Don’t let Hades 2’s Early Access label fool you: Supergiant starts sequel with a bang

While Early Access by definition, don’t let the tagline fool you. Hades 2 is already more content-rich and sharply refined than most games launching in full today. If you’re a fan of the original, not jumping in right away would be doing yourself a disservice.

There’s no two ways about it, the Early Access label comes with a certain connotation. Technically, what you’re playing is unfinished. A game may have years left in the pipeline with hundreds of bugs left to squash and dozens of vital features still left to be implemented.

From that perspective, you’re effectively getting in early to help test a project in the works as devs toil away on the full build to reach the masses at a later date. In some rare cases, however, this isn’t exactly true. For Hades 2, the Early Access tag feels obsolete.

Supergiant is adopting a similar rollout to the original Hades with its first-ever sequel. Launching in Early Access to begin with, the idea is to gradually add new systems to the mix, tidy up any issues not encountered by the relatively small indie team, and polish the product for its eventual v1.0 release. Yet even in its early stages, with a possible year or so of work left to be done, Hades 2 already feels more complete than most games when they hit store shelves.

A near-flawless debut for Hades 2

Admittedly, I’m no expert when it comes to playing games in Early Access. For the most part, even with the original Hades, I typically opt to ignore this early window and wait for the finished product. Besides, I’m not the biggest PC gamer at the best of times. With Hades 2 though, a sequel to one of my favorite games of all time from one of my favorite studios, I couldn’t resist the temptation.

Jumping in from the earliest point possible with the Technical Test, it quickly became clear just how the sequel’s Early Access period would function a little differently from the original’s. Now with some hands-on time with the latest build, it’s clear Supergiant is indeed treating things differently this go around.

Rather than releasing a small chunk, testing for a few months, then adding the next area and subsequent boss fight in, Hades 2 is already a full, content-rich game in this earliest of early builds.

20 hours in with the initial version of the sequel and I’m barely scratching the surface. In terms of both gameplay and narrative, it’s all here. The story is advancing at a familiarly delightful pace, new mechanics are being introduced at a perfectly appropriate cadence, and the cherry on top, it’s all working as intended.

Not once in my 20 hours with Hades 2 thus far have I encountered a single bug, error, crash, or anything of the sort. The absolute worst offense I’ve seen is some placeholder artwork on completely optional systems that have no bearing on the overall game. That’s it.

Your mileage may vary, of course, it is still an early build after all. But my experience has been on par with that of playing a full, finished title. Frankly, it’s even been better than that in some cases, given it’s the norm now for even the biggest titles to release in a sorry state, gradually patch their worst issues, and improve performance over the following months.

Hades 2 feels like the inverse, flipping the formula on its head. Its Early Access build is exceptionally polished and shockingly deep, and yet it’s only going to continue improving from here. So if you were on the fence about whether or not to jump in right away, know that you’re essentially playing a full game, and updates coming down the line will just make it all the more sweet. Not to mention, your progress carries over.