Roguelike games have exploded in popularity over the past decade and companies continue to improve on the trial-and-error formula. Among the plethora of titles leaving Xbox’s Game Pass service at the end of August, Hades is arguably the game that gamers are most saddened to see disappear. It is one of the few experiences that has stood next to Spelunky, dead cells, The Binding of Isaacand Rogue Legacy as one of the best roguelike games ever made, but where it might be even bigger is how the story unfolds, as well as what it looks like.
While Hades is primarily a grueling experience with fast-paced combat and punishing enemy encounters, it’s much more than meets the eye at first. The genre isn’t known for intricate character development and story beats, but Supergiant Games’ latest masterpiece is proof that what it learned with Bastion, Transistorand pyre has not been lost. Hades shows that the developer is an industry leader in combining innovative gameplay with a gripping story and memorable interactions. The story is dotted with exceptional personalities further developed by the game’s stunning visual style, further demonstrating that art direction can be a useful tool in forging great characters.
Hades’ beautiful character models
Because so much artistic innovation comes from the indie scene, Hades faced a monumental challenge during development to rival the visuals of titles such as Gris, Hotline Miamiand Inside. Fortunately for both the developer and fans of the roguelike genre, Hades is a visual marvel, and its stunning take on the Greek gods of Olympus is head and shoulders above what came before it. The writing is fantastic, and each god’s character subverts expectations, while also staying true to the mythology they are a part of, making them feel really different from those presented in games like god of war, Immortals Phenyx Risingand To beat.
No more obvious is this than in the way they look. Zagreus’ interactions with the gods are done almost entirely through text boxes that appear on screen next to a character image that changes only slightly. This usually sounds negative, but the way Supergiant makes each of the Olympian and Chthonic gods makes them stand out for all the right reasons. Thanatos’ gunmetal hair and hulking scythe make him instantly feel like a menacing presence, and Tisiphone’s lifeless features do well to show that she’s the least rational of the Fury sisters. All the characters have minor, but important visual quirks that seep into their overall personality, which helps the players immensely, as well as Zagreus’ relationship with them.
Bad art direction can make characters boring
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While Hades shows that good art direction can drastically improve the way characters are developed, there are plenty of examples where the opposite is the case. Bad art or uninspired character models can be detrimental to the story a game is trying to tell because the personalities aren’t modeled enough to make them feel special. For example, miracle‘s Avengers has been criticized for its bland game design and questionable business tactics, but one of the things players noticed early on was the way the characters looked. The Avengers felt like boring copy-and-paste characters with little to tell them apart, and fans were quick to voice their concerns.
If a team as beloved as the Avengers could fall victim to poor art direction, smaller indie titles in a brand new IP are certainly at greater risk. Yet, Hades had three predecessors to learn from, and unlike Crystal Dynamics with Marvel’s Avengers, there was no pressure to recreate a property so culturally relevant today. Supergiant leaned on his unwavering ability to make a game look as good as it plays, which in turn had huge benefits for the way players interacted with the gods of Olympus.
There are far more important factors driving character development than art direction, as strong writing and voice acting definitely take precedence. However, players will always be tempted to judge a character based on their appearance, as more often than not, it’s the first impression they get. In the early moments of Hades, Gamers will be forgiven for siding with Ares over Artemis during Trial of the Gods, as his war-focused character model makes him feel like a valuable asset in battle. In reality, however, any character that Hades draws from Greek mythology are beautifully realized, making their personalities feel more than skin deep.
Hades is available now for PC, PS4, PS5, Switch, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.
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