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Something funny I realized when I was playing Hades was that this game is exactly what middle school me would've loved. A roguelite (the genre I spent the most time playing at the time) made by the people behind Bastion (one of my favorite indie games at the time) about Greek mythology (which has always been a fascination of mine). Middle school me would've been awestruck, and it likely would've been one of my favorite games ever. Well, middle school me, I'm sure you'd be pleased to hear that all these years later, it IS one of my favorite games ever!


Supergiant games are always visual spectacles, and coming off of the incredibly beautiful Pyre, I didn't think they'd surpass their peak so soon, but they absolutely did. The different environments of the underworld look amazing and live up to the Supergiant standard, but the big strength here lies in the character designs. Considering the main characters consist of Greek gods, goddesses, and other figures, I feel that Hades did an excellent job portraying these characters, giving them subtle visual details to help portray the character. For example, Zagreus's heterochromia gives you a small look at the game's central conflict. I also really like the design of Chaos, who is basically the void before things came into being, and someone that the artists had to be especially creative with as they don't really have a defined "image" in the same way that a god like Zeus does, and I loved this game's interpretation of them, especially the little touch of them holding Earth by their fingers. While I thought the character designs were excellent in Pyre, this is pretty much a straight upgrade. So overall, the visuals are top-notch as usual for these developers.


Because Hades is a roguelite, nailing the gameplay was the most important aspect in this game's success, so I'm pleased to report that the game nailed it! The controls are tight, you're given a wide variety of weapons and builds to play around with, and the mechanics are pretty balanced overall. But a major strength of Hades to me isn't the combat specifically (which is still excellent), but rather the overall progression. There's numerous different currencies to upgrade various aspects, whether it's upgrades for Zagreus, lavish decorations the House of Hades, or upgrades to your weapons that can drastically alter their playstyle. While the game never lets you reach Risk of Rain levels of OP, there is a clear progression in your character's abilities and your understanding that make your runs feel less repetitive. Another thing that helps kill the tedium that comes from a rogue's natural repetition is the remarkable level of balance in this game. Sure, it isn't completely perfect and there's definitely a few upgrades that are more ideal to have, but everything is playable at worst. I also love that you're not completely at the mercy of RNG like most rogue games. In something like Binding of Isaac or FTL (the latter of which was my favorite roguelite until now), while there definitely is some level of skill involved, part of the game is just hoping that RNGesus is kind enough to give you a few good items. In the case of Hades, you have more control over your builds, as you can equip an item before or during your runs that allow you to determine what kind of upgrade you find next. You're also able to reroll options with upgrades later in the game. As far as difficulty goes, you're also given a lot of flexibility there. You can increase the game's difficulty after your first successful run by increasing specific aspects, for example the number of enemies you find in a room or the amount of health they have, which will reward you with more of the rare currencies. Or, you can lower the difficulty by turning on God Mode, which gives you a damage reduction that increases with each death, which is just enough to make things easier without making them brainless. The sheer amount of customization offered here is glorious. While there's definitely some smaller issues I have (like having bosses become invincible at certain points to cap your damage which is REALLY annoying in a roguelite), everything works so well here that I can easily look past those minor issues. Definitely one of the best rogue games from a pure gameplay perspective.


But wait, that's not all Hades does extremely well. Anything from Supergiant has an excellent story, and Hades is no exception. I still think Pyre has it beat in terms of the main story, but this game still does some excellent things. For one, the main story is still really good. It's surprisingly grounded for a game featuring the Greek pantheon, and it was interesting enough to keep me going for 10+ victories. The characters are amazing, my favorite being Zagreus for being sassy and charming without being too "edgy", but I think all of the characters were great in their own right. Also, whoever's idea was for a severed gorgon head that talks like a generic teenage girl to be a maid in the House of Hades deserves a raise. The game also does a great job of interpreting the Greek gods and goddesses, and how they're portrayed here is pretty much how I envisioned them in my mind. But the big talk of the town with this game is the writing, and for good reason. There's so much dialogue, and in my ~40 runs, I don't think there was a single time where I saw repeating dialogue when I was sent back to the House of Hades. It's a remarkably well-written game that covers every little detail, which makes the world feel more organic as a result. I'm also a sucker for any game that ties in-game mechanics to the story, and Hades does that in spades. While the story did start to wear off a bit towards the end, I didn't mind too much because at that point I could clear runs pretty consistently. Overall, the story is very high quality, especially for a roguelite.


