Beautiful, fluid, addictive, subtle: Hades came to set the rogue-like world on fire, first blowing the embers of its early access on PC in 2018 before coming to burst in the face of the world on consoles (Switch in 2020, PlayStation and Xbox in 2021). After reading this trailer, all the qualities of the first opus seem to be there in this sequel featuring Melinoë, a brand new protagonist in charge of defeating not Hades but Cronos, the titan who embodies time. “And time can’t be stopped“, laments an old acquaintance in a tired voice.
Thank you for everything, Zagreus
“It is a direct sequel that takes place some time after the events of the original game. No prior knowledge of the original Hades game is required, although there are many connections“, explains Supergiant Games. Immortal princess of the underworld, the witch Melinoë is also the sister of Zagreus, the protagonist of the first Hades. Like her brother, she can count on the more or less interested support of a good part of the pantheon of Olympus, in a quest that will once again be based on the art of repetition.
While the success ofHades II seems could not be more guaranteed, Supergiant Games has decided to marry the same formula as with its predecessor. It is therefore in early access that the game will debut in 2023, with the notable difference that Steam will be there from the start in addition to the Epic Games Store. The consoles will wait their turn but will not be forgotten. “We will announce which platforms the game will be available on as it nears completion“, can we read on the FAQ. It also tells us that the team has started working on Hades II in early 2021 and no multiplayer functionality is planned.
It must be said that despite the colossal success of its game, Supergiant Games has not caught on to delusions of grandeur and only has a good twenty developers in its ranks, barely more than for Hades first of the name. The seven members of the founding team of Bastion are still in place and have worked on all the studio’s games since 2009, notably Greg Kasavin on writing, Jen Zee on artistic direction and Darren Korb on music. The cinematic of the trailer is for its part signed Studio Grackle, already author of the opening cinematic of the first Hades. In short, we are in good hands.