Hades Expert Answers Your MOST Commonly Asked Questions | Haelian

[@jellybean0L]

I love that the Hades community is so accepting of people who want to use god mode. I'm so used to toxic gamers who will make fun of others for choosing an easier difficulty setting that I felt like I had to justify myself to my friends who play it when I turned on god mode, but the collective response was "Yeah totally, the game is worth playing just for the story, nothing wrong with not wanting to grind it out if you're not having fun"

[@Haelian]

Accessibility options in games is one of the great innovations of recent years.

[@minoibwoi14]

God Mode is simply the best difficulty modifier I’ve seen in any game and it really isn’t much of an identifier of skill aa much as just a convenient mechanic.

[@C1umsyJester]

There are some games where it’s not good to implement a difficulty toggle because it’s not always about changing damage numbers. For example in dark souls you’d have to change the move sets for enemies, change the damage, health, scaling, and that screws with the overall vision of the game. But there’s ways to make Elden ring for example the easiest game of all if you have the right builds and spending time levelling etc. hades doesn’t really have this issue as a lot of difficulty can come from tuning down the numbers for the most part as the enemies have simple move sets and there’s a story narrative; I don’t feel like using god mode fundamentally ruins the experience it’s good for players to get in to. But there are some games where the accessibility stuff doesn’t fit well in to at all

[@minoibwoi14]

@@C1umsyJester I feel like dark souls would at least benefit from a God Mode setting if not fix the problem. But this is a moot point because Dark Souls is inherently inaccessible, that’s the point. I genuinely think Elden Ring has done it’s part to try and make it accessible with summons and people still complain. At the end of the day I think it’s problem for the modders, I’d just like to see this style of difficulty modifier in more games.

[@Haelian]

@@C1umsyJester I disagree that simply making enemies deal less damage in Dark Souls "screws" with the game in any way other than making it easier. I don't personally have a need for the option but I refuse to believe that it would hurt the game in any way to provide more options for players.

[@PDGAreject]

"There's really not much use in comparing yourself to strangers online." Dan still giving great insights after all these years

[@kevinwells9751]

Yeah, unless you're trying to actually compete in something like speedrunning leaderboards then why worry about what other people can do? Just have fun and compete against yourself

[@boonduckgod1655]

@@kevinwells9751 chill bruh he talking about mindless fun

[@lickumdry6016]

Agreed, though there is something nice about watching your name climb a leaderboard on score based games. Not necessarily in a truly competitive way but just the process of moving up in something is satisfying regardless of whether you end up in a "good" position or not.

[@kevinwells9751]

@@boonduckgod1655 What? I was literally just agreeing with the guy

[@Chameleonradio]

It took me something like 105 tries to escape the first time I played Hades. I just started a new file recently and I got my first escape on the 14th try. Truly felt proud of myself. ☺

[@jesusseinpferd__9628]

I did 32 heat very early after starting the game because i wanted to unlock the statue badly, and my strategy was not putting on a time limit and then i picked the base Shield and i just used Ares special and athena dash and all i did was throw the special and ran away from every single enemy. It took pretty long compared to other runs, but it worked and it even worked first try. Even though i was not good at all at the game at that time. All upgrades went into more dashs, more ares damage and making that shield special faster and hitting more enemies.

[@kevinwells9751]

yeah, there are all kinds of ways to win pretty safely if you have enough patience. The other good way is to get charged shot with the shield and put ares on that and just sit in a corner and kill everything slowly but surely

[@guybrushthreepwood8174]

Was the statue worth it tho

[@phong1787]

@@guybrushthreepwood8174 yes

[@jesusseinpferd__9628]

@@guybrushthreepwood8174 yea

[@nyaanyaamewmew]

@@kevinwells9751 you'd want % damage on Charged Shot rather than Doom.

[@ruggedlemmings9163]

One quick tip I'd like to throw in: you can open your journal/codex while looking at a god's boon offerings in a run. This can be very useful if you're going after a specific Dual Boon or Legendary Boon but you can't recall off the top of your head what the requirements are to get them to show up.

[@jimmyeng663]

I used this to tick off the ones I haven't unlocked yet, was incredibly helpful.

[@connorthornberg]

This is absolutely crucial to start to really get good and be able to plan out your runs. Once youve beaten Hades a few times and are starting to apply heat, imo you should go into each run with a general idea of what you're looking to get based on the weapon aspect you've chosen. So for example, I take aspect of chiron and I know that I want Dio's special, so I take his keepsake, and then in Asphodel I take Aphrodite's to try to go for the duo boon. Using the codex to know what you need, and what your options are when considering which god's boon to take is incredibly helpful and very important for getting better.

