Hades

 Switch
User Score
9.0

Universal acclaim- based on 858 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 770 out of 858
  2. Mixed: 45 out of 858
  3. Negative: 43 out of 858
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  1. shoebill
    Feb 5, 2021
    7
    I had fun with this for the 15-20 hours that I played it, but never did finish it. It's a roguelike with some additional light RPG elements (i.e., you actually level up certain stats to make the game easier once if you die). My issue is that the runs are a bit too long. I kept dying on the end boss because I didn't understand its attack patterns well. Well, those deaths took me an hourI had fun with this for the 15-20 hours that I played it, but never did finish it. It's a roguelike with some additional light RPG elements (i.e., you actually level up certain stats to make the game easier once if you die). My issue is that the runs are a bit too long. I kept dying on the end boss because I didn't understand its attack patterns well. Well, those deaths took me an hour to come back from, minimum. I get that's a staple of the roguelike genre, but it lost me. I had a blast in the first 10 to 20 runs as I saw constant improvement, but that flattens. It was a good game to play to wind down for the night after a dinner out (Sept. and Oct. of 2020 - the brief time we could go out!) but won't stick with me for the long term.… Expand
  2. Syntheticproduc
    Sep 28, 2020
    6
    Really fun at first and for a few hours, but becomes incredibly grindy after that. Its just the same thing over and over worth no sense of progression. You might get a few crystals there and there but changes on the gameplay is minimal, so you're just stuck repeating the same gameplay.

    Wish it was 'punchier' (shorter) witbout the need to drop dozens of hours of samey grind.
  3. Koyb0417
    Sep 21, 2020
    7
    Best game ive played in this year. Its much better than hollow knights for me. Its easier for noob of soul games. Its cartoon illustrations r wonderful. Its on sale in eshop now too. Dont miss this chance
  4. SomeName
    Oct 9, 2020
    7
    Hades is a really fun game with a great combat loop, visuals and sound - the whole pizzazz. My one gripe with it is that there's just not enough variety in the content to justify grinding your way through the 10 successful runs required to get the actual ending. The first few runs are quite interesting until you've found your favourite weapons and abilities that allow you to wreck theHades is a really fun game with a great combat loop, visuals and sound - the whole pizzazz. My one gripe with it is that there's just not enough variety in the content to justify grinding your way through the 10 successful runs required to get the actual ending. The first few runs are quite interesting until you've found your favourite weapons and abilities that allow you to wreck the bosses, but a lot of subsequent enhancements and additional challenges unlock so slowly that you'll never even get to them before finishing the grind.

    It would have been better to reduce the unlock requirements for pretty much everything to create a better sense of progression.    … Expand
  5. blubberguts
    Sep 29, 2020
    5
    Game is tedious. I was bored within minutes.

    1. Don't like the art style 2. Don't like the music 3. All the rooms look like each other and make utterly no sense as rooms. They look like random pieces that have been assembled into a "room"....because that's what they are. Procedural content generation. 4. No inventory. No armour or weapons. Some of the greatest fun of a    Game is tedious. I was bored within minutes.

    1. Don't like the art style

    2. Don't like the music

    3. All the rooms look like each other and make utterly no sense as rooms. They look like random pieces that have been assembled into a "room"....because that's what they are. Procedural content generation.

    4. No inventory. No armour or weapons. Some of the greatest fun of a rogue-like is building an ever better set of armour and weapons....well you won't be doing that here. Instead, you just get new abilities.

    Even older games like Grim Dawn or Diablo 2 are more fun than this, and graphically better too. Do yourself a favour and avoid....    … Expand
  6. wasianegg
    Sep 18, 2020
    5
    Smooth as butter combat, bunch of weapons and upgrades to unlock. Interesting story.
  7. Goo4you
    Nov 5, 2020
    6
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. Hades is not a GOTY contender; it doesn't even break the year's top 10 games.

    Ok, still here? Good, enjoy the review, not clouded the majority hivemind.

    I like to start my reviews with the things I enjoyed. Generally, that IS the most highlight but then base everything on—superficial things took way beyond what really matters while ignoring all the glaring problems underneath.

    Positives:

    Music- Really well crafted. Orchestrated tunes, as well as the pieces with lyrics, are all great. I found myself sitting around Eurydice sing plenty of times. Some of the pieces set up a boss fight, awesome, and gets your blood pumping (The first few times). It wears off after you hear the same thing 10 times.

    Voice acting: Good, Eurdiyce in particular, as well as Thanatos and Achillies.Quirky dialogue is really great in many exchanges; Thesus and Zag got a laugh out of me a couple of times. Zag's responses with Tisiphone got me to laugh as well.

    Side Stories: Fun, though, while I enjoyed unlocking parts, not a single one convinced me to finish them after getting the true ending.

    Combat: It's a roguelike. It's quite fun for the first hour or two.

