In 2020 released after an extended early access period, the indie game Hades instantly won the hearts of gamers and critics alike, beating millions of dollars in revenue right after the official release, collect Award nominations from a variety of game shows and appeared on many year-end list. The fantasy game from developer Supergiant follows the Greek demigod Zagreus as he attempts to escape from the underworld run by his famous father while interacting with a host of other Olympian gods and other gods. Legendary characters are taken from Greek mythology. Besides the tight and exciting gameplay as well as the beautiful art, what really makes Hades shine is the wonderful text and its nuances. This extends to the game’s romance options, which feature smart and positive elements of relationships that are rarely mentioned in the game, specifically depicting many episodes and relationships. system is better than many games of the same type.
Hades there are three characters the player can have Zagreus woo: Dusa, a floating wolf head that resides in the game’s resting area between runs; Thanatos, the embodiment of death among the Greeks, who appeared to present trials and rewards to Zagreus in a fugitive; and Megaera, one of the Fury sisters who appeared with her siblings as the boss of the first part of the game. Players enhance these romances between escapes by chatting with each character and giving them Nectars they collect, opening up new vistas and deepening their relationship.
Although this approach to romance is a fairly standard video game, Hades provides a story rarely seen here, as Dusa will explain at the end of her plot that, while she has tried, she has no romantic feelings for Zagreus, and the duo agree with a more pure but also profound friendship.
This makes Thanatos and Megaera characters with whom Zagreus can enter a romantic relationship. Players can pursue both or none of the characters at their own pace. If the player has a relationship with both, shortly after a scene occurs when both Thanatos and Megaera appear in Zagreus’ room with an offer to sleep together, after which Megaera states that the three characters have “gained understanding here”, bringing the three into a relationship. amorous.
It’s simple, polyamory means having a romantic or sexual relationship with more than one person, with all parties agreeing to the arrangement. (It’s also important to note that although Zagreus, Megaera, and Thanatos all sleep together, this is not a requirement of being amorous, which is not inherently sexual.) Given the conversation they had with each other. , this becomes the state of Hades trio for the rest of the game.
What’s remarkable about this description is how rare it remains in any media, let alone video games. In many games with romance, choosing a partner will immerse you in that romance with no way to explore the other at the same time. Players can flirt with multiple characters at once, but they will be forced to choose a single partner at a time and have to part with them for someone else, as in Block effect series or Stardew Valley. Manda Farrough, co-founder of F-Squared and a Twitch streamer who calls himself a polyam, recalls picking up Hades and amazed by the representation. “It’s really, really great to be able to see these two characters and I don’t have to choose because they’re both beautiful,” she said. “And they’re both weird and scary and wonderful in their own very different ways.”