[@XxSirMeowALotxX]

Am I the only player starting with chaos egg every run? Like sure based on the aspect I usually know what damage type I want to utilize more but lets say on zag fists idc if I get poseidon, aphrodite or artemis on attack as long as I get them at least rare or higher so I don't have to pray for rare crop along the way. I just feel like chaos makes my runs usually pop off and if I dont get any damage chaos boons my runs go like 27 min and above where they would go 20 minutes otherwise

[@ruggedlemmings9163]

@@XxSirMeowALotxX It's all about playstyles my friend, and finding whatever works for you. If you feel you just do better with the Chaos Egg than without it then by all means have at. I bounced around frequently with what keepsake I took out (in terms of summons it was pretty much exclusively Bouldy). It's been a good long while since I played Hades 1, but I think my go-to for progression runs was the Acorn just for the added insurance. I can say for certainty that unless I was trying to finish getting a specific god's boons or increase their affection I almost never used the "Guaranteed To Encounter (fill in the blank)" keepsakes. I'd just dive in and see what I got. Think my best run was actually a Bow run with the Rapid Fire hammer and a majority of Aphrodite and Ares boons.

[@puffii_]

I know I’m kind of late on this, but it took me 70 tries to get my first win, but now I’ve beaten 32 heat with every weapon!! Shows that no matter your starting skill, you can still overcome all the challenges in the game. Also to add on to the no shame in god mode, I preferred to beat the game for the first time normally, but I used it when I first started trying 32 heat until I could hold my own. If a tool is in the game, use it:)

[@jimmyeng663]

Congrats on the wins. I think I beat my first run at 65 tries a couple weeks ago but I'm playing around 4 heat atm (I did win an 8 today though).

[@trainzelda1428]

I know this is an old comment but this means a lot to me because it took me 70 tries to get my first escape also; there was a long time when I thought "I'm never going to make it" but I did. Now I'm stuck feeling like I'm never going to beat 32 heat, but seeing someone who progressed at the same rate as me can do it is really inspiring.

[@Kufunninapuh]

God mode is a fantastic way to get a feel for the game 👍 I was burned out on roguelike/lites after trying 3 or 4 popular ones and getting my behind delivered to me. I tried Hades because it was a Supergiant game and am so glad I did. I turned god mode on after a little while because I really wanted to see the whole story and went on to beat the game on at least 20 heat with each weapon once it got into the groove. Love this game, it's my most played game every year since it came out and I can't wait for Hades II.

[@Nighthawk20000]

Wish Deadcells had a "God mode" lol I can never get past stage 4 or 5 and it burnt me out on the game

[@MichaelRigoni]

@@Nighthawk20000 there's now an accessibility mode in dead cells where you can scale your damage or how much health the enemies have etc

[@Kevfactor]

When I originally played the game I couldn’t follow the story because I died too much. I tried it again after a year off and was pulled into everything as I was actually getting back to back clears. I can see god mode working for someone wanting to get a good feel of the story

[@SeanCMonahan]

Wait, wait, wait. Hades 2 has been announced???

[@logan3917]

@@SeanCMonahan yup, the trailer premiered at the game awards!

[@RodrigoTheHappyDog]

It took me 44 attempts to escape for the first time. I made sure not to look anything up so I could get the most unadulterated experience, and it might have taken me longer than some but I'm very happy with my progress.

[@jonathand.t.5051]

I just escaped today on my 43rd try lol

[@Aeiouaaaaaaaaa]

I think it took me like 60. I also went in blind, didn’t search anything up, and I have a history of being terrible at video games. I felt kind of bad about that number at the start, but in retrospect I really don’t think I had to worry about it since I ended up at a skill level I was happy with eventually. Normally I wouldn’t admit that in any online gaming space, but the Hades community seems to be surprisingly welcoming of all kinds of players which I think is really cool.

[@RodrigoTheHappyDog]

@@Aeiouaaaaaaaaa At the end of the day, you did win, and that's what matters. It's a story about persistence, and you demonstrated yours.

[@mayihaveanap9430]

Thank you for always being so giving with your knowledge. I got Hades over the summer (after sitting on it for 2 years) and it quickly became one of my favorite games. I play it daily, and through your channel, I’ve learned so much.

[@nyaanyaamewmew]

Haelian is a treasure to the Hades community.

[@BigBalthazarr]

I got out of hell for the first time on attempt 18, it was my first time playing this type/genre of game and instantly feel in love with it. I'm super exited for Hades 2!!!

[@hayden3426]

Wow same for me. I made it on 16 but got wrecked by hades phase 2… made it back on run 18 and haven’t failed a run since

[@kevinwells9751]

I think mine was like 10 or 12? I haven't played this exact kind of game, but I've played a lot of games for a long time so I just have generally transferable game playing skills

[@kevinwells9751]

@@hayden3426 You should try out high heat, it's a great way to keep things challenging and interesting as long as you don't mind breaking your streak

[@BigBalthazarr]

@@hayden3426 man I was the same I almost got out on attempt 15, hades was literally 1 shot and he killed me when I made a mistake. then the two runs after that I just got terrible RNG and that 18th run I had it dialled in

[@BigBalthazarr]

@@kevinwells9751 that's a really good effort getting it done in under 15 runs man. I haven't played Hades for over a year but I am thinking about doing a fresh file first run escape challenge or do 32 heat which I never bothered to try. did 25 heat and was happy with all the progression the game gives you at that point.

