Hades

[Zaxxon]

Currently in the 30s for escapes, with a 10 streak and a 5 streak. Trying for my first double-digit heat clear today.

I'm still enjoying the storylines, but they are starting to dry up a bit.

[LordMortis]

Now that I say that, I think I am starting to lose interest. Making the Olympians all my friends feels like it will take years (mostly because I forget to gift them). There are a couple of other storylines I think might wrap up soon so I may keep at it for those.

I threw around Nectar like it was nothing as I went, so that's not an issue. I'm still throwing Ambrosia at other things when I get it, so it will be a while until gifting goes in that direction. I'm still playing when I make time to play a game but I don't know for how long. I've done considerably more runs than you have and I'm not sure but I think my successes are at something like 5,4,3,2,2,1 which would ballpark me at 17 escapes but my attempts are somewhere well past 100 and I mean well past 100. I might have had a streak of 3, maybe.

[Zaxxon]

Whelp, attempt on Heat 10 ended... poorly.

Spoiler:

Hades' Extreme Measures is... something else. Cerberus as companion (obvious in retrospect, but took me by surprise.)? Inverted Darkness skill? Laser-tie rock-flinging thingamajiggers as associates throughout? The Final Form? Jeez. I made it to the third phase, but did not last long at that point. And this with a build that had been steamrolling the entire underworld.

This one is going to take a little work...

[hitbyambulance]

currently on sale for $19.99 at Epic Game Store, and if you use the $10 coupon, it's a great price. i dunno i want to give Epic any money, tho.

[Zaxxon]

Game about inescapable hellscape really resonating with people right now for some reason.

[paulbaxter]

I bought this on the forum effect a few days ago. I REALLY SUCK at it, but still enjoying it. I guess I've improved enough that I'm avoiding most of the stupid damage in early rooms and getting to Meg most of the time, but I still haven't beat her. Managed to get to the milestone of dying 50 times now. I finally decided to get a little more serious about thinking about improving, so I'm going to start paying a little more attention to specifically how to avoid Meg's attacks and see if I can get past her soon.

This game really scratches my itch of "well, you aren't quite there yet, but here's some some to make you SLIGHTLY better in the future."

[Zaxxon]

Use your dash a lot with Meg, and be sure you've got the mirror upgrade that lets you dash twice in succession. You are immune to damage while dashing, and using the dash is key to avoiding her attacks.

[paulbaxter]

Just beat her now. Of course I died shortly after by accidentally wandering into lava, but at least I've hit that milestone.

I think the short version of Meg is dodge when she's about to wham you, and hit her the rest of the time and pretty much ignore the other mobs. Didn't have any Dash boons that run, but lots of other good ones to buff damage and some damage reduction, and had pretty full health and one defy death still in her room.

[coopasonic]

I generally skip damage reduction in favor of avoidance or increased damage. Athena's Deflecting Dash for the win.

The lava sucks and it will still suck on your 100th run, but you kind of get used to it. I think it exist to punish you for dashing everywhere. It's still better than some of the things yet to come.

It really is a brilliant game. It took along time to get there in my brain, but eventually I got there. I haven't touched it in a couple weeks and am not sure I want to keep going. I think I may have gotten enough out of it after 20+ successful runs.

[wonderpug]

I'm enjoying the game a lot but I really suck with the close range weapons against bosses. I think I'm just incapable of memorizing, predicting, and spotting boss patterns -- it's part of why I've never had much luck with Souls games.

The shield weapon seems to be the most natural fit for me. So far I've been able to make it to the 3rd area pretty consistently, but haven't gotten beyond that yet.

[Daveman]

Still enjoying the game a lot but it feels like the story is nearly wrapped up. I only have 3 bonds left to forge and that's been my main remaining goal.

Chirons aspect for the bow has been my best weapon by far. I went in for Dionysus/Demeter/Aphrodite builds that rely on stacking Hangover and other effects but tried out an Artemis build that just relies on raw damage/crit and haven't looked back.

I started working on Skellys little assignments and have run into some interesting stuff...

Spoiler:

I got his 8 heat statue and after a few more runs of 10+ decided to just jump to 16 heat for his next statue and cleared it easily... so I figured why not go for the 32 heat one and that has proven a challenge.

The craziest thing I've seen so far was a large pack of skulls in Tarturus with the special ability that gives nearby enemies a blue shield point. When you have 6+ of them, all clumped together so they're all in range of each other it's crazy. They all just keep making themselves practically immune to damage. If it weren't for the Chiron special which lands multiple hits at the same time I'm not sure how I'd get around that.

[Zaxxon]

Nice. I haven't started in on the statues, yet, but have still been going at the game. I'm up to 115+ hours. 46 escapes in 126 attempts. My best time is just under 25 minutes. Best Heat is 9, with a few diff weapons. I've been trying to get my 10 Heat runs using full Extreme Measures, but haven't yet quite beaten Hades with his EM enabled... I did have an interesting experience recently--I used the Punishment that had my time to escape limited, on level 2 of that Pact. I made it to Hades, got him down the first time, then ran out of time.

