You haven’t played Hades 2 until you’ve died to Chronos on public transport

✓ VideoGamer summary

• Hades 2 is a timed exclusive to Switch, Switch 2, and Steam, and was released on the 25th of September 2025.
• The sequel to the genre-defining roguelike is an immersive and impactful experience that runs smoothly on handheld systems and provides a free upgrade to the Switch 2 version.
• With an endless variety of dialogue interactions and combat scenarios, Hades 2 is satisfying to pick up and play in short bursts on the go.
• Hades 2 is replete with themes of movement and transience; these are made even richer when travelling yourself.
• These improvements allow Hades 2 to reward players of all skill levels and play styles.

After besting Hecate, Scylla, and Cerberus, I’m up against the Titan of Time with an optimal Descura build and some incredibly helpful boons from Aphrodite and Demeter. It takes just one hit for me to realise I’ve no more health or shields to spare. I return to the shadow and almost miss my station. Turns out, I’m not in the intricately painted hallways of Tartarus at the bottom of the underworld, but on the tube back home (which is not too dissimilar, now I think on it). 

Despite not expecting to defeat Chronos during my journey, I tried to get just a little further than before and performed better than I had anticipated. This wasn’t the only journey on which Hades 2 has accompanied me. My ability to make incremental, on-the-go progress has been instrumental in my efforts to defeat the Titan of Time. Short bursts of combat stolen between tube stops have amalgamated together, giving me a stronger foundation from which to launch my runs. 

Boons of portability

After over a year in early access, Hades 2 finally released on September 25. While the early access build and updates were crucial in shaping the full release, the complete version is refined to provide a dizzying number of possible pathways, dialogue, and random events to discover during each run. 

Even the shortest attempts to thwart Chronos reward you with new dialogue, new weapons, new arcana cards, and more besides. These short, repeating adventures in evolving and varied possibility spaces make the flexibility of the Switch an ideal fit for the highly anticipated sequel.

When Hades was released five years ago, there was no better time to lose track of the hours upon hours poured into attempting to escape the underworld. But time cannot be stopped, and Supergiant Games’ first sequel keeps up with its flow by adapting even more to the individual player than the first title. 

In an era where microtransactions are the norm, the free upgrade from the Switch version to the Switch 2 version was a welcome surprise that encouraged me to continue playing on the go. This upgrades the game to 1080p in handheld mode, providing faster load times and noticeably crisper visuals that gave me an even greater appreciation for the intricate details in each character’s design. 

Veterans who want to take their previous save data on the go can take advantage of cross-saves to carry over previous save files. This allows you to take your fully unlocked arcana and upgraded weapons anywhere. 

Immersed in the odyssey

Although lengthy attempts to make optimal runs are satisfying, short bursts of play whenever you can fit them in are just as rewarding. Discovering new scenarios, whether it’s a challenge from the brutal, brooding Nemesis or a battle with the mysterious Uh-oh, ensures that you’ll always feel a sense of cumulative progress. 

The game itself is predominantly concerned with change and travel. Only through repeated attempts to defeat Chronos, and your subsequent inglorious returns to your sanctuary, are you able to learn more about your dear companions. 

This sense of motion and repetition almost makes Hades 2’s core loop feel like a commute of its own; except, instead of gripping onto the handrail and trying to preserve your last vestige of personal space, you’re slaying mythological creatures with powerful magics. The acts may seem profoundly different, but the rhythm is the same and adds a powerful textural addition.  

The perfect travel companion 

Few of my attempts to thwart Chronos were successful, but playing anywhere, from the trains to my local park, allowed me to see far more of the endless scenarios and dialogue than I could have by playing on my desktop alone. 

Hades 2’s piecemeal, almost episodic nature makes it ideal for portable play, allowing you to weave your play organically through your day-to-day life. This process enriches and refines Hades 2, offering a distinct textural context for each run. Being beaten by Chronos in a park at sunset hits differently than dying at your desktop. In this, Supergiant’s glorious roguelike is able to weave yet another form of magic. 

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