[@benji-menji]

I also recommend changing your dash button to a bumper or trigger button and then making a face button your call. It may seem that your face buttons are your main ones in video games but putting main actions on different fingers helps you to dash and attack at the same time by turning one finger into your dash finger. You might get some trigger finger habits from this but it's the best way I found to control the game.

[@ananimal9779]

Shit, this is a real good idea, and I'm at 150+ runs. I dash a ton but yeah it took a long time to get sorta comfortable with the finger swipe to dash and attack quickly.

[@bpdmf2798]

That's ok but with the 4th claw aspect you can hold attack and dash and it does 4 straight dash attacks so having them next to each other make it really easy to do.

[@MrGhosta5]

Platinum games puts their dodge button on the right trigger so from playing Bayonetta, Neir Automata, Transformers, etc I've gotten used to dodge being on the right trigger.

[@peterhuang780]

I think it took me 39 attempts to escape for the first time, but this is skewed because I was purposefully dying a lot of the times to get to new dialogues with characters in the house faster. If I remembered correctly, removing those purposeful deaths, it was around 30 tries to the first escape.

[@LightOnYT]

...your definition of a lot is nine deaths out of thirty-nine????

[@pellevastano]

I had 39 attempts too. I had a few runs where I didn't purposely die per se, but I wasn't focused on getting a win whatsoever, like farming contracts and darkness

[@soulstealer5625]

Mine was about 40. Got to end boss after about 30 but saw Charon offered juicy stuff like diamonds and bloods at the end shop. I dint have the confidence to try the end boss so i farmed up for those luxury items then suicided. Actually beat the boss on one of those runs when i felt stronger than normal and realised i had a pretty good build.

[@tannercollins2444]

@@LightOnYT That is almost 1/4th of the attempts, that is pretty significant

[@yorbahotel]

Really enjoy your content man, haven't put Hades down for a long time since my first clear a few weeks ago and have been soaking it up watching your videos

[@mag1ckyle799]

I see your reasoning on why people gravitate towards the fists, and it is a fair point. Counterpoint: I like to go punchy-punchy on bad guys.

[@AnthonyMcNeil]

Transistor is an amazing game. I do enjoy Hades but I do want a Transistor sequel. The OST is second to none. Amazing game.

[@MertowVA]

I listen to the entire OST of that game on loop when I have nothing else to listen to

[@TheLast_Era]

I actually started playing Hades during this past winter break and absolutely fell in love with the game and rouge-like genre. Took me 26 attempts to make out the first time and I can’t wait until Hades 2.

[@TheB0sss]

It took me 41 tries to beat it for the first time, after that i started watching your videos, and other people's guides. It's really helpful to watch streamers imo, maybe just so you get a sense for what kind of boons are good and work well together. Once that knowledge settled it in the game became quite easy for like 20 heat and under. I got really hooked, and I'm now trying to finish up the resource director lol, that's all I've got left to do. I even did 32 heat on all aspects. So thanks for the help! Your channel has been great for just casually watching and learning what boons are good.

[@Lancer78x]

Love your content. I just found hades a month ago someone told me to try. Love it. Took me around 17-18 runs to get first clear I think. My first save I just ran until like 120 , had so much fun, made another that I am around 80 escapes, completed my first on 11 this time. Your videos def help a ton.

[@MegaSchwarzesSchaf]

I escaped around my 40th attempt, took me a while to figure out which boons/weapons/upgrades go well together :)

[@osamaibrahim1998]

Glad that I’m not the only one 😂🤝

[@afarley1340]

Took me 55 attempts to make my first escape. Still working my way to 32 heat (which is my ultimate goal). I managed to do the Chiron bow at 20 heat at this point.

[@ananimal9779]

Chiron is one of my two favorites along with default punch gloves. Ares attack and Athena special with the duo is quick and safe, or Aphro attack + Demeter special to severely neuter all enemies, etc. It's super flexible and can output massive damage for a ranged weapon. I love the fists because it's easy to hit 100+% dodge chance with the Near Miss mirror passive and Hermes trinket. Can't hurt what you can't hit!

[@afarley1340]

Finally achieved my goal of 32 heat!

[@AnthonyMcNeil]

@@afarley1340 Congrats. The highest I've don't is 17. I don't have a particular goal in mine. I don't mind replaying the same heat just for fun. The Chiron Bow is my favorite though.

[@ZeusJuicy2]

I started playing Hades just around New Years and found your videos pretty quick, you have inspired me to start streaming again! Capture card coming this week, so pumped! Thanks for all of your videos 👊

[@jarmyjarmy7200]

I escaped on my 31st run after I started watching your videos! Saw a few builds and they gave me a bit more of an idea on how to make a strong build and helped me a lot!

[@musabjunaidi]

Halien and Jawless Paul kept my love for this game alive. I am now 600 hours into the game, and equal number of hours watching Halien and JP play the game.