To my surprise, you don't just die when your clock expires, but rather you start taking damage quickly. I still had a couple of death defiances, so I just crashed Hades and went nuts. Used both defiances but got him down just before kicking the bucket the final time, somewhere around 30 seconds after my time had run out. Talk about an adrenaline rush...

Also...

Spoiler:

The Olympian party in the House of Hades was cool.

I'll just say it one more time--this game is a steal for anyone who enjoys anything about ARPGs, Roguelikes, or... stories. 115 hours and counting for $20. $0.17/hour of fun for me so far.

[Zaxxon]

JFC...

[paulbaxter]

Just reporting that as possibll the world's worst but most persistent player of Hades, I did finally complete a run somewhere around run number 137 or so. Still haven't figured out how to make the gun weapon choice really work for me at all, but most of the others I still find fun.

[Zaxxon]

Just reporting that as possible the world's worst but most persistent player of Hades, I did finally complete a run somewhere around run number 137 or so. Still haven't figured out how to make the gun weapon choice really work for me at all, but most of the others I still find fun.

Congrats!

[Zaxxon]

[YellowKing]

Arise, thread! This just came out on Xbox Game Pass and I am OBSESSED. I don't even really like rogue-likes, but this one has its hooks in me big time.

[Zaxxon]

Arise, thread! This just came out on Xbox Game Pass and I am OBSESSED. I don't even really like rogue-likes, but this one has its hooks in me big time.

Welcome to the club. Cookies to your left.

[disarm]

I started on my Series X this evening (Game Pass FTW!) and have made four runs so far, all with the sword. My first run ended when I got to Megaera with two health points left and died instantly. The second was a quick death when I chose my first skull door early on without knowing what that meant...oops! Run number three got me close to Meg again, but ended with another skull room. Number four saw me back to Meg, and I did manage to get her down to about half health before she got the best of me. The cool thing is that I do feel like I'm learning a little something with each attempt, facing new enemies and stumblingly across little strategies.

I know that I'm just scratching the surface, but I can already tell that this is going to be very addictive, but will also be a great game to pick up for a quick run or two when I don't have a lot of gaming time. The fast pace and "just one more try" repetition feed right into my determination to succeed.

Damn you addictive game play loops!

[Ralph-Wiggum]

I picked this up for the PS5 over the weekend. It's been pretty fun and definitely feel like I'm getting better by learning effective strategies. I've gone through 10 runs (I think) and have made it to what I assume was the final boss once

Spoiler:

Hades beat me after I beat him during phase 1 (of 2?)

. What I've learned so far: deflect and a dash that deals damage are key. I think my best runs have had one or two of those.

[Zaxxon]

I picked this up for the PS5 over the weekend. It's been pretty fun and definitely feel like I'm getting better by learning effective strategies. I've gone through 10 runs (I think) and have made it to what I assume was the final boss once

Spoiler:

Hades beat me after I beat him during phase 1 (of 2?)

. What I've learned so far: deflect and a dash that deals damage are key. I think my best runs have had one or two of those.

Revenge damage / effects can also be great. Eg Demeter's boon to completely chill foes who successfully hit you, or I think a Zeus/Ares Duo that makes your revenge effects happen all the time is great fun.

[Ralph-Wiggum]

I think I've only been offered revenge/damage effects on one or two of my runs, but I did have Demeter's chill and that was nice. I haven't tried all the weapons yet (just unlocked but haven't played with the fist), but so far the shield is my favorite and the weapon I had my longest run with. Once boosted up, that special attack can just plow through hordes of enemies. And the fact that it somewhat hones on them means I can just run around like a madman while throwing the shield and be pretty effective.

[Zaxxon]

Wait until you unlock aspects...

[YellowKing]

I feel like I suck at this game because I'm on run 22 and still haven't made it to the Elysium boss.

In my defense, however, I play a little fast and loose, and sometimes just do "Darkness" runs or "Gem" runs or just work on leveling up the artifact things (forget what they're called).

Favorite weapon so far is the spear, though I surprisingly had my longest run with the gun. I got a boon that made it so I never had to reload, and that was a game changer. Coupled with stack and stacks of extra health + a resurrect, only my own carelessness ultimately did me in.

[Zaxxon]

FWIW, I think I was on run 30 or 32 before I finally 'won.'

[Ralph-Wiggum]

I must have just got a bunch of synergistic powers to make it to the boss in my 9th run. Or maybe I'm just that good.

I haven't tried using God Mode yet. My understanding is that it increases your defense (to 60%?) which then increases a bit after each failed run. Maybe worth trying, YK?

[pr0ner]

I made it to Thesus and Asterius for the first time last night (I think I'm in the high teens for runs) on the same run after beating the Bone Hydra for the first time (and boy did that get close). I used the spear with a ton of damage buffs and Poisedon's Tidal Dash boon to shred enemies, especially in Elysium. Hopefully I can figure out that paired boss fight decently quickly, but I think I got a good set of skills for how I like to play the game last night to help me get so far (the game levels were just a colorful whirlwind of chaos).

