The Game Awards 2022 showcase started strong, with its first world premiere being the announcement of Hades 2, the sequel to one of the most beloved indie games of all time, the isometric rogue-like Hades.
The announcement came with a gameplay-packed trailer revealing that this time you won’t play as the titular character, but instead a staff-wielding witch, that appears to be Melinoe, Princess of the Underworld. The trailer shows off some of the unique abilities that players will be able to utilize with this new protagonist, as well as some of the new characters players will meet along their journey, like Apollo, the God of Light, and Moros, Doom Incarnate.
It is strongly indicated that the game’s main goal will be to face off and kill Kronos, God of Time, who’s coincidentally the protagonist’s father. “He is no mere titan,” it’s said in the trailer. “He is time itself, and time cannot be stopped.” No information was given about a release date, but it was confirmed that, like its predecessor, Hades 2 will first launch in early access, and more information about it will be revealed in 2023.
No information was given about platforms either, but it’s reasonable to assume it will eventually come to all major platforms as Hades did less than a year after its launch. Hades 2 is being developed by Supergiant Games, the San Francisco-based indie studio that burst into the video game scene with its debut title, 2011’s Bastion, earning wide acclaim for its narrative. After releasing two other games, Transistor and Pyre, Supergiant Games released Hades in 2020, which was a critical success, widely praised for both its gameplay and story, and was coincidentally nominated for game of the year in 2020.
This announcement was especially surprising, given that Hades only officially launched about two years ago. However, it is noticeable in this Hades 2 trailer that its gameplay is heavily built on the foundations of its predecessor (and that’s definitely not a bad thing). Though more information will be relayed regarding early access next year, it may be wise to temper expectations about its full release date, as the first Hades’ early access period lasted almost two years.