[@CakeDuck112]

I managed to beat the game on my 11th run! With the Zagreus Spear level 1. My in-game time was 47,5 minutes :D Also, this video was wonderfully objective and informative. Thank you for the time taken to fetching all the relevant clips and the thorough explenations!

[@samusmp1_4]

My first clear was on the 39th attempt. Having nothing more to prove to myself I turned on God Mode and never looked back.

[@mastrer1000]

I would also add heightened security to the heat to avoid at 32 heat list, it adds way too much difficulty for a single heat level

[@Haelian]

Agreed

[@segfault_000]

The one and only time I turned on HS was for the Prophecy requiring you to clear with every pact. I immediately forced Athena and got Sure Footing ASAP.

[@theSwoderman]

thanks for suggesting transistor! i'd started it once before and only played about an hour and wasn't hooked - jsut restarted and i feel like i understood it so much more this time around, been loving it so far

[@ananimal9779]

My main issue with Transistor is that the game makes you do the same encounter with fewer resources if you die during it, which seems the opposite of what players would want. I ended up just save scumming to get around that and enjoyed the game otherwise.

[@theSwoderman]

@@ananimal9779 you don't restart the encounter you just have to finish it. I kinda like that mechanic because it makes you not go all in on one ability but could see it getting frustrating

[@ananimal9779]

@@theSwoderman TBH I could've sworn it was redoing the entire room or encounter again, but I also haven't played it in years. I just remember it sucking losing like 1/3 of my moveset which would just hamstring me so bad it would be a functional game over anyway. Maybe I was too much of a perfectionist. Fortunately Hades doesn't do anything like that either way so one more reason to love Hades! :D

[@theSwoderman]

@@ananimal9779 could be that they changed it since you played too!

[@freakelangelo]

I’m not a stranger to roguelites, but I only had like 50+ hours in Vampire survivors before I started Hades, and that’s it. Managed to get my first kill at run 32 and extremely proud of it 😂

[@veveeevee]

killed and escaped at run 32 aswell, and 50+ hrs in Vampire surivivors.. mm maybe ill check it out too

[@nyaanyaamewmew]

11:29 correction on Divine Dash and i-frames: empty dashes are invincible for the whole duration. Divine Dash doesn't add more invinciblity to your dash, it just simply gives you a hitbox around Zagreus that deflects attacks. Attacks that are deflected will not harm Zagreus if they connect with his hurtbox. Attacks that connect with Zagreus's hurtbox and his deflect hitbox at the same time *will* do damage to Zagreus and will not be deflected. What can often happen is that you evade an attack with an empty dash but the enemy's hitbox still lingers and you get hit after the dash recovers. If you have Divine Dash, that hitbox will be deflected during your dash and then you don't take that damage immediately after your dash. That can make it look pretty similar to having more i-frames. I believe (but haven't verified) that Divine Dash's hitbox is a little wider than Zagreus's hurtbox during a Dash-Strike (mostly in his back and to his sides, but seems to vary per weapon). That would give you a layer of protection that will deflect any attacks moving towards Zagreus from those directions.

[@cammcgra]

By most measures, I've 100%'d this game: upgraded all aspects, maxed out the mirror, completed the codex fully, got all House Contractor upgrades, Max'd hearts with everyone, got 3 statues, and completed the resource director rankings. And yet! I still learned something new about this incredible game from your video. Thank you!

[@mariairina6143]

That Animal Crossing comparation hit so close to home, I had the exact same problem but I was using a bluetooth speaker and guided my catching from the sound, I felt so dumb when I realised that's why I couldn't catch rarer fish haha As for Hades, I still haven't beaten the game (20ish runs? Not even past Bone Hydra..)

[@mcusson2]

What a lovely vid! Such deep mastery coupled with a nice attitude is what we need more of.

[@schmitty3915]

great genuine and well-constructed vid, awesome work!

[@jamesoakes4842]

My first successful run took me 26 attempts. So much of it is knowledge rather than building in-game strength though. When I came back and played it again on PS4, it only took me 6 attempts.

[@RamzaBeoulves]

Such a healthy mindset There's no use comparing your progress to others. My friend has a Wizard of Legends background and by his 5th attempt he was wayyyy too comfortable in the colosseum fight We all got different experiences with different games that shape how we approach a title

[@SadOccultist]

For the "X runs before win", personally I don't know how many runs but I had about 80 hours before my first win. Coming from that, my PB made it within the top 100 speedruns (no longer within top 100). So I definitely feel like it doesn't matter how long it takes as long as you have fun.

[@dylanbissonette3246]

80 hours 😳, that’s crazy imo. No idea how you didn’t get discouraged, but good on you for getting an amazing speedrun time

[@unburdenedcatcreature]

I feel really reassured because I really struggle with the game and it makes me feel less alone that other people also take a while with it. I have done 38 runs and I have not reached the end haha

[@LiberalSquared]

I'm glad that you brougjt up fishing in AC on undocked mode. When I first started I absolutely could not fish for the life of me, and when I saw that there was a reward for catching 100 fish in a row without missing, I honestly couldn't imagine ever doing it. When I started fishing in handheld mode, however, I got it without even trying. I don't know if it's because of lag, or if because it's closer to you, or what, but it is 100x easier handheld.

