Hades 2 is here, and with it being a direct sequel to Super Giant’s last game, we expected to see a bunch of old faces with a coat of new paint. Whilst not every character returns in Hades 2 (as of writing anyway), there are buckets of familiar Gods, Titans, and the like to rediscover.
If you want to catch up on the House Of Hades, the gods on Olympus, or the Creator himself in the Abyss, Hades 2 is happy to oblige. In this ‘guide’ we are going to go over every returning character, what has changed, and any sneaky mechanics that have slipped through hitherto unnoticed. Oh, Spoilers ahead. You have been warned.
Note: Do be aware that Hades 2 is still in Early Access, so anything and everything is subject to change.
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Aries
We are coming in HOT with an honourable mention. Aries is nowhere to be seen in Hades 2, however, he is mentioned A LOT and his handy work on the surface is plain to see. Who would have thought the GOD OF WAR would be having the time of his life fighting an eternal war against Time itself? We expect to see Aeris in his full glory at some point, but for now, we will settle with this cheeky inclusion.
Aphrodite
Aphrodite makes her return and she has had a makeover – not that she needed it. Aphrodite is the Goddess of Love and Beauty, and she nails that aesthetic for a second time. Needless to say, she is also quite the narcissist (but what god isn’t?). Whilst her personality and visuals have not changed massively, she has gained a few new tricks in the Boon department.
A ‘few’ might be a bit of an overstatement. She primarily deals in massive amounts of up-close damage and her unique Weak status. Throw in massive health bars, and you are good to go.
Artemis
Artemis has undergone one of the most drastic changes in Hades 2. Not only is she not ‘just’ a Boon, but she’s undergone a fairly start visual update. She looks like Artemis still, but the way she is portrayed has been given a bit more zing. She has also gotten a lot of work done on her personality, which is awesome. Melinoe and Artemis have a lot of history, and we are looking forward to seeing that unravel.
This is because Artemis is one of the rarer gods you will encounter due to her taking on the role of a ‘Thanatos-like’ character. A god who visits you during a room encounter to spice things up a smidge. Her Boons have largely stayed the same in terms of theme. She likes Crit and she likes firing homing projectiles – good stuff.
Cerberus
This one is super spoilerific, but how could it not include the watchful hound of Hell? Cerberus, unlike in Hades 1, is an actual boss in Hades 2. Once beaten, you will see Cerberus in his proper form lingering next to his master, although he has no connection to Melinoe.
Being huge fans of Hades 1, it’s sad to see our loyal companion give us the cold shoulder, but we still know he’s the bestest of boys.
Chaos
Chaos is the most changed character in Hades 2. Visually, the dude is holding his face in the palm of his hand, whilst looking at his face with a separate face…oh and that first face? Yeah, it’s got a foetus just chilling – attached to Chaos via the umbilical cord. The dude is metal as all heck, and we love him for it.
Chaos being the chad that created everything, is a creature of immense power, and in this incarnation, we see Chaos being betrayed. A creature so above the concept of morality and humanity has no understanding of emotion or even deception, and it is that weakness that kickstarts Hades 2 and its main conflict. Thankfully, he’s a fan of Hades and his offspring so he is well and truly on our side.
Charon
The boatman returns and he’s unfinished. Sadly. Charon’s art is just placement filler at the moment, which is a shame because Charon is seen multiple times a run. Not only that, Charon plays a huge role in the story as he is pretty darn pissed at Chronos. The dude tanked the economy, put Charon out of a job, and left the realm in tatters. A bold move.
Charon still speaks in groans, but he is actively helping the cause and has more mechanics than the previous entry making him a pivotal ally throughout.
Demeter
The Goddess Of Seasons is back and she is peeved for many reasons. A trait this character is well known for. Demeter not only lost her daughter to Chronos but also her grandson. Throw in the slight anger she feels for not being told of Melinoe’s existence, and Demeter is frequently trying to keep herself in check.
This is a remarkable step up from the majority of Hades 1 where she was pretty darn peeved at all times and never really got over it. Mechanically she brings the power of Frost and incredible amounts of DPS-based damage through blizzards and cyclones. She is one of our favourite Boon-givers, and we dig her new armoured look.
Hades
We couldn’t have a game called Hades without the big man himself. Hades returns in a way that is far from triumphant. Brought low by his father and shackled to the bowels of the Underworld, Hades has no idea what’s going on, how long it has been, or even that you exist.
Whilst his art is unfinished, what we have is some wonderful concept art that displays the once-mighty god as a shadow of his former self. Thankfully he can bestow powerful Boons like the other gods. Worry not, we will see you freed one day.
Oh and let’s not forget you get to PLAY as Hades momentarily during a flashback. Awesome.
Hermes
The rapid-taking Hermes is back, and he is a man with a plan. Dedicated to scouting, relaying information, and bizarrely hiding things from you, Hermes is a mystery wrapped in an ally. His design has been tarted up to give him a more free-flowing look, and his boons have been tweaked accordingly.
Hermes is all about speed and in this case, speed equates to defensive advantages. If you want to stay around for longer, Hermes is the god for you.
Hypnos
Hypnos somehow managed to escape the ransacking of the House Of Hades, although we have no idea how. Unfortunately, Sleep Incarnate is asleep and overgrown. As far as we are aware, Hypnos cannot be awoken during the Early Access, but we assume he has a lot of answers surrounding what happened that fateful night.
Poseidon
The bountiful God Of The Sea returns in all of his opulent glory, and we love him just as much as we did before. He talks a big talk, and he delivers with vast swathes of gold and powerful damage-based boons. His main gimmick, Knockback, returns as does a new mechanic called Slip. This rounds out Poseidon’s Boon pool nicely as Melinoe can effectively debuff, displace, and dismantle her opponents with ease.
Interestingly, as part of Hades 2 is underwater, we get some lore surrounding Poseidon and his limitations as a sea god. The lad doesn’t have dominion over everything, and Oceanus is one place he keeps away from.
Skelly
Skelly is back, reworked, and renamed. Skelly is our punching bag and tutorial dispenser and we still have no idea who this guy is. Like in Hades 1, Skelly will frequently trick you into letting your guard down with a profound nugget of wisdom only to reveal it was an elaborate gag all along. What a tinker.
Nyx & Zagreus
Two characters we see very briefly are Nyx and Zagreus. Nyx is one of the most nebulous characters in Hades. Vaguely being the Incarnation Of Night and the mother of everything from Death, Strife, Vengeance, Sleep, and Doom – to name a few. She is mentioned frequently however you do see her trapped in a time prison during a flashback with Hades.
Zagreus is also mentioned all of the time, with his previous exploits being alluded to on the regular. You also get to see him during the flashback with Hades, although like with Nyx, he is frozen in time. We cannot wait to see Melinoe interact with both of these characters, but we confess that her interactions with Zagreus have us smashing the refresh button on the Patch Notes.
Zeus
Finally, the God Of Olympus, the father of most, Zeus. This guy is fully decked out in golden battle armour and ready to smite everything in sight. Zeus is still a fairly jolly fellow, but it is hinted that his vast power is being stretched thin dealing with Chronos and his endless minions.
That doesn’t mean he isn’t able to lend a hand. Heck, he even has a new mechanic in the form of Blitz which deals delayed damage. Not to mention he also has all kinds of lightning-bolt-based tech that wreaks havoc in just about every encounter. We are big fans of Zeus and we can’t wait to rescue his golden ass in the full release.
That’s all we have on Hades 2 for now. Be sure to check out our other content for more guides, tips, and tricks.
