At first, I wasn’t really interested in Hades when it was first released. I remember seeing so many people hyping up the game when it was first released but at the time, it didn’t really seem like a game that I would enjoy much. But for the next couple months, I kept hearing so much praise for it and I kept seeing it go on sale, so sometime in November I decided it was finally time for me to pick it up when it was like $15.

I’m glad it did too because while it’s not really a genre that I love, it ended up being a game that I liked a lot, so much so that it ended up being one of my most favorite games of 2020, easily top 10.

GRAPHICS: 9/10

There’s a lot going on when it comes to the graphics in Hades. The art style is something that I really enjoyed about the game and the animation works so well between the characters and the backgrounds/environment. Each of the levels of hell are small but they are full of life when it comes to detail, color, and good design. Everything runs really smoothly as well, Making the game a real treat to look at.

The developer of the game, SuperGiant Games has a history of making isometric games that have really good visuals. In. Over the last decade, two of the biggest games that they’ve worked on were Transistor and Bastion, both of which had a similar art style to Hades and looked really good.

Everything about the game’s look screams detail and immersion. It’s all nearly perfectly crafted and gets a 9 out of 10 for me.

SOUND: 10/10

To me, the sound is Hades’ greatest strength for a number of reasons. The biggest reason is simply how good the voice acting is. The game features more than two dozen different characters and each of them are fully voiced expertly. All the people who were given the task of lending their voices gave each character powerful and unique voices that really showcase not only their personality and character, but the tone and style of the game as well.

A handful of the voice actors had also done voice work on either Transistor or Bastion, so SuperGiant games already had an idea of what their vision was and how it would play out.

The music is also really good and there’s so much to talk about in that area. SuperGiant Games is still an indie studio, which means a small team, and it shows because the entire soundtrack was composed by this guy named Darren Korb. Not only did he do the entire soundtrack for Hades, but he’s also Supergiant’s audio director and the voice of multiple characters, including the protagonist Zagreus.

He also did the soundtrack for every single game by Supergiant so far, so it’s clear that he knows what he’s doing when it comes to sound. The soundtrack itself is pretty epic, with nearly every song bringing a certain level of energy, and they’re all pretty amazing in their own right. I probably wouldn’t even half to talk about the games regular sounds, this aspect already gets a perfect 10 out of 10.

ADDICTIVENESS: 9/10

I’m not the kind of person who loves isometric games. I’m not even a big fan of dungeons even. But when it comes to this game, there’s lots to like, even for people who might not find it interesting to begin with. Here’s the thing, addictiveness has to do with replayability and going back and playing more or starting the game over.

But here’s the thing about Hades. You play the game by starting over. Then you start over again, and again, and again. You first start off as a weakling at the lowest chamber of Hades and you’re going to die quickly. Once you die, you start from the start all over again, but you’re going to be a little bit stronger this time. This means that on your 2nd run, you’ll be able to get a bit further through Hades.

But then you’re going to die again and start from the bottom again, but you’ll be even stronger and you’ll have so many cool upgrades once you die enough. You’re going to die dozens of times and have to start from the bottom each time and you’re going to have a blast doing so.

It’s not like grinding to get stronger by going back to an area and training, which pauses the progression of the game until you’re ready. Here, you’re going to be slowly progressing through the game all the time, even when you die, so it’s going to take a while to get old. Addictiveness gets a 9 out of 10 from me.

STORY: 8/10

There isn’t really a lot to say about Hades without spoiling a chunk of the game. You play as Zagreus, who is the son of Hades himself. Your goal is simply to escape the underworld by going through a number of chambers or levels that make up hell.

Throughout the game, Hades does everything in his power to stop you from escaping, but you won’t have any of that, so you’re going to die hundreds of times but you’ll keep fighting to get out. Eventually you’re going to learn why Zagreus actually wants to escape and that itself is a pretty decent plot point.

To me, I feel like the game clearly focuses more on the actual gameplay and the narration than the plot, which is what gives the game it’s balance. The story is as what it’s trying to be is pretty good and gets a 8 out of 10 from me.

DEPTH: 9/10

There isn’t really a lot to do in the game because it’s pretty straightforward and linear. But the game does end up having a ton of depth with what you can find throughout your journey as well as with your interactions with all the different characters who live in the underworld.

For instance, I already mentioned earlier how there are more than two dozen characters in the game and how each of them have some amazing voice work, that adds a lot to the game when it comes to the depth.

Other than that, there’s so much stuff scattered throughout the game aimed at helping you on your adventure. Each time you die, you are sent back to start over again from the beginning but each time you start over, you’re a little bit stronger.

The reason for you being stronger each time is dependent on a bunch of different things that add so much depth to the game. For example, there are a bunch of different buffs that you can unlock and use throughout your runs and a bunch of different permanent upgrades and artifacts. There’s also a decent amount of levels to traverse through.

There isn’t a crazy amount of things to do, but there is a decent amount of stuff going on, and they all work together flawlessly. My grade for depth is going to be a 9 out of 10.

DIFFICULTY: 3

Yes, the game is incredibly difficult, but that’s the point, it’s one of the focal points of the game. Right when you first start your play through, you’re going to immidialaty die because of how weak you are. That’s not a bad thing because with each run, you’re going to get stronger and stronger until you’re as strong as a god yourself.

Trust me, if you didn’t die, the game wouldn’t be nearly as fun as it is. If a level is too hard and you die, it’s probably something that should have happened and all you have to do is start from the beginning and once you get up to the point where you died, it will be much easier and you will get a lot further.

Long story short, you will die dozens of times, maybe even hundreds of times, but that’s the point of the game. The game is really hard. But it’s also so easy because dying is what you’re supposed to do to get stronger and progress, so don’t get angry if you die 10 times in the first 30 minutes, just keep playing.

OVERALL: 9.2/10

Overall, the game is a lot of fun. I never paid full price. The regular game costs $25 and it’s been on sale for $20 at least 3 times since being released less than 4 months ago. I didn’t even pay that, I paid like $13 and I more than got my money’s worth. I probably put at least 40 hours into the game, and there’s still a lot I can do in the game.

Everything that I’ve heard from other players say that the full $25 is worth it and some even said that they would have paid more than $25 and that they’ve put more than 100 hours into the game. I believe them, because it’s an easy game to get into and have a lot of fun with.

If you aren’t a fan of isometric games or other games that are similar to this, then you might not be a fan. But there are a lot of great things about the game, whether it’s the beautiful art style, the amazing sound design, or the addicting gameplay. In general, it’s a really good game and my overall score for Hades is going to be a 9.2 out of 10, and like I mentioned earlier, I think it’s easily one of my 10 most favorite games of 2020.