Hades 2 gives us a new kind of witch, and gameplay to match

During the first few minutes of playing as Hades 2’s Melinoë, players encounter sights like a bubbling cauldron, the silhouette of a pointed witch’s hat, and the glowing lines of a summoning circle. Between the new gameplay and the story, Hades 2 goes all in on the dark magic — and that’s one of the biggest differences between it and its predecessor, Hades.

The original Hades followed Zagreus, the strong but brash son of Hades who sought to escape the underworld. Now, the series turns to his sister, Melinoë, a warrior raised and trained by the Goddess of witchcraft and necromancy, Hecate. It’s a dramatic shift from Hades, but a welcome one. The setting and tone of Hades 2 could have tiptoed into the territory of a Halloween cliché, yet the game subverts those expectations: Melinoë doesn’t cast with a wand but the sharpened edge of a spear, and the cloaked figure wearing the pointed hat just so happens to have a bare midriff that’s shredded with six-pack abs. That’s because Hades 2 presents us with a witch that is savvy, strong, and perhaps most importantly, fun.

Hades 2 shares some structure with Hades. Every time Melinoë dies and restarts a run, she returns to the hazy green waters of The Crossroads. There, she shares a cozy candle-lit room decorated with books, jars, and layered rugs with a jovial ghost named Dora. It’s a somber life in the shadows, but she and her allies stand resolute in their mission to kill the Titan of Time, Chronos. She can prepare for each attempt to kill Chronos with several different kinds of items and upgrades, all witch-themed (unlike her brother Zagreus). She concocts incantations using the base’s cauldron and can pick from a variety of astrology-esque cards that give her unique abilities, like Death Defiance — which revives her the first time she dies — and an enhanced sprint.

The game’s witchy flourishes bring Melinoë and her will to life. During dialogue, her character art glows white in the moonlight, and the light waves with a subtle effervescence. She stands confidently, with her arms outstretched, and even though she’s still learning, her voice and posture exude a sense of courage that could only come with being trained by Hecate, as well as being the bloodline of a powerful king. She means business — and her attitude gives me the confidence to take on a tough game. Melinoë also represents a unique approach to understanding witches of the time.

In traditional Greek mythology, women and witches typically exerted a specific kind of strength and influence. Joel Christensen, professor of classical studies at Brandeis University, wrote about how witches in ancient Greek myth were “almost exclusively women” and these stories were partially about navigating gender roles in a patriarchal society. As Christensen writes:

Fear about women’s power was an essential part of ancient anxiety about witchcraft. This fear, moreover, relied on traditional expectations about the abilities innate to a person’s gender. As early as the creation narrative in Hesiod’s ‘Theogony’ – a poem hailing from a poetic tradition between the eighth and fifth centuries B.C. – male gods like Cronus and Zeus were depicted with physical strength, while female figures were endowed with intelligence. In particular, women knew about the mysteries of childbirth and how to raise children.

Image: Supergiant Games via Polygon

In this way of understanding gender as it was represented in ancient Greek myth, men are strong and women use their intelligence and trickery to cope with violence. Hades 2 expands on this ancient Greek idea by giving us witches who are both clever and strong and who defy the stereotypical expectations of them. Melinoë herself isn’t exactly a witch, but she was raised by one and she’s stronger for it.

Hades 2’s gameplay keeps core elements of the original game, like Boons and the ability to pick between different weapons, but Melinoë’s magic brings an expanded set of powers when compared to Zagreus. She has a “magick” bar that she can expend to use enhanced versions of her attacks, and she can cast magical AOE spells that can ensnare her enemies and give her buffs. On top of all that, Selene, the goddess of the moon, can also grant Melinoë a hex that gives her an additional attack on top of her other ones that works like an ultimate. Melinoë’s background shapes who she is as a fighter, and in turn brings a fresh experience to the game.

And it’s not just Melinoë. Other characters play with the typical tropes of witchy and fantastical women as well. Scylla, a sea monster who Melinoë meets at the end of the second section, defies the stereotypical expectations of the fantasy creature. Instead of exuding a stereotypical feminine beauty, she dons clown-like makeup and drapes herself in her tentacles. She’s a formidable boss in her own right, and instead of crooning in gentle feminine tunes, she violently belts out the lead vocals in a rock band made up of Sirens, shown here playing drums and electric guitar. It’s a welcome change and it shows us what a fantasy world inspired by Greek mythology looks like when we embrace the power of women, instead of fearing it.