[@uwufemboy5683]

I so agree with your “don’t compare yourself to others” statement. It took me 15 runs to beat a run Hades, because it took me ~50 runs to beat a run in Enter the Gungeon, because it took me ~150 runs to beat a run in The Binding of Isaac, because it took me well over 500 attempts to beat a run in Nuclear Throne, because… you get the picture. Someone playing Hades “for the first time” could be going in with anywhere from 0 to hundreds of hours of practice, depending on their gaming history.

[@netscayped]

this has a real nice vibe

[@brannanmitchel-slentz2835]

That's a nice room. I could imagine spending a lot of time sitting on that couch and looking at that plant in the corner.

[@poorbiggles6328]

Some time in the future . . . Viewer: “Hey Dan, what the strongest weapon?” Dan: *points at video Viewer: “Hi Haelian, love your videos. What options from the pact of punishment are the easiest to use?” Dan: *angrily points at video Viewer: “Wow! I just found this great build. Have you ever tried it?” Dan: *walks into traffic

[@ananimal9779]

And that, students, is why FAQs are common.

[@jimmyeng663]

Viewer: 'Hi, which car hit you the hardest? Recommended bone rebuild?'

[@immeyouareu2633]

The rogue like I recommend outside hades is slay the spire.

[@JobuSt8n2448]

Just beat heat 32 for the first time using Eris Rail and a lot of tips from you as well as the Reddit! Thanks for making awesome content!

[@tenorsrfun]

Good point about the "how many attempts to escape" in relation to hardware. I bought Hades for a trip, started in handheld mode and really struggled. As soon as I played on a TV with my pro controller I almost immediately improved my runs and beat the game shortly after.

[@LunaLasceria]

Hilariously, I had a similar experience with catching fish... in Hades itself. Playing on the Switch version (docked) I can almost NEVER get the "Perfect Catch" required for very rare fish, whereas on my computer I can get it like half the time. I was almost 100 runs deep into a save file on the Switch before I finally realized that was why I STILL hadn't finished Poseidon's prophecy.

[@LeeSCM]

My first ever win was on attempt 54, and this was without any prior game knowledge, and just knowing I liked the sword the most and Athena boons haha! I feel like the biggest ramp up of skill in this game typically happens after you beat it for the first time, no? (Probably because you're accumulating more currency for mirror and weapon upgrades). Once I beat it the first time, I started beating it way more frequently, and I'm sure if I didn't stumble upon this channel, my skills wouldn't have gotten as much better as they did (I looked at your videos because I didn't know how to use the Rail lol).

[@joedorben3504]

I had like ~40 runs without escaping and I had died to the final boss like 10-20 times. Then I looked up some tips and got recommended to go for specific builds, after I started doing that it only took me like 4-6 more to win. So the biggest tip I'd give fpr people who haven't cleared yet is definitely to go for strong builds - hammer combos like Cluster Bomb + Rocket Bomb, Duo boons like Merciful End, Sea Storm, Heart Rend, etc

[@thecactusman17]

When I first got the game, I beat Hades for the first time at around run 35-40. The main story credits rolled at around 125-150 and I got the "true ending" at around run 200. After a yearlong break I started a new file recently and got the main story credits finished at around run 55-60, with most of the delay coming from opening up the Mirror.

[@yeetgrenade7492]

as a new player I LOVED chiron. so satisfying, so fun, and so easy to use.

[@dnigh2080]

I got my first clear on my 36th attempt! And now I'm somewhat easily beating 10+ heat runs and have 50+ successful escapes so give it time, I just started playing back in November :) dash strikes are your best friend. Love your content!

[@surestrange]

I got my first win on escape attempt 45 and got my first ten by number 69. I went in pretty much blind outside of watching a review of the game. I loved the way it happened for me just learning and picking up things as I went. Then started watching your vids for the high level stuff later on

[@Pr1est0fDoom]

Regarding the first escape, there's also the factor of just plain RNG giving you Boons that you are comfortable with. I first escaped on run #16, but that was hard carried by a Chamber 1 Hazard Bomb. Before I knew too much about how to make a good build, I was used to dealing like 100-150 damage per hit in the late game, and suddenly I was hitting for 400 over a gigantic AoE in Tartarus. I rolled with it, got Athena on Special and massacred everything.

[@ananimal9779]

Lol at Athena Hazard Bomb. "I'M PROTECTING YOUUUU" *war crimes you*

[@АртёмУстенко-г1ш]

It took 15 attempts to win for the first time. Without God mode. I'm was really shocked when hear from you about other people counts. The thing is that I'm very in love with other rougelikes.

[@InterwovenElements]

#15 was also my first win. I could've kicked myself because I think I had it in the bag on run 11 or 12 but I didn't realize that hades was a two stage fight so I got reckless trying to get his health down faster and took a few extra hits xD

[@FlyAway021]

Escaped on attempt 23, most of my deaths were in Elysium, and I was super proud of myself because I genuinely thought I was gonna be awful at the game. I don't have a lot of roguelike experience, other than playing some binding of Isaac in high school, but Hades feels really intuitive. I'm definitely not good at it, but I feel myself getting better every run!

