Escape the Underworld

Hades 2 (officially Hades II) is an action roguelike developed and published by Supergiant Games, the studio behind the original Hades and Pyre. The game reached full v1.0 release on 25 September 2025 on PC (Steam) after an Early Access period. You play as Melinoe, the Princess of the Underworld and a practitioner of nocturnal witchcraft, on a mission to defeat the Titan of Time, Chronos, who has taken her father Hades captive. Each run has you fighting through procedurally arranged chambers across the underworld and the surface world above, collecting Olympian boon upgrades and weapons along the way.

Hades 2 replaces Zagreus with a new protagonist, Melinoe, who has a fundamentally different combat kit: a Magick meter for powering Omega (charged) attacks, a Sprint ability tied to holding the dash button, and a Cast that creates a binding circle rather than a lodged projectile. The game adds the Arcana Card system (permanent passive buffs equipped from a growing deck), new boon gods including Hera, Hestia, and Hephaestus, and introduces a second traversal route through the Surface in addition to the classic underworld path. The six Nocturnal Arms (weapons) each have multiple unlock-able Aspects that dramatically change their moveset, similar to the Aspects system in the original.

You play as Melinoe, described as the Princess of the Underworld and a daughter of Hades and Persephone. She is a practitioner of the nocturnal arts — a witch — and has been training under the goddess Hecate since childhood. Her goal is to defeat Chronos, the Titan of Time, who imprisoned her father. Melinoe's combat style emphasizes charged Omega attacks, a magic binding Cast, and a sprint dash, contrasting with Zagreus's faster, dash-cancel-focused style from the original Hades.

Hades 2 has six weapons, called Nocturnal Arms: the Witch's Staff (balanced, beginner-friendly ranged/melee), the Sister Blades (twin daggers with backstab bonuses and high attack speed), the Umbral Flames (spectral orb projectiles for medium range), the Moonstone Axe (slow, wide-arc melee with heavy burst damage), the Argent Skull (ammo-based skull projectiles that must be retrieved), and the Black Coat (a cape with wrap-around attack arcs). Each weapon has multiple Aspects — alternate fighting styles unlocked via resources — that significantly change how the weapon functions.

Boons are power-up offers from Olympian gods that appear in reward rooms throughout each run. Each boon upgrades one of Melinoe's abilities — Attack, Special, Cast, Sprint, or Dash — or adds a passive effect. Gods include Zeus, Aphrodite, Apollo, Demeter, Poseidon, Hephaestus, Hera, Hestia, and Hermes, each with a distinct damage type or utility focus. Boons come in four rarities (Common, Rare, Epic, Heroic) and can be upgraded with Poms of Power found during runs. Certain god pairings unlock powerful Duo Boons — two-god combination upgrades with outsized effects.