Hades
A hack-and-slash escape from the Greek Underworld in which the player-character’s endless deaths are woven into the story itself.
Hades is a rogue-like dungeon crawler developed and published by Supergiant Games, in which the player fights their way out of the Underworld of Greek myth, hacking and slashing through waves of enemies across procedurally arranged chambers.78 The game casts the player as one who defies the god of the dead, drawing on the mythological figure of Hades, the king of the Underworld and god of the dead in Greek religion, whose realm was the shadowy destination of all mortal souls.71 It was released on September 17, 2020.8
Structurally the game belongs to the roguelike tradition, the subgenre built around dying and starting over, in which each descent into a randomly built dungeon is a fresh and usually final attempt.8 On Steam it is tagged as an “Action Roguelike,” “Roguelite,” “Hack and Slash,” and “Dungeon Crawler,” and is described as a rogue-like dungeon crawler.87 Its Steam tags also include “Mythology,” “Story Rich,” “Great Soundtrack,” “Isometric,” and “RPG,” reflecting a design that pairs isometric action combat with a narrative-heavy structure.8 As of July 2026, 98% of the 141,084 English-language user reviews on Steam were positive, a rating of “Overwhelmingly Positive,” with the 1,483 reviews from the preceding thirty days rated identically.8
Hades was made by the same studio behind the earlier Supergiant titles Bastion, Transistor, and Pyre, and its store description explicitly credits it to the creators of those games.8 The game marries fast-paced action combat with a persistent, progressing story set in a reimagined version of the Greek mythological Underworld, so that the protagonist’s repeated deaths advance rather than reset the narrative.7
Critical reception was strongly favorable, with reviewers highlighting the union of fast-paced action and an evolving story. IGN scored it 9 out of 10, calling it “a one-of-a-kind rogue-lite that does a brilliant job of marrying its fast-paced action with its persistent, progressing story through a vividly reimagined Greek mythological underworld”.7 TheSixthAxis awarded a perfect 10 out of 10, describing it as “one of the best roguelites of all-time,” and Destructoid gave it 9 out of 10, remarking that “it’s hard to imagine anyone other than Supergiant pulling off this Herculean feat with such style”.7
Mythological setting
The game’s world is rooted in the classical conception of Hades and his kingdom. In Greek myth, Hades was a son of the Titans Cronus and Rhea and a brother of Zeus, Poseidon, Demeter, Hera, and Hestia; after Cronus was overthrown, the cosmos was divided among the three brothers by lot, and the Underworld fell to Hades, who ruled it with his queen Persephone.42 As an infant Hades had been swallowed by Cronus along with several of his siblings and was later disgorged when Zeus forced the Titan to release them, after which the brothers drove the Titan gods into the pit of Tartaros before dividing the world.1 He was aided by the three-headed dog Cerberus, which guarded the entrance to his realm, and was associated with a helmet or “cap of darkness” that rendered its wearer invisible.46
The Greeks generally avoided speaking his name directly, preferring euphemistic epithets such as Plouton, “the Wealth-Giver,” because minerals and precious metals were found underground; the Romans knew him as Pluto or Dis.61 The name Hades itself is often glossed as “the Unseen One,” and other euphemistic titles included Polydegmon, “the receiver” or “host of many,” and Eubouleus, “Good Counsellor”.64 Depicted as a stern, dark-bearded, and pitiless figure, Hades was among the most feared of the gods, though not conceived as evil so much as the impartial keeper of the laws of death.42 In art he is rarely shown, but when he appears he typically holds a scepter or the key to his kingdom, and at a later stage he was associated with the bident, a two-pronged fork modeled on Poseidon’s trident.6
The best-known myth concerning him is the abduction of Persephone, the daughter of Demeter, whom Hades carried off to the Underworld in a golden chariot drawn by black horses.13 Demeter’s grief caused the earth to become barren until Zeus intervened; because Persephone had tasted pomegranate seeds in the Underworld, she was bound to return there for part of each year, an account used to explain the cycle of the seasons.31 The game’s premise inverts this setting, casting the player not as Hades himself but as one who defies the god of the dead in a bid to escape his realm.7
Availability
Hades is distributed digitally on Steam, the Microsoft Store, the Epic Games Store, the Nintendo Switch, and the PlayStation Store.7 Supergiant Games also operates an official merchandise store and released a version for iOS through Netflix Games.7
Sources
Comprehensive reference on Hades as the Greek god of the underworld, his mythology, family relationships, and various depictions in ancient sources.
theoi.com · retrieved Jul 4, 2026Biography of Hades covering his origin, appearance, reputation, and major myths including his abduction of Persephone.
thoughtco.com · retrieved Jul 4, 2026Educational video explaining the myth of Hades and Persephone, teaching how the story explains the seasons.
youtube.com · retrieved Jul 4, 2026Encyclopedia entry on Hades as the Greek god of the underworld, his role, characteristics, and mythological significance.
britannica.com · retrieved Jul 4, 2026Reference guide to Hades covering his role, portrayal, symbolism, and the abduction of Persephone myth.
greekmythology.com · retrieved Jul 4, 2026Video game by Supergiant Games—a rogue-like dungeon crawler set in the Greek mythological underworld.
supergiantgames.com · retrieved Jul 4, 2026Steam store page for the Hades video game by Supergiant Games with user reviews and system information.
store.steampowered.com · retrieved Jul 4, 2026