[@ForsakenPixel]

I saw the game on sale so i bought it. It took me 20 attempts to beat hades. On my 19th(first time getting to hades) i began to panic when i saw the 2nd phase. I got stuck on the green jar and the lasers caught me off guard a few times. You definitely get better every run. The hardest boss for me, as much as it pains me to say, was the hydra. I got stuck on that one 4 times.. but that aside, you do get further most times. It is very encouraging to hear Zag speak out when you made it past a previous run. I'd say my 2nd problematic area was in Styx. I could not, for the love of god, deal with the poison. Twice from rats and once from the voodoo guy. I learned to keep calm and run to the root fountains, avoid fighting the rats in the same spot, dodge the voodoo darts. Randomly in two of my runs, i died in the room with banshees that spam balls. Aside from that, so far, I can reliably make it to hades every run guaranteed. I only have 37 runs under my belt, my next run is going to be heat 8(I go up in heat for rewards when I beat hades), my first and only 'bond forged' character is Cerberus, I've only used the sword so far and I've been playing blind. It's really exciting when you discover things in the game. It makes you want to discover more! I'm thinking of getting Dusa to max bond because she is wholesome. These past 2 weeks have been amazing, I would definitely recommend getting the game even at full price. The value is most definitely there. Oh and one thing I think I missed out on was not visiting the shade shop. Sometimes the deal at the very bottom is really good. c:

[@snakejazz]

Nice shout out to Jawless Paul. Seems like a really nice guy and it's cool to know y'all are friends

[@BemisShmemis]

Seen credits twice now, once on normal and once on Hell Mode, and I still learned something. Good stuff.

[@Churahm]

It took me quite a few attempts to beat it for the first time, maybe 30-40, because I was stubborn and refused to change weapon until I beat the game with the sword. Not that the sword is necessarily bad, but as a beginner I feel pretty much any base Zagreus aspects are muuuch easier to win with. It did teach me to learn enemy patterns and how to dodge their attacks though and I'm actually quite glad for this.

[@michaelw6277]

Tip: the "Give Up" function allows you to throw Titan's Blood into a weapon, test it out, and as long as you "Give Up" before you die you're returned to your weapons room with all of the Titan Blood refunded (you also lose anything you gathered in that run). This means you can “test drive” an aspect to see if you like it or not before fully committing to it.

[@DavidFerreira-yi6vw]

It took me around 4 or 5 attempts to escape the first time. I was playing with a friend who showed me the game while it was still on pre-release. I played on his account that already had half of the weapon maxed out. I remember using the Eris Aspect of the adamant rail with Dionisius boons. Still my favourite gun variant

[@WaldoKrayt]

i was pretty much doing a lot of runs probably around 10-15 and i always died on the theseus- mino fight until i watched a video of yours and tried out some other strats, i managed to win and idk how i managed it but after that first win i actually won the 9 left for the ending in a row, without heat ofc, i was fascinated cause i thought you HAD to get 10 wins in a ROW to get the ending and it ended up being u just needed 10 wins period lol, i still play today and you've been a massive inspiration i've completed a lot of high heat runs thanks to your tutorials aswell, so i can't wait for what Hades 2 might bring to the table! Like Haelian said maybe i did get lucky but i did play a ton of dead cells before Hades so i was at least familiarized with the concept somewhat, it's really helpful that way!

[@anoob6614]

I love that Hades 2 trailer is warming up the community again

[@gabrozinho]

Took me 15 attempts to escape, but that's only because I have looked up some guides; like builds and what to upgrade early in the Mirror

[@josullivan5604]

great advice. i was fifty runs in and hadn’t cleared yet. i got a little nervous 😅 and got some chaos shield-Aries tips. that build gave me some confidence, now i am clearing on almost every run (except fists lol) first cleared on run 55.

[@HeyLuke]

For me it was like the 34th attempt, but I remember feeling really really stuck on the heroes fight. When that clicked, it didn't take many runs anymore. Maybe 2 or 3 tries on Hades before I defeated him for the first time.

[@ohpotatoesandmolasses]

This is ... HADES SUPPORT *sick drum beat*

[@youtubeisabadwebsite]

OH GOD that last question drove me insane! i had nearly every achievement, i had a 40 heat win under my belt, i had beaten the game and the epilogue, and I STILL couldn't get the rng to allow me to finish Hypnos' storyline.

[@JesperSandersen]

First win after 27 attempts. With the spear surprisingly, didn’t like it initially, boons in that run just worked well. I had watched tips and tricks videos, but wasn’t trying to go for a specific build. Got to end credits about 50 attempts in.

[@spencergraham9976]

Took me about 25 runs to finish the first time. I was watching some of these videos back then so I had some good tips for success.

