The release announcement of the first direct sequel ever created by Supergiant, Hades II, at The Game Awards has really spiked the hype among fans. Following the success of Supergiant’s first roguelike by the name of Hades, Hades II is set to release in 2024 and is going to take the industry by storm and will feature a new protagonist, Melinoë, who is the sister of Zagreus. In this article, we’ll shed light on everything we know so far about Hades II.
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5 Things to Know About Hades II
1) Release Date
As per the announcement at last year’s TGA event and the official trailer, the early access of Hades II has been targeted in the second quarter of 2024. However, no exact date has yet been released regarding when the game will actually be released. Early access to the sequel is set to launch simultaneously for Steam and Epic Games, but no system requirements have yet been disclosed.
About five years back, the original Hades was launched on a plethora of platforms, including Xbox, PlayStation, and PC. Similarly, Hades II is expected to be released on all mainstream consoles as well as PC, though a console release for Hades II will likely come after early access.
Supergiant has given its word that it will release the exact price, release date, and system requirements as it gets closer to the early access launch. However, right now, according to the latest information, fans are a bit in the dark since it’ll be a good few months till the next update with the full game release information comes through. However, it is safe to say that based on the early access release date, we shall see the full game release date to be around the first half of 2025
2) Early Access
Supergiant has not given any information about the full game release; However, they have shared the early access release of the game. The early access to Hades II will give gamers a chance to purchase and play a work-in-progress version of the sequel while being able to share their feedback regarding the pre-launch game.
Supergiant has also claimed that the Early Access game will have enough playable content from day one as the original game did back when it was launched. Moreover, they have regarded the fans’ anticipation and have promised that they will do everything they can to make sure Hades II is worth the fans’ wait and is an enjoyable experience as soon as you can play it in any capacity
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3) Technical Test
Supergiant has also announced that they will hold a technical test of the game with a limited number of players before the early access period begins. They have stated that the technical test will contain much less content than the early access game and will help solve any compatibility issues they might have missed in the game.
The further details of the test are unknown, but this shows the determination of Supergiant to give players a refined version of the game by incorporating the feedback after vigorous testing of the game. It’s suspected that the technical test period will begin sometime in early 2024, but indeed, it will be limited to a very small subset of players.
4) New Protagonist and Locations
Following the rogue-like adventures of Zagreus, Hades II will feature a new protagonist by the name of Melinoë, the immortal princess of Hell. Maintaining the game’s connection to Greek mythology, Melinoë is said to be based on an ancient underworld deity and claimed to be related to Hades.
According to the debut trailer of the sequel, it’s clear that Melinoë’s character has a cloud of mystery around her, and fans are eager to explore her story in a game full of dungeon-crawling adventures, thereby expanding their vision of the underworld. The protagonist’s combat skills will probably focus on magical and stealth-based magic abilities and weapons that will help her defeat enemies throughout the game.
The second half of the trailer also shows off a number of new locations that fans will have access to. Supergiant has claimed that the sequel will feature a more evasive and bigger map than the original game, giving players the chance to enjoy their combat adventures in different locations with enhanced backgrounds.
5) Story and Gameplay
Following Zagreus’s underworld escapades in the original Hades game, the sequel is set to be centred around “Cronos”. Supergiant has referred to Cronos as the Titan of Time, which probably means that the game’s ultimate villain is the combination of Titan Chronos, the father of Zeus and Hades, and Chronos, which is the Greek personification of Time. The game is set to take place in the underworld again, with the protagonist being the princess of the underworld herself, guiding her way through new locations, dangerous enemies and upgrade systems to play around with.
Despite being a sequel, Hades II will have a standalone story, which means you don’t need to know the storyline of the original Hades game to understand the storyline of Hades II. The story is promised to be filled with references to Greek culture and mythology, which was one of the main reasons for the success of the original game.
Unlike Zagreus, Melinoë has a larger focus on magic and has been referred to as an “Immortal witch” and “Sorceress with a variety of shadowy weapons”. The immortal witch can be seen using her shadowy weapons in certain parts of the trailer, like her fight with Hecate and in the gameplay.
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Final Thoughts
Hades II is set to be available for early access in the second quarter of 2024, and fans have been enthralled by it ever since the debut trailer was released. Although Supergiant has not yet released the exact dates for the early access and full-game release, the sequel is definitely going to be a much bigger development than the original Hades.