It's another Darren Korb soundtrack. Of course it's amazing! I loved the combination of metal and brass, plus other "spooky" themed instruments. The ending sequence music was a favorite for me. The voice acting is also top-notch. The various remarks of Zagreus never got old, and considering how much dialogue there is in this game, is very helpful in ensuring you don't get sick of the game before seeing the end. That's all there is to say, really. Stellar as always!


This is a roguelite, with various different options to change how you play the game. You'll need 10 victories to see game's ending, which took me around 25 hours. If you want to play through the post-game content, that'll put you around 80-100 hours total from what I've seen online. You'll absolutely be getting a ton of value out of this at full price.


When I give a game a 10/10, it does not mean a game is perfect. There's tons of minor things that I can criticize Hades for. However, those flaws are easily ignored when the core package is so unbelievably well-made. The brilliant writing tying into the tight gameplay mechanics, backed with excellent voice performances, beautiful visuals, and a Darren Korb soundtrack is pretty much everything middle school me could've wanted. Thank you, Supergiant Games, for continuing to surpass my high expectations with each passing game, and I am so excited to see where you go from here.

Graphics - 10/10
Gameplay - 10/10
Story - 9.5/10
Audio - 9.5/10
Content Value - 10/10

.:10/10:.
"Masterpiece"

**PERSONAL PICK**

+ Stellar writing
+ Satisfying progression
+ Lots of customization
+ Amazing soundtrack
+ Beautiful visuals
+ Tight gameplay mechanics
+ Great characters
+ Strong voice acting