[@segfault_000]

First clear was on attempt 29, but after 49 attempts I had 19 clears including a 15-run streak. I think this mostly came down to better game knowledge.

[@descendency]

I think unlocking the right parts of the mirror will speed up or slow down that number.

[@segfault_000]

@@descendency Now that I think back the turning point was when I started using the God-specific keepsakes to force even basic builds, which I guess goes hand-in-hand with the game knowledge.

[@mattgopack7395]

It took me 32 attempts to escape the 1st time, to add to the data. Though part of that was me struggling against all the bosses (took 7 tries to beat Hades) Fists are definitely the easiest I think - once you realize that you can just hold down the button and keep attacking, it's much easier to just focus on dashing around and still dealing good damage. A lot of the other weapons require more skill to use well.

[@NBAMudBoy]

Took me just under 80 runs for my first escape - what really helped was using privileged status builds, and aspects that could stack statuses quickly

[@apyr4781]

Escaped after 32 attempts using sword with nemesis aspect. After many races, he remains my favorite. No other weapon or aspect brings such pleasure. Its so strong and fun.

[@realtalk13]

first clear was arund 23/24 (can't remember). Hades was my first action roguelike (been playing Slay The Spire before it) and I'm much more of a turn-based rpg player than an action, beat em up player. Was also the first game I 100% the achievements for. As someone else said, while I did get objectively better at the game, learned boss patterns, etc, knowing what boons work together and with what weapons, and what suits my natural playstyle helped a lot. For me I like cast builds or I like to brawl with the fists; knowing that helped me focus my runs a hell of a lot more which made me get pretty good with those kinds of builds. No need to be amazing at every build possible; just focus on what works for you.

[@crackededge9351]

One of my favorite builds is a fist weapon build that uses aphrodites weakness effect to buff the attack jabs, and Artemis crit boon to buff special attacks/uppercuts. Combining this with the Daedalus special attack enhancement can leads to over 800 DAMAGE on crit for the final attack in the combo. This only works if you get the duo boon for Aphrodite and Artemis that buffs crit damage done on weak enemies. The end result of this setup is over 300 crit damage for the uppercut, and 800 crit for the extra hit from the Daedalus enhancement. This damage can be further increased if you manage to get Eurydice upgrades and Poms of power.

[@warrensmith481]

Got first clear at run 15 then cleared the next 10x runs in a row raising the heat once each time... eris rail really made things so much easier haha

[@MadSwedishGamer]

I got my first escape on run 19, but I had watched a few hours of gameplay already, which almost certainly gave me an advantage.

[@ssjbule]

9:21 "Who is the strongest god?" Reflexively invokes Jesus as the Trojan War flashbacks kick in

[@orangeceecee]

I beat the game on my 17th attempt, although i did get very lucky with having an insane sea storm build despite not having a full mirror.

[@kevinwells9751]

Sea Storm is so strong especially if you can also get splash dash

[@hybridjones8546]

Returnal is a great narrative driven rogue like coming soon to pc. Hands down my favorite game got me to look into other roguelikes which led me to Hades

[@bpdmf2798]

Yes. Returnal is a great game.

[@TheObnoxiousMan]

Got to the final boss for the first time on attempt 12, beat them on attempt 15, got to the credits on attempt 28. I was blind until I got my first clear, then started looking up basic stuff like recommended aspects for titans blood investment and what to spend diamonds on. Still largely figured out builds on my own. Aspect usage statistics for first 10 wins: Demeter (2), Zeus (3), Eris (1), Chiron (2), Poseidon (2). Keepsake usage: First 4 clears were with the hourglass, next 6 clears used the spearpoint. Additional context: It is of note that I play a LOT of difficult action games so Hades felt very intuitive and natural to me. I had an easier time picking this game up than a lot of people. I should also note that I had zero experience playing rouge-lites before Hades; this was my first. Unless you count casual randomizer speedruns for Link to the Past as rouge-like experience.

[@tresanapearson6508]

I bought Hades a few months ago for the Switch. I play on the standard settings. I got to meg twice after 8 attempts and died. I got there again on my 10th attempt and died again. I looked up tips on how to beat Meg and i got to the second stage on my 13th attempt. I am still haven’t beat it as yet. I am now on my 24th attempt. My runs are not always the same , the story is great and its fun to play. I am enjoying Hades very much. I play causally so i am not sure when i will beat it . I am not in a hurry. Thanks for the Q & A, it cleared up a lot of things and now my runs will be stronger.

[@unamejames]

My #1 tip for newbs just trying to beat the game is to stack life. I went from thinking the game was super difficult and nearly impossible with my least favorite weapons to thinking that every run was pretty trivial, just by taking life much more often than I would have. Obviously, you're not going to break any speed records like this, but it does make it pretty easy to get to the credits the first time.

[@Shunpon77]

I think it took me 20-30 attempts for the first clear. I also recommend not looking anything up so you don't get spoiled because the presentation is fantastic.

