Hades has emerged as one of the must-play games for the last quarter of this year. The reinterpretation of mythology, the beautiful graphics, and the engaging characters and story have all combined to form a brilliant game.
With so many games to play this year, the colder months will just fly by. If you haven’t had the chance to play Hades yet, it will quickly become one of those games that you will struggle to put down.
Story
Set in the world of Greek mythology, you play the role of Zagreus, son of Hades, as he tries to escape the Underworld and reach Mount Olympus. With the help of his adopted mother Nyx and the other gods, he is given special powers, abilities, and weapons that he will need to defeat the enemies he encounters.
Without spoiling anything, Zagreus is faced with numerous strong and deadly enemies, sent by his father, on his quest to uncover the truth about where he came from, as well as having to battle against his father and those he loves.
As Zagreus, there are also numerous gods and goddesses that you meet along the way that help you on your journey. There are also several mythological beasts that you must defeat to continue along your path, all with varying abilities and strength levels, meaning you never quite know what you will be up against.
Gameplay
Hades is a dungeon crawler/ hack and slash game. You control Zagreus as you make your way through different rooms, each having randomly generated enemies to defeat. The game also features four different biomes, namely Tartarus, Asphodel, Elysium, and Styx.
Zagreus is equipped with a primary weapon, a secondary weapon, and the ability to cast magic. In each room, one of the Olympians that can assist you will provide you with a “Boon.” A Boon is a choice of three abilities that you as the player can choose from. For instance, Zeus will grant you lightning-based skills and attacks.
The game is built around runs. This means that upgrades and abilities that you earn in one room or run can affect future runs. You can also see what rewards you will get if you complete the room after the one you are in, letting you decide if you want to take the risk or not.
Dying is also different from other games. If you die, you will have to face your father, Hades, in battle. You won’t have any Boons, you won’t have access to any magic or skills, and you will lose all your weapon upgrades.
Between runs, you can explore the House of Hades. This is where you can use the items and rewards obtained through previous run-throughs and see how they will impact the meta-game and future runs.
You can also spend this time to unlock new abilities for Zagreus, start construction on Underworld features that change future runs, as well as to obtain new weapons, and upgrade your existing ones.
In addition, you can interact with other characters and Gods in this area, improving your standing with them and increasing your chances of finding better items and rewards. This elevates the story side of the game, combined with your character’s ability to romance NPC’s.
Reception
Hades has received critical acclaim across the board since it was released into early access. Many experts and fans have praised the characters, storyline, and soundtrack, a massive bonus for a ‘heavily based on the action side’ type of game.
It is praised for its non-linear design and gameplay and how interactions with other characters have consequences that impact how your game plays out, and also how the future game begins and ends.
Hades is a unique game with many aspects we haven’t seen in any other titles. The characters have depth, and the story is engaging and offers players surprises around every corner.
How you play a particular room and what you find will impact how the rest of your run goes. This needs a level of critical thinking for players to ensure their game goes smoothly and they can make it to the end to reach their final goal and escape.
Hades also deviates from other games because you are constantly incentivized and rewarded for playing differently and changing your game style. There isn’t one way to beat the game, and it wants to reward you for going about winning in a multitude of ways.
Many fans have also expressed how fresh and new the game feels constantly. How you can play for hours on end and still be met with fresh dialogue and storylines, never feeling like you have heard, spoken about, or seen everything the game has to offer.
Hades is vastly different from other dungeon-crawler games and a unique title in the world of mythology games, a genre that may seem a bit flooded and overdone. However, the way Hades has been created is something that most gamers probably haven’t ever experienced before.
If you haven’t played Hades yet, it is most definitely worth picking up and putting in hours of your time, it is well worth it and a title you won’t soon forget.