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• Which new weapons and boons are worth building around
• Why the new mana system took me 20 hours to appreciate
• Whether early access is worth jumping into now or waiting for 1.0
⭐️ 5 min read
A Roguelike That Keeps Surprising Me
I Bought It Day One and Almost Regretted It
I bought Hades 2 on Steam for $30 on May 6, 2024, the day early access launched. I’d put 250 hours into the original Hades — across Steam and Switch — and called it one of the best games ever made. A sequel felt unnecessary. Hades told a complete story. Zagreus’s arc was finished. I went in skeptical, thinking this would be a cash grab riding on the original’s reputation.
The first two hours confirmed my fears. Melinoë felt like a reskin of Zagreus with different voice lines. The weapons were similar. The first boss was a recolored version of a familiar face. I alt-tabbed to check Twitter and saw people already complaining. “Same game, new coat of paint.” I felt my stomach sink. I’d been right.
Then I got to the third biome. And everything changed.
The Weapons Are Genuinely Different
The starting weapons look similar to Hades 1 on paper — sword, spear, staff — but they play completely differently. The Sister Blades (dual daggers) have a sprint attack that dashes through enemies and stacks a bleed effect. The Umbral Flames are a short-range flamethrower that rewards aggressive, close-quarters play completely unlike the original’s ranged options. The Moonstone Axe is slow but hits like a truck, and its charged attack creates a shockwave that hits through walls.
What really surprised me was the weapon aspects. Each weapon has five aspects that change not just your moveset but your entire playstyle. One aspect of the Sister Blades turns them into throwing knives that return to you — like Kratos’s Leviathan Axe. Another aspect of the staff creates a decoy that draws enemy aggro. These aren’t minor number tweaks. They’re completely different ways to play, and I’ve sunk 20 hours just experimenting with different builds.
The New Gods and Their Boons
Hades 2 introduces new Olympians: Apollo (area damage and debuffs), Hestia (fire-based DoT), and Ares returns with a reworked kit focused on blade rifts and critical hits. Apollo’s boons are my favorite — his area-control abilities let you zone enemies while your cast does the heavy lifting. Hestia’s burn stacking is powerful but requires setup, which makes it less useful in fast boss fights.
The biggest change is the mana system. Instead of the original’s Cast system, Hades 2 has a “Magick” resource that fuels special abilities. Some boons drain Magick on hit. Others generate it on dodge. The resource management took me 20 hours to internalize. I kept running out of Magick at critical moments and dying because I couldn’t use my best attack. Once I learned to balance Magick generation with damage, everything clicked. The system is deeper than the original’s Cast system, but the learning curve is real.
The Story I Didn’t Expect to Care About
Hades 1’s story was about family and escape. Hades 2’s story is about resistance and protection. Melinoë is training to defeat Chronos, the Titan of Time, who has escaped his prison and captured Hades. The tone is darker. There are fewer jokes, more moments of genuine tension. I wasn’t sure I liked it at first — Hades 1’s charm came from its witty writing and warm character interactions.
But by hour 15, the story hooked me. The characters are well-written, the voice acting is superb, and the new relationships feel earned rather than forced. Nemesis is a standout — a rival character who respects you but never lets you forget she’s better. Her dialogue shifts based on whether you’re winning or losing runs. I’ve had conversations with her that changed my choices in later runs just because I wanted to see her reaction. That’s good writing.
The Early Access Problems
The game is not finished. The story ends at a cliffhanger. The final boss is beatable but the narrative stops midway. There are missing weapon aspects, incomplete god boon interactions, and some abilities that are clearly placeholder. I hit a bug where a boon’s damage numbers stopped scaling after the third upgrade — I was doing the same damage at the final boss that I was on floor 2. Frustrating.
The second biome — the Oceanic area — feels less polished than the first three. Enemy variety drops off, and some encounters are obviously recycled with health buffs. I’ve seen the same “three armored soldiers spawning in a triangle” encounter at least 15 times. Variety is thin.
Performance is excellent on my mid-range PC — steady 60fps at 1440p, no stutters, fast loading times. The art style is gorgeous, with environments that feel lived-in and atmospheric in a way that surpasses the original.
Should You Play Now or Wait?
If you loved Hades 1 and want more of the core gameplay loop, buy it now. The combat is tight, the weapons are creative, and there’s already 30+ hours of content with high replayability. If you need a complete story, wait for 1.0. The cliffhanger is frustrating — I’d pay $30 just for the gameplay, but I understand people who want the full package.
Supergiant has a good track record with early access. They updated the original Hades consistently and transparently. I trust them to finish this. But I also understand the hesitation. Paying full price for a half-finished story feels bad, even when the half that’s finished is excellent.
I’ve put 70 hours into Hades 2 early access and I’m not done. The game keeps surprising me. A new weapon aspect I haven’t tried. A boon combo I never considered. A character interaction that reframes an earlier conversation. That’s the magic of good game design — it keeps giving even when you think you’ve seen everything.
TL;DR
• 70 hours in early access — the weapon aspects and new gods make each run feel fresh
• Mana system has a steep learning curve but adds real depth once it clicks
• Story ends on a cliffhanger — buy now for gameplay, wait for narrative completion
— Rand, SpaceGA