Even in its Early Access incarnation, Hades II makes for a much better game than the original did.

I think one of the problems that rogue-likes face is repetition, and I've felt it with Hades a lot. Even meaningful weapon changes didn't really help with location and enemy fatigue setting in.

Hades II is basically Hades, but More, and one thing it does that elevates the game for me is giving you a choice of what to approach. Not too long after starting you'll have access to three distinct branching choices leading you into different directions: two distinct worlds with their own enemies, bosses, and gimmicks, as well as the trials that ask you to complete a certain area with specific requirements.

While I'm not sure I like most of the new characters as much as I liked the cast of the original game, the progression is much more interesting. Arcana system, for example, while a little convoluted at first, is an incredible improvement over toggling one out of two options.

Hades II isn't a revolutionary sequel, but it's definitely a welcome evolution over a very solid rogue-like that I find easier to lose a lot of time with.

I know this game is in early access, but it’s nearly complete, and I don’t think its most significant issues will be resolved via player feedback and updates.

It feels like a massive step back from the first game in every metric.

The combat feels sluggish and less responsive, and none of the weapons are enjoyable. Hades I had this rapid ebb and flow to its combat that II lacks. You’re mostly just stunlocking enemies with larger health pools instead of zipping around frantically.

The biomes are less attractive, and some are straight up not enjoyable.

The new progression systems feel poorly thought out and are mainly added to differentiate itself from the first game.

None of the characters are endearing, and many come off like Battleborne versions of the Hades I cast. This was especially jarring because everyone in Hades I—as well as its world and narrative—was immediately captivating.

I think much of this stems from this template getting everything squeezed out of it in the first game. I know why they made a sequel, but I wish Supergiant hadn’t.

Fantastic but still in early access in the simplest definition. If you can accept that there are placeholder models and portraits or unfinished portraits, and one route isn’t fully finished and the story isn’t done yet, hop on. This is excellent. It changes systems and feels fresh, yet so loving to the original. I’m not going to give a rating until 1.0, as that’s not really fair of me if I give something which is explicitly in early access a 4.5, yet openly diss games which release unfinished. It’d be disingenuous to the process too. I look forward to seeing what Supergiant creates here. I’ll re-review it and score it once we truly have an ending. For now, I think it’s best I put it down until its next major update to reduce any chance of burnout.

[beat chronos a few times, progressed game steadily up to around the 25hr mark]

pretty fascinated by this one, having loved so much of H1 then bouncing off of H2 quite firmly. i think it's bc [stream of consciousness begins now]

Zag's plight was personal while being relatable. we've all felt that urge to discover more about ourselves / the world around us and take positive steps. Zag's privilege in being able to afford that action while having a safety net back home is recognised and part of the tension. we also see his journey play out before our eyes, front to back, developing his relationships with the cast (with the god's jovial boon banter feeling tonally on point).

Mel's plight, at least initially, is a revenge course she has little stakes in beyond her own indoctrinated upbringing, for a family she doesn't know. Maybe more is revealed but the sense of urgency associated with a widescale war between gods feels distant from our scenario. We are not privy to the battle beyond occasional boon commentary (that predominant banter now feeling widely misplaced) and wafty optimism from a new hub cast that seldom offer anything remarkable which helps Mel grow alongside the player.

The same feels true in the way Zag and Mel's stories are told through a rogue-lite genre. Where the former's story felt intrinsically linked to a rogue (his levelling and weapon progression begins when he sets out to escape Tartarus and beyond), Mel is (according to Hecate) prepared for her duel with Chronos, with her training complete. But we know that isn't true, because we've got dozens of empty equipment, weapon, farm and cauldron unlocks that immediately tell us otherwise! Similarly, death for Zag usually meant he was edging closer to his deeply personal goal, with time on his side; Mel meanwhile, is in a literal battle against Time to stop a war, death hurts her cause tremendously but there's no mechanic to represent this, good or bad.

less worried about where combat is right now bc it's early access, but fwiw i don't vibe with it bc

+ hex is a major limited factor to expression until we spend a boon on regenerating it in any meaningful way (often your Hex Ult is literally unusable bc it's not possible to expend enough magic)

+ many weapons feel underbaked and simply aren't fun to use currently.

+ cast attack in general is underwhelming

+ Cerberus just a big ol' health sponge. Chronos phase 1 takes place in a literal hallway. Hecate both bores and frustrates with her spells, mainly taking up time more than asking anything impressive of the player.

by the time I would be entering the Hades fight with Zag, my chest was more often than not puffed; i knew what my build was about. With Mel, my tail is almost always between my legs, i don't know what my win condition is, and i've got a stack of death defiance's to prove it.

i am entirely confident that Supergiant will find more fun in HII and i will be in there, but I'm less convinced it casts a stronger spell than it's predecessor.