[Zaxxon]

I made it to Thesus and Asterius for the first time last night (I think I'm in the high teens for runs) on the same run after beating the Bone Hydra for the first time (and boy did that get close). I used the spear with a ton of damage buffs and Poisedon's Tidal Dash boon to shred enemies, especially in Elysium. Hopefully I can figure out that paired boss fight decently quickly, but I think I got a good set of skills for how I like to play the game last night to help me get so far (the game levels were just a colorful whirlwind of chaos).

My advice for Theseus and The Bull is to take out Asterius first. Theseus is pretty easy to largely avoid until he changes technique once he's below 50% health, and that latter portion is a whole lot easier if you're not also still dealing with Asterius.

[Ralph-Wiggum]

I got past Theseus and Asterius for the second time last night (again using the shield; being able to just dash and throw widely makes that fight so much easier than with weapons that need to be close). I had what I needed to reach the final boss when I decided to do one extra corridor to buff myself a bit more. That turned out to be a mistake as I ran into

Spoiler:

the tiny vermin

for the first time. It completely whipped my butt. I lived, but was down to about 30 health and died on my next corridor that I attempted solely to regain some health.

[LordMortis]

I got past Theseus and Asterius for the second time last night (again using the shield; being able to just dash and throw widely makes that fight so much easier than with weapons that need to be close). I had what I needed to reach the final boss when I decided to do one extra corridor to buff myself a bit more. That turned out to be a mistake as I ran into

Spoiler:

the tiny vermin

for the first time. It completely whipped my butt. I lived, but was down to about 30 health and died on my next corridor that I attempted solely to regain some health.

Heh, the first time I made it that far, I thought those corridor buffs were easy and regretted not buffing myself, as I was woefully unprepared for what followed.
The second time, I learned how lucky I was the first time and never made it past the buffs, not realizing at all how those corridors work and how they are tied to the trigger that allows you to move on.

I attempted solely to regain some health.

And that was the lesson I learned, that is a losing attempt for most situations.

[disarm]

Made runs 5-7 tonight with the spear and had quite a bit of success...beat Meg on my seventh run thanks to some pretty strong boons, then made it all the way through Asphodel to the bone hydra on my first try. That first battle with the hydra ended with me getting it down to about 1/3 health before dying...seemed pretty good for a first try (much better than my first few encounters with Meg), and I really felt like I pulled that off with a lot more than just button mashing. I'm really digging the spear compared to the sword...love the long-range special attack. Unfortunately, I have to call it a night, so my next escape attempt will have to wait...

[Ralph-Wiggum]

Wait until you unlock aspects...

So just realized this was unlocked last night (how long had it been unlocked? No idea) and made a couple of changes to the shield and gun. I haven’t gone on a run since I made the changes, but I’m not sure I like the new shield special as much? If it turns out I don’t, is there any way to revert back to the original?

[Zaxxon]

Wait until you unlock aspects...

So just realized this was unlocked last night (how long had it been unlocked? No idea) and made a couple of changes to the shield and gun. I haven’t gone on a run since I made the changes, but I’m not sure I like the new shield special as much? If it turns out I don’t, is there any way to revert back to the original?

Yes. You can pick whatever unlocked aspect you want before each run, when picking your weapon.

[YellowKing]

I've been bouncing between weapons depending on what gives the Darkness bonus, but I just keep coming back to that spear. If you can get a good range boon, that thing is nasty. All of my longest runs have been spear-based.

I had a few disastrous runs last night where I couldn't even get past Meg. I can blow through rooms all day long, but I really need to work on my boss strategies. Brute-forcing them only works if I happen to get the right boon combinations that either deal extremely high damage or give me enough health to eke by.

[Ralph-Wiggum]

My strategy for pretty much all the bosses is to just spam the dash and special buttons, with occasional casts and regular attacks. It seems to work pretty well; I don't think I've ever lost to Meg and usually beat the Hydra without much issue. Theseus and the Minotaur are a pain in the butt, though.

[Zaxxon]

Dashes are defintely the most frequent move I use on all the bosses. Beyond that it's mostly noting their patterns and avoiding the larger attacks.

[LordMortis]

I had a few disastrous runs last night where I couldn't even get past Meg. I can blow through rooms all day long, but I really need to work on my boss strategies. Brute-forcing them only works if I happen to get the right boon combinations that either deal extremely high damage or give me enough health to eke by.

It gets better... Worse??? (But then it also get easier... Mur...)

My strategy for pretty much all the bosses is to just spam the dash and special buttons, with occasional casts and regular attacks. It seems to work pretty well; I don't think I've ever lost to Meg and usually beat the Hydra without much issue. Theseus and the Minotaur are a pain in the butt, though.

Spamming will only carry you so far as the game advances... But it does carry you... I never did get very far with the bow because there are times when spamming is the only way I can get through and you (I?) can't spam with the bow.

[Zaxxon]

[Ralph-Wiggum]

I thought the bow was the bee’s knees until I got the shield, which makes the bow look like a nerf gun. I’ve only done a few runs with the other weapons (and only one with the fist) but the spear and gun seem like they have potential.

[Zaxxon]

Narrator: all the weapons are awesome.

Thank you for coming to my TED talk.