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Hades Critic Reviews: What Critics Praise and Which Edition to Choose

Critics praised Hades for pairing fast roguelike combat with a story that advances across escape attempts. Here’s what to know about reviews, platforms, cross-saves, and boxed editions.
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Hades earned strong critical acclaim for combining fast, replayable combat with a story and character relationships that develop across repeated escape attempts. That mix—not simply its Greek-myth setting or roguelike structure—is the clearest answer to what reviewers value about the game.

What do critics think of Hades?

Hades is strongly acclaimed. Steam’s listing displays a Metacritic score of 93 and reproduces an IGN review excerpt rated 9/10. The excerpt captures the central critical appeal: “Hades is 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.” Steam’s Hades listing attributes that review to IGN.

Scores and review totals are snapshots, not permanent facts. Metacritic aggregates critic reviews, while Steam’s user-review percentages reflect storefront reviewers; neither should be read as a universal verdict or a representative survey of all players. Steam’s listing showed 98% positive across 142,794 English reviews overall and 95% positive across 1,377 recent reviews when observed on October 8, 2026. Those live figures can change.

Why does Hades review so well?

Combat changes from run to run

Each attempt to escape the Underworld combines quick combat, randomized challenges, weapons, and boons—powers granted by Olympian gods. The changing combinations give repeated runs a tactical puzzle: players adapt their approach to the weapons and boons available rather than following exactly the same sequence every time. Steam describes thousands of possible builds, a storefront description rather than an independently verified count of distinct viable strategies.

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#1 Best Overall
Hades - Nintendo Switch
  • Battle out of hell in Hades, recipient of more than 50 Game of the Year awards
  • Includes a download code for the Hades Original Soundtrack, by composer Darren Korb, best known for his work on developer Supergiant's past titles like Transistor and Bastion.
  • Also includes a full-color 32-page character compendium booklet, featuring beautiful artwork of the game's colorful cast of gods, ghosts, and monsters, all by Supergiant's art director Jen Zee.
  • Defy the god of the dead as you hack and slash out of the Underworld in this rogue-like dungeon crawler from the creators of Bastion and Transistor.
  • As the immortal Prince of the Underworld, you'll wield the powers and mythic weapons of Olympus to break free from the clutches of the god of the dead himself.

The story keeps moving after failure

Death does not reset the narrative to its beginning. Character events and relationships continue across attempts, while knowledge and permanent progression carry forward. That gives each run two kinds of momentum: the immediate goal of surviving fights and the longer-term prospect of seeing what happens next in the Underworld’s cast of characters.

Supergiant Games’ FAQ, updated July 16, 2025, says the full game includes 30 fully voiced characters and thousands of unique story events and interactions. The developer also describes the soundtrack as two and a half hours long. These are the studio’s published figures, not review scores. Supergiant Games’ Hades FAQ

Rank #2
Hades II - Nintendo Switch™ 2 Edition
  • Battle beyond the Underworld using dark sorcery to take on the Titan of Time in this bewitching sequel to the award-winning rogue-like dungeon crawler.

Difficulty can be adjusted

The game includes permanent progression systems and difficulty modifiers, so an unsuccessful run is not the only way to shape the experience. The repeated-run structure remains central, but players have tools to influence how demanding later attempts are.

Is Hades a roguelike?

It is commonly described as an action roguelike or rogue-lite: the player makes repeated escape attempts, encounters randomized challenges and boon combinations, and carries some progression and story forward between runs. Supergiant calls it a rogue-like dungeon crawler; Steam categorizes it as a single-player action roguelike. The labels vary, but the practical point is that repetition is built into the design, while narrative and permanent advancement make those attempts cumulative rather than identical resets.

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Rank #3
Hades Limited Edition (Nintendo Switch)
  • As the immortal Prince of the Underworld, you'll wield the powers and mythic weapons of Olympus to break free from the clutches of the god of the dead himself, while growing stronger and unravelling more of the story with each unique escape attempt.
  • The Olympians have your back! Meet Zeus, Athena, Poseidon, and many more, and choose from their dozens of powerful Boons that enhance your abilities. There are thousands of viable character builds to discover as you go.
  • A fully-voiced cast of colourful, larger-than-life characters is waiting to meet you! Grow your relationships with them, and experience thousands of unique story events as you learn about what's really at stake for this big, dysfunctional family.
  • New surprises await each time you delve into the ever-shifting Underworld, whose guardian bosses will remember you. Use the powerful Mirror of Night to grow permanently stronger and give yourself a leg up the next time you run away from home.
  • Permanent upgrades mean you don't have to be a god yourself to experience the exciting combat and gripping story. Though, if you happen to be one, crank up the challenge and get ready for some white-knuckle action that will put your well-practiced skills to the test.