Uhhh, I've got mixed feelings on this one. Big fan of the original Hades here. I know most people probably play these games because the gods are hotties, but I really enjoyed the roguelite progression in the first one. They struck a great balance between getting more minor upgrades after each run, while also making each run harder via the Heat system. And that's still mostly the case here, so I really like that about this game too.

But besides that this sequel appeals less to me than the original. The minor buffs you got in Hades 1 are now cards that you have to manually select which buff you want and which you don't. And this is just super boring to me.

'Hmm, do I want the upgrade that gives me 2% more magic per combat or the one that gives some of my attacks 3% chance to deal double damage?'
Nothing feels more amazing than buying a new card that sounds interesting only to not have the grasp to equip it.

The game already gets more difficult the more you play, with this game's version of the Pact of Punishment. So fiddling around in boring menus deciding which cards to select, which resource tool I use for this run, and which keepsake fits best here each and every time became very tedious very quickly.

I'm sure the designer of this game could in excruciating detail explain why making all the buffs like this is more 'fair' than just stacking them over the whole game like in Hades 1. But the way I perceive it, the game almost feels overdesigned. Every, little, thing is optimized and tested to be either too good or too bad. And it just flattens the experience for me. Getting a boon is a pick between a bunch of options that aren't going to feel great when I pick them up. They're again just minor buffs that are just good enough to not make the game feel unfair.

I won't go over every mechanic that's in the game or I'll never finish this log, but as a final example I want to highlight the new weapons. None of them felt exciting to use when I first picked them. They were all kinda eh. Not good nor bad weapons. Maybe with the exception of the torches. That one just feels lame to use. And now your attacks, specials and cats have an OMEGA version that use a limited magic-type resource each combat. These are far cooler but again limited use. So now there are twice as many things to upgrade and dillute the pool of boons with. It's rare when I find a cool synergy in this game, while it happened almost every run in Hades 1.

A new region that's been added is one where the maps are huge and you can roam around in freely. Whatever good pacing there was in your run grinds to a halt here, as I'd look around every corner of the map to find the rewards that were necessary to continue. It's not like the game would be too short if there wasn't a scavanger hunt in the middle. The bosses are way beefier than they were in the original and already do a great job padding the game out further. Especially the last two bosses will often do attacks that force you to stay back and wait until it's safe to damage them again.

Credit where credit's due, the final boss is amazing aesthetically. It's much more grandiose than the snow fight with Hades. Love it!

I'll give the game another shot when it's out of EA and update this log with my final thoughts.

at least one of, if not THE best roguelite i've ever played
improves upon the first game in pretty much every game, especially the story I feel more invested in than the previous (probably because of the fact that it builds upon the previous games story)
theres just already so much MORE stuff to do in this game than the first, and its still only in early early access
thats also my only real nitpick, and it's very much a personal thing, I sometimes feel like theres too much stuff to keep track of, and it starts to feel a little grindy once you get a little far into it, much like the first one
they've done things to help this, with the forget-me-not system and being able to sell stuff to get more currency, in turn making it easier to get the actual upgrade materials you need, but it still just doesn't feel quite right
still, this is something they could probably fix later since it's still just early access, just make stuff a tiny bit easier to upgrade in general tbh

Madre puto mía cuánto necesitaba un BUEN juego este 2024 para salvarme de la angustia de empezar mi nuevo trabajo.

Hades II es Hades pero más. Más niveles, más posibilidades de armas, más personajes, más todo. Sólo he derrotado a Cronos una vez, pero me ha costado sus buenas horas y entre medias no he parado de conseguir avanzar poco a poco y expandir más y más las posibilidades que he encontrado. Y las que me quedan.

Es el tipo de secuela que me gusta, un refinamiento del original que mejora todo lo anterior. Cambia lo necesario para darle un nuevo sabor propio mientras mantiene las bases que tanto adoraba. Y añade cada vez más y más hasta crear un producto más redondo y completo. Lo adoro.

Si no le doy cinco estrellas es porque el juego está en early access. Se nota que hay "paredes" contra las que te estampas y que están aún por construir. Y me sabe raro porque sé que este juego se va a merecer sus buenas cinco estrellas más adelante. Pero hasta entonces, sigue recibiendo mi más alta recomendación.