[u]Like my reviews? Go follow my [url=https://steamproxy.net/steamstore/curator/33012112-Gandhi-Talks-Games/]Curator page.[/url][/u] Something funny I realized when I was playing [i]Hades[/i] was that this game is exactly what middle school me would've loved. A roguelite (the genre I spent the most time playing at the time) made by the people behind [i]Bastion[/i] (one of my favorite indie games at the time) about Greek mythology (which has always been a fascination of mine). Middle school me would've been awestruck, and it likely would've been one of my favorite games ever. Well, middle school me, I'm sure you'd be pleased to hear that all these years later, it IS one of my favorite games ever! [h1]Graphics[/h1] Supergiant games are always visual spectacles, and coming off of the incredibly beautiful [i]Pyre[/i], I didn't think they'd surpass their peak so soon, but they absolutely did. The different environments of the underworld look amazing and live up to the Supergiant standard, but the big strength here lies in the character designs. Considering the main characters consist of Greek gods, goddesses, and other figures, I feel that [i]Hades[/i] did an excellent job portraying these characters, giving them subtle visual details to help portray the character. For example, Zagreus's heterochromia gives you a small look at the game's central conflict. I also really like the design of Chaos, who is basically the void before things came into being, and someone that the artists had to be especially creative with as they don't really have a defined "image" in the same way that a god like Zeus does, and I loved this game's interpretation of them, especially the little touch of them holding Earth by their fingers. While I thought the character designs were excellent in [i]Pyre[/i], this is pretty much a straight upgrade. So overall, the visuals are top-notch as usual for these developers. [h1]Gameplay[/h1] Because [i]Hades[/i] is a roguelite, nailing the gameplay was the most important aspect in this game's success, so I'm pleased to report that the game nailed it! The controls are tight, you're given a wide variety of weapons and builds to play around with, and the mechanics are pretty balanced overall. But a major strength of [i]Hades[/i] to me isn't the combat specifically (which is still excellent), but rather the overall progression. There's numerous different currencies to upgrade various aspects, whether it's upgrades for Zagreus, lavish decorations the House of Hades, or upgrades to your weapons that can drastically alter their playstyle. While the game never lets you reach [i]Risk of Rain[/i] levels of OP, there is a clear progression in your character's abilities and your understanding that make your runs feel less repetitive. Another thing that helps kill the tedium that comes from a rogue's natural repetition is the remarkable level of balance in this game. Sure, it isn't completely perfect and there's definitely a few upgrades that are more ideal to have, but everything is playable at worst. I also love that you're not completely at the mercy of RNG like most rogue games. In something like [i]Binding of Isaac[/i] or [i]FTL[/i] (the latter of which was my favorite roguelite until now), while there definitely is some level of skill involved, part of the game is just hoping that RNGesus is kind enough to give you a few good items. In the case of [i]Hades[/i], you have more control over your builds, as you can equip an item before or during your runs that allow you to determine what kind of upgrade you find next. You're also able to reroll options with upgrades later in the game. As far as difficulty goes, you're also given a lot of flexibility there. You can increase the game's difficulty after your first successful run by increasing specific aspects, for example the number of enemies you find in a room or the amount of health they have, which will reward you with more of the rare currencies. Or, you can lower the difficulty by turning on God Mode, which gives you a damage reduction that increases with each death, which is just enough to make things easier without making them brainless. The sheer amount of customization offered here is glorious. While there's definitely some smaller issues I have (like having bosses become invincible at certain points to cap your damage which is REALLY annoying in a roguelite), everything works so well here that I can easily look past those minor issues. Definitely one of the best rogue games from a pure gameplay perspective. [h1]Story[/h1] But wait, that's not all [i]Hades[/i] does extremely well. Anything from Supergiant has an excellent story, and [i]Hades[/i] is no exception. I still think [i]Pyre[/i] has it beat in terms of the main story, but this game still does some excellent things. For one, the main story is still really good. It's surprisingly grounded for a game featuring the Greek pantheon, and it was interesting enough to keep me going for 10+ victories. The characters are amazing, my favorite being Zagreus for being sassy and charming without being too "edgy", but I think all of the characters were great in their own right. Also, whoever's idea was for a severed gorgon head that talks like a generic teenage girl to be a maid in the House of Hades deserves a raise. The game also does a great job of interpreting the Greek gods and goddesses, and how they're portrayed here is pretty much how I envisioned them in my mind. But the big talk of the town with this game is the writing, and for good reason. There's so much dialogue, and in my ~40 runs, I don't think there was a single time where I saw repeating dialogue when I was sent back to the House of Hades. It's a remarkably well-written game that covers every little detail, which makes the world feel more organic as a result. I'm also a sucker for any game that ties in-game mechanics to the story, and [i]Hades[/i] does that in spades. While the story did start to wear off a bit towards the end, I didn't mind too much because at that point I could clear runs pretty consistently. Overall, the story is very high quality, especially for a roguelite. [h1]Audio[/h1] It's another Darren Korb soundtrack. Of course it's amazing! I loved the combination of metal and brass, plus other "spooky" themed instruments. The ending sequence music was a favorite for me. The voice acting is also top-notch. The various remarks of Zagreus never got old, and considering how much dialogue there is in this game, is very helpful in ensuring you don't get sick of the game before seeing the end. That's all there is to say, really. Stellar as always! [h1]Content Value[/h1] This is a roguelite, with various different options to change how you play the game. You'll need 10 victories to see game's ending, which took me around 25 hours. If you want to play through the post-game content, that'll put you around 80-100 hours total from what I've seen online. You'll absolutely be getting a ton of value out of this at full price. [h1]Verdict[/h1] When I give a game a 10/10, it does not mean a game is perfect. There's tons of minor things that I can criticize [i]Hades[/i] for. However, those flaws are easily ignored when the core package is so unbelievably well-made. The brilliant writing tying into the tight gameplay mechanics, backed with excellent voice performances, beautiful visuals, and a Darren Korb soundtrack is pretty much everything middle school me could've wanted. Thank you, Supergiant Games, for continuing to surpass my high expectations with each passing game, and I am so excited to see where you go from here. [b]Graphics[/b] - 10/10 [b]Gameplay[/b] - 10/10 [b]Story[/b] - 9.5/10 [b]Audio[/b] - 9.5/10 [b]Content Value[/b] - 10/10 [b].:10/10:. "Masterpiece" **PERSONAL PICK**[/b] + Stellar writing + Satisfying progression + Lots of customization + Amazing soundtrack + Beautiful visuals + Tight gameplay mechanics + Great characters + Strong voice acting