    ___________________________________________

    Negatives:
    Combat: It's a roguelike; it's quite fun for the first hour or two. Weapons are both fun and excruciatingly bad. This isometric, procedurally generated dungeon scroller and some weapons are crafted to not work on this plane. The sword is a 4-way weapon on a platform that is anything but. The bow might be the stupidest weapon in the game to work with by far as a base weapon. In a game that demands you zip around enemies like a madperson, having to charge your basic attack makes it unfun.

    Main Story: The first time I cleared the game, and I learned where it was going, I went "OH! Intrigue" by the 10th time? There was no intrigue to any of the threads that the narrative eluded to. If there are and they are in the side missions, the game doesn't sell itself well to do the same thing over and over and over again to get the complete explanation(s). I completed the entire main story in 38 runs; if you can't settle the entire thing by then, you failed.

    Voice Acting: Sure, it's well-acted, but the delivery by the actors wasn't great. I get someone like Zagreus is supposed to be a moody angst-ridden character. But places where he needed to emote, he didn't, and it happened a lot. Some of the Gods are either Hammy or way overplayed. Megaera was possibly one of the worst offenders here by her willowy delivery that grated on my nerves every time I had to talk to her.

    Items/costs: Inflated costs that beg you to play this thing forever. It's not worth dumping hundreds of hours. Again, the combat is fun, but that lasts for like two hours, at most. After you hit a threshold with weapon upgrades and shadow, plus figuring out to beef up your HP as fast as you can in the run, you end up in this droll, boring slog of doing the same thing over and over because deviating from it doesn't freshen up the game; it's purposely choosing the least efficient path to break up the monotony. Force concentration, you're doing this in this game, or you're not playing it right.

    Then there is the expansion of both the House of Hades and the material costs to build relationships. The tiny amount of gems and diamonds to unlock much of the house put way too much emphasis on the currency and not the thing you bought. Using the hard-earned currency made the thing you spent it on underwhelming. It's almost like the game mocking you for working hard for a cosmetic item that does nothing.

    Earning Nectar feels the same way, but worse in some cases, but there are just so many characters you have to both give it to AND how many you have to give to each, and if you're lucky; you might 3 in a run, sometimes you'll get none. No thanks, I'm good; I don't want to keep doing the same thing and over again for a dribble of content.

    Harder Difficulties: You can paint a turd up; however, you want; it's still a turd. Pickable hindrances to make things "More challenging" is lazy. If you really wanted to give players added challenges, you should have just had more games across the board.

    Conclusion: Hades is a fun game that caps out at being fun around 10 hours, at most. Once you complete the main story, nothing else really has enough weight in my opinion to go on. If you enjoy the monotony of endlessly doing the same content again and again, the game provides it, but not for anyone else. Put down the controller and move onto something new.    … Expand
  8. cubewars
    Feb 1, 2021
    5
    Completely solid in all aspects, levels of polish and balance that very few games manage to reach.
  9. jameson95
    Dec 19, 2020
    7
    Fun for a few hours. The more you get into the game, the more grindey it feels. It is quite deflating to finally unlock special upgrades only to find that those upgrades are worthless. Seriously how many hours does this game expect me to play with no plot to speak of, fighting the goddamn same enemies over and over, and same random upgrades? Like why is it so much work to get a diamond? IFun for a few hours. The more you get into the game, the more grindey it feels. It is quite deflating to finally unlock special upgrades only to find that those upgrades are worthless. Seriously how many hours does this game expect me to play with no plot to speak of, fighting the goddamn same enemies over and over, and same random upgrades? Like why is it so much work to get a diamond? I thought this wasn’t a true rogue like, but I can’t even make progress because I stop getting rewarded.

    Combat is also very very straight forward, and a lot of times there’s so many effects on the screen I can’t even tell if I’m about to get hit. What’s up wit h that?

    I would buy if it’s on sale but don’t be surprised when it is not GotY quality.    … Expand
  10. DinoBeam
    Apr 30, 2022
    6
    Hades has a cool idea, and the characters are really lovable and alive, though it is just a glorified grind without much payoff. You can collect an item to level up your relationships with other characters, and I was very excited to see what would happen when I did, though I beat the final boss before anything did happen. Then the game tells you to do it again and again for the 'real'Hades has a cool idea, and the characters are really lovable and alive, though it is just a glorified grind without much payoff. You can collect an item to level up your relationships with other characters, and I was very excited to see what would happen when I did, though I beat the final boss before anything did happen. Then the game tells you to do it again and again for the 'real' ending. Even playing 3 hours more I didn't make progress with any characters, you don't even know if you'll find that item out there, or if the character you want to talk to will even be around!

    The combat is that serviceable and then bland feeling Supergiant combat with that same Deviantart.com art style. The music is the same bland music they always have.