[@CorruptedQuill]

awesome info - can also recommend Children of morta for those looking for another game like hades - interesting character choices, story focus and it's beautiful

[@RedOphiuchus]

I cleared it for the first time on my 13th try, and my partner somewhere in their 30's! How fast you do it is definitely not that big of a deal. All that ends up happening when you get there sooner is you end up seeing some dialogue much sooner than others but it'll still take a lot of time to get through everything in the long run.

[@LordBaktor]

I want to say it took me 25 runs tops, but I'm probably looking back with my self flattering glasses on. Definitely less than 40 though. The first win wasn't that hard to get once I realized that I was supposed to be dashing everywhere all the time. The Meg fight taught me that and Asterius made sure I remembered it.

[@segfault_000]

You can actually see the result of every run by inspecting the filing cabinet in the office

[@LordBaktor]

@@segfault_000 Nice to know. I don't have access to the game right now, but when I get my Switch back I'll check for my own curiosity.

[@ibrahimbeats]

I've done 50 heat with Rama bow and 40 heat with Eris rail, as well as 32 heat with all weapons (some multiple times with diff aspects). my first clear was on run #58, with a time of 44m53s! it took me a lot to get there, I had a legendary boon, a duo boon, two chaos boons, and a cyclops jerky. the weapon I did it with was the spear, which is now one of my worst weapons. It took a while for the combat of Hades to really "click" with me but once it did runs became incredibly more satisfying. I wanna add two random tips to the video, a) if you like blocking, you can use the shield to block when you charge your bull rush, and b) Skelly's and Eurydice's keepsakes are incredibly useful for Elysium and Styx.

[@ananimal9779]

I am a super aggro player, and play as fast as I can in encounters. I see Tight Deadline as free Heat until 5mins, which is what I am working on currently. Even just EM4 and TD3 is real spicy, daddy takes multiple minutes himself and Tartarus being the longest section and also the first means you have no carry-over, so the five minutes is the worst at the start and end of each run. I love it

[@SDCCooper]

Never played a roguelike. Played Bastion years ago (good game). Didn't know anything about Hades but picked it up for £12 second hand just before Xmas as the box looked cool. What a find!!! First completion was run #50. Now at 82 runs and 6 completions. Just turned on God Mode to get a fee more full runs in to see the main story. Shield and Spear are my preferred. Fantastic game.

[@rouk2621]

for the guy asking „am i bad?“ basically. I ran into the final boss like he was a wall for 4/5 times. Looked up best builds and Mirrorsetups, finished him in the next run (Run 23 i think). So dont give yourself a hard time, get some external help and youll be fine, and once youre deep dived into the game it becomes way easier

[@naomibright6129]

I don't know exactly when I beat the game for the first time, but I do know I currently have run 23 escape attempts and have escaped twice. My winning run was on Nem aspect sword using legendary Athena boon. I think my tips for anyone struggling to win the first run are, take Athena boons, they're suboptimal but they will help if you're bad at dodging like me, especially Athena dash. Also dash often, it's better to take longer to clear rooms than get hit by everything. Use Skelly tooth in the final area, one more death defiance can make or break the final fight.

[@anthonyryan6208]

I always have the timer on for heat so I'm clearing rooms asap. But I feel ya. If the timer is off. Take your time.

[@Serzari]

Checked the Security Log: I took a couple intentional deaths to advance house stuff (two back-to-back 1 minute runs), but I reached Hades for the first time on #12, and escaped on #16. 19-28 were intentional deaths for faster house interactions, and I got my tenth escape on #42. I'd put 9 hours into Bastion with one story completion a few years before getting into Hades, and I also had hundreds of hours playing hard mode FTL and did a playthrough of Rouge Legacy as some tangential rouge-like experience

[@The504zack]

It took me 14 attempts to escape for the first time. I didn't look anything up and I was happy with my progress despite not being familiar with roguelikes. excited to play Hades 2!

[@SgtReaper1987]

I played it during early access. So when 1.0 came out i started on Hell Mode, since i already played the game a fair bit. That took me a good 80-90 runs before i beat Hades. I found Hell Mode really challenging

[@ooraizar2664]

I won my first run on my 8th try I think but the reason I did it so quickly is cause I play games similar to hades all the time

[@ooraizar2664]

It was with zag sword

[@XxSirMeowALotxX]

Hi, I have around 200 hours for hades on switch now and it took me about 25 to win the first time, although I have to say I have played quite a lot of similarily fast paced games that helped me acclimate to the speed of the game, and other games that taught me to be patient around enemies, figuring out okay builds and not getting hit often in the beginning due to the understand how important the dash is for example. Those things helped me get quite far for the first attempts and so I could focus on learning movesets of the elysium boss or which enemies to take out first and so on.

[@SeanCMonahan]

Who is the strongest god? Chaos, of course. Their boons have rescued so many of my runs. I love the risk/reward mechanism of them, too.

[@BetaManicCommand]

It took me my 29th attempt to escape for the first time. My attempts were spread throughout last year when I would play it on and off.

[@phoenixdragon7836]

I completed my first run at my 16th attempt. I remember clearing with aspect of Hera