Which platform should you play Hades on?

The best choice depends on portability, controls, cross-save needs, and whether you want a digital or boxed copy. The game’s version 1.0 launched on PC and Nintendo Switch on September 17, 2020; Xbox and PlayStation versions followed on August 13, 2021. The original Early Access launch was on Epic Games Store on December 6, 2018, followed by Steam Early Access on December 10, 2019. Supergiant’s FAQ

Platform or edition Useful distinction
PC Available through PC storefronts including Steam and Epic Games Store. PC-to-Nintendo Switch cross-saves are supported; PC cross-saves with Xbox and PlayStation are not.
Nintendo Switch Portable play; supports cross-saves with PC according to Supergiant.
Xbox One Developer-stated target: 1080p at 60 fps. Xbox uses Smart Delivery.
Xbox Series X|S Developer-stated target: 4K at 60 fps. Xbox uses Smart Delivery.
PlayStation 4 Developer-stated target: 1080p at 60 fps. The PS4 edition includes a free upgrade to the digital PS5 version.
PlayStation 5 Developer-stated target: 4K at 60 fps.

Resolution and frame-rate figures are targets published by the developer, not independent performance-test results. Check the relevant regional storefront for current price, stock, and availability before choosing an edition.

Rank #4
Hades II - Nintendo Switch™ 2 Edition (European Version)
  • Battle beyond the Underworld to vanquish the Titan of Time as the Princess of the Dead in this bewitching sequel to the original rogue-like dungeon crawler. Hades II lets players explore a bigger, deeper mythic world with the full might of Olympus at their call in a story that reacts to their every setback and accomplishment.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.Support on Ko-Fi

Does Hades have a physical edition?

Yes. Supergiant confirms boxed retail editions for Nintendo Switch, Xbox, and PlayStation. Its 2021 announcement said the boxed versions included a soundtrack download code and a 32-page full-color character compendium. The first pressing also had a foil cover; later copies should not be assumed to include that first-pressing feature. Supergiant’s physical-edition announcement

Because copies are platform-specific and stock can vary by region and retailer, confirm the console format and included contents on the actual listing rather than relying on an old product image or description.

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Best Value
Good Smile Company Hades II: Melinoë Nendoroid Action Figure
  • A Good Smile Company import
  • From the popular video game
  • Includes two face plates; brooding and smiling expressions
  • Includes her signature weapons, the dagger "Lim" and the sickle "Oros"
  • Enjoy recreating all kinds of poses

Audio, languages, and content information

Steam lists full English audio and text. Its listed text localizations are French, Italian, German, Spanish, Russian, Brazilian Portuguese, Korean, Polish, Simplified Chinese, and Japanese. Steam’s ESRB descriptors include alcohol reference, blood, mild language, suggestive themes, and violence. Check the storefront for the rating and language options applicable to your region and edition. Steam’s Hades listing

What about the iOS version?

Supergiant’s FAQ says an iOS version through Netflix Games launched on March 19, 2024, and was discontinued from that service in July 2025. That history does not establish current availability in every region or storefront; check local listings rather than assuming the mobile version can still be downloaded. Supergiant Games’ Hades FAQ

Quick Recap

Bestseller No. 1
Hades - Nintendo Switch
Hades - Nintendo Switch
Battle out of hell in Hades, recipient of more than 50 Game of the Year awards
$59.47
Bestseller No. 5
Good Smile Company Hades II: Melinoë Nendoroid Action Figure
Good Smile Company Hades II: Melinoë Nendoroid Action Figure
A Good Smile Company import; From the popular video game; Includes two face plates; brooding and smiling expressions
$53.21

Product prices and availability are accurate as of the date/time indicated and are subject to change. Any price and availability information displayed on Amazon at the time of purchase will apply.

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