    You feel addicted to wanting to upgrade your relationships, home, and character, and the combat to do it feels like a bland and stressful slog, as it is often a gangbang-bullethell game.    … Expand
  11. jgmj921
    Mar 27, 2021
    7
    Maybe I'm simply not a huge fan of this style. The repetitive combat doesn't seem too appealing to me. Gameplay itself is great.
  12. torjo
    Jun 30, 2023
    7
    I have read some people saying that is has an "insane replayability". Yes, it has, if you love doing the same all the time. You improve a little bit, buy new stuff and blablabla. But each game takes time, even more than one hour going trough the same boring world you already know with no challenge at all.
  13. TheTechGuy
    Dec 20, 2020
    7
    I heard good things about this. But a lot of times it’s just hype (to me). It’s not bad. The way the story revolves around your gameplay is a nice touch. The way a character will talk about your death with little details just adds to the immersion. It just all fits. Normally I would hate losing all progress and starting over. But since you can build up your character little by little it’sI heard good things about this. But a lot of times it’s just hype (to me). It’s not bad. The way the story revolves around your gameplay is a nice touch. The way a character will talk about your death with little details just adds to the immersion. It just all fits. Normally I would hate losing all progress and starting over. But since you can build up your character little by little it’s something I can tolerate. I am playing on the Switch so a lot of it is little characters and enemies running around. Not the most detail. I did see they made the Greek goddess Athena black. lol. It wasn’t until some podcaster mentioned how they loved that that I realized it though. If Hollywood is doing it you know gaming will. Besides, making someone’s color different is okay as long as it’s from a light skin person. Cries of white washing will happen if/when it’s the other way. Never for the other way (Annie, little mermaid, numerous comic book characters etc).… Expand
  14. Zski
    Sep 24, 2021
    7
    As far as polish and presentation goes, this game is excellent. The world is among the best crafted world and experience in a roguelike game. The graphics are beautiful, the story is well executed, the characters are all interesting and unique, the voice acting is great, the music is very well made. I also think this game did a great job with the progression system - the several differentAs far as polish and presentation goes, this game is excellent. The world is among the best crafted world and experience in a roguelike game. The graphics are beautiful, the story is well executed, the characters are all interesting and unique, the voice acting is great, the music is very well made. I also think this game did a great job with the progression system - the several different types of unlocks that you’re working toward gives a hint of that addictive grind while giving you a rewarding amount of story progression. Where the game is the weakest is the gameplay itself. It’s not bad, but after about 5 hours of playtime, it begins to feel like it’s more button mashing than anything else. It would be a game that would be fun with another person, but playing it alone makes you really start noticing the lack of precision and the over reliance on semi-mindless button mashing. Though I had a lot of fun and have returned to it for a second time, I find it to be overhyped because the exceptional presentation overshadows the simple gameplay, even by standards set by other rogue like games.… Expand
  15. rafael11
    Sep 7, 2023
    7
    PROS
    Fluid gameplay and responsive controls. Constant evolution and incentives in the run. The different weapons are very specific. Inspired art style.
    CONS The characters and the dialogue weren't great. The voice acting was a big letdown, seemed amateur, lacking of emotion. Music was forgettable but one theme. Too short though, a few rooms, that don't vary much from each other and    PROS
    Fluid gameplay and responsive controls. Constant evolution and incentives in the run. The different weapons are very specific. Inspired art style.

    CONS
    The characters and the dialogue weren't great. The voice acting was a big letdown, seemed amateur, lacking of emotion. Music was forgettable but one theme.
    Too short though, a few rooms, that don't vary much from each other and the game it's over. Difficulty curve is too high, it expects you to spend hours repeating and repeating the same things without much variety.    … Expand

Awards & Rankings

1
#1 Best Switch Game of 2020
5
#5 Most Discussed Switch Game of 2020

Critic Reviews

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Metascore
93

Universal acclaim - based on 48 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 48 out of 48
  2. Mixed: 0 out of 48
  3. Negative: 0 out of 48
  1. Ninty Fresh Magazine
    Dec 21, 2020
    95
    Supergiant knock it out the park once again with a practically flawless game. Love roguelites? Buy Hades. Don’t love roguelites? Buy Hades. You soon will. [Issue #2, p.58]
  2. Pure Nintendo
    Dec 21, 2020
    95
    Hades is a complete package. The writing will make you laugh, the gameplay will make you smile, the bosses will frustrate you, and the art will make you stare in awe. All of which combined makes Hades a must-play, and once you start, you won’t want to stop.
    Read full review
  3. Hey Poor Player
    Dec 14, 2020
    90
    Despite how long I’ve been ranting here, there’s plenty more I could say about Hades. But honestly, I feel it’s best you discover for yourself why I’m so enamored of Supergiant’s latest adventure. Though the game isn’t quite perfect, it truly earned the accolades it’s been receiving. And honestly, if they decide to implement some additional content later on, most of my complaints would be rendered moot. This is honestly my favorite game yet by Supergiant Games, and easily one of my favorite indies of 2020. If you love rogue and need something new to enjoy, be sure to put this one on your wishlist.
    Read full review
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