition fatigue common in roguelikes.

The new cast shines brightly. Characters like the surly Nemesis, who challenges you during runs, and the musical boss fight against Scylla and the Sirens (whose earworm chorus “I’m gonna claw out your eyes, then drown you to death” has lodged itself in players’ brains) demonstrate Supergiant’s continued excellence in character design and voice acting. The relationships feel as rich as the original, with Melinoë’s cooler, more tactical personality providing effective contrast to Zagreus’s hot-headed rush-down style.

But there’s a catch: progression bloat. Hades II has significantly more complex resource management than its predecessor. Players must juggle ashes, psyche, moon dust, bones, and numerous collectible resources including various ores and flora. There’s also a farm, a cauldron for brewing incantations, resource gathering with pickaxes and shovels, and mini-games to collect psyche. Some critics found these systems intrusive enough that runs began feeling like “obligatory farming missions” rather than pure arcade action gauntlets.

The difficulty curve proves uneven. Several reviewers noted that boss encounters can feel unfairly difficult until suddenly they don’t — a sisyphean wall that becomes trivial once the right upgrades align. The massive scope means a single run might grant none of the resources needed for meaningful progression, creating frustrating stretches where advancement feels artificially delayed.

The ending may divide players. Without spoiling specifics, the resolution to the main storyline might not deliver the satisfying retribution that the game’s mantra builds toward. However, the game’s themes about family reunion and collective resistance against oppression come through clearly.

Should you buy it? If you value streamlined, focused roguelikes, you might want to stick to the predecessor. But if you’re drawn to Supergiant’s unparalleled art direction, stellar voice acting, and narrative depth — and don’t mind some mid-game progression friction — Hades II offers an epic, endlessly replayable experience. The endgame content is reportedly deeper than the original’s, with challenge runs, continuing character arcs, and additional upgrade paths that reward long-term investment.

💯 Rating: 10/10 on Steam and IGN, 94% on Metacritic, and 92% on Google audience ratings

⌛ Hours of gameplay: 65-70 hours for 100% completion

🔁 Replay value: 10/10

👾 Platforms: Steam and Epic for PC, Nintendo for Switch and Switch 2.

💵 Price: USD 14.99 on Steam and Epic, USD 29.99 on Nintendo eStore.

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