After two years since the beginning of early access, the 4th effort of Supergiant Games, authors of Bastion, Transistor and Pyre, has finally arrived on PC and Nintendo Switch, entering prepotently in the Olympus (for real) of the rogue-like genre and demonstrating how even this type of games can in fact show a strong narrative component, well integrated with the gameplay.
This is a rogue-lite, a rogue-like but with the presence of permanent unlockable bonuses and upgrades that allow the player to get more and more powerful in the next runs. The protagonist is the god Zagreus, son of Hades and prince of the underworld, who will have the goal to escape his father’s kingdom and rejoin his distant relatives on mount Olympus, in a quest that will lead him to rediscover himself and his origins.
Although I should discuss the actual gameplay that defines the work, we’re talking about a Supergiant title. So, I’d like to emphasize the art and the music of this game. EVERY single detail, the animations, the fluidity of the effects are maniacally curated, and every single frame is a painting by itself (Jen Zee is extremely talented btw). The soundtrack is a masterpiece: Darren Korb and Ashley Barrett deliver the peak of their work. Eurydice’s charming voice forced me to put down my controller and just listen to her song almost every time I entered her room.
What makes this game worthy of becoming a cult is the incredible work behind both narrative and the gameplay formula. Hades offers a fun, satisfying, adrenalinic gameplay in which the player will fight and travel through the 4 dungeons in Hades’s reign, using 6 different weapons, each one with its own moveset and upgrades (“aspects”), while Zagreus will bring with him “keepsakes”, that he will get creating relations with characters and will allow him to gain bonuses, along with other upgrades unlockable with “darkness” (one of the game’s currencies). In every room of the dungeon there are, among other rewards, “boons” by Olympus gods, that vary depending on every god’s personality and branch. The choice of how players want to face a new run is up to their strategies and style of play. About the narrative side, Hades debunks the “story is pointless in a rogue-like” myth. It represents a huge step forward, with an amazing cast of characters, a ridiculous amount of dialogues and a lot of side quests that will take at least 150 hours to gain 100%.
In conclusion, this is my GOTY 2020.
This is a rogue-lite, a rogue-like but with the presence of permanent unlockable bonuses and upgrades that allow the player to get more and more powerful in the next runs. The protagonist is the god Zagreus, son of Hades and prince of the underworld, who will have the goal to escape his father’s kingdom and rejoin his distant relatives on mount Olympus, in a quest that will lead him to rediscover himself and his origins.
Although I should discuss the actual gameplay that defines the work, we’re talking about a Supergiant title. So, I’d like to emphasize the art and the music of this game. EVERY single detail, the animations, the fluidity of the effects are maniacally curated, and every single frame is a painting by itself (Jen Zee is extremely talented btw). The soundtrack is a masterpiece: Darren Korb and Ashley Barrett deliver the peak of their work. Eurydice’s charming voice forced me to put down my controller and just listen to her song almost every time I entered her room.
What makes this game worthy of becoming a cult is the incredible work behind both narrative and the gameplay formula. Hades offers a fun, satisfying, adrenalinic gameplay in which the player will fight and travel through the 4 dungeons in Hades’s reign, using 6 different weapons, each one with its own moveset and upgrades (“aspects”), while Zagreus will bring with him “keepsakes”, that he will get creating relations with characters and will allow him to gain bonuses, along with other upgrades unlockable with “darkness” (one of the game’s currencies). In every room of the dungeon there are, among other rewards, “boons” by Olympus gods, that vary depending on every god’s personality and branch. The choice of how players want to face a new run is up to their strategies and style of play. About the narrative side, Hades debunks the “story is pointless in a rogue-like” myth. It represents a huge step forward, with an amazing cast of characters, a ridiculous amount of dialogues and a lot of side quests that will take at least 150 hours to gain 100%.
In conclusion, this is my GOTY 2020.
Reviewed on Jun 24, 2021