When I saw gameplay of Hades in 2020 all over the internet, I thought I wouldn't like it. I didn't like the setting or the heavy focus on precise numbers (percentages etc).

And then there's the cross-run progression. I have a difficult relationship with that mechanic. On paper, it sounds great: You always make progress, whether you are actually winning in a run or not. But to me, it always feels as if the reason for winning then isn't that my skills are getting better, but that my stats simply increased enough to make the game easy enough for me. Sometimes, you gotta lose a bunch of progress in a rogue-like to make the victories feel all the sweeter.

But then, I actually played it two years later in 2022. And, well, sure, the points I mentioned hinder the experience a bit for me, BUT it's still a lot of fun. I really like the characters, the soundtrack and the general game feel of Hades. However, Hades feels a bit too streamlined for me. A bit too much like a rogue-like for the people who don't like rogue-likes. Because I like them, but as a consequence, this game doesn't quite feel like it's for me.