Hades 2 Had A Really Lousy Ending, But Should That Define It?

Last week, I was playing Hades 2 for about 2 - 3 hours every day. It definitely became 'one of those games' where you play it as much as you can, and when you aren't playing it you wish that you were. It is so rare that I become obsessed with a game like this, and I always welcome it. I usually jump back and forward between numerous games throughout most of the year, but to find a game that takes my full attention and has the hour count to maintain that is a rare treat. Occasionally, this obsessiveness can go wrong in some key ways (See World of Warcraft, Satisfactory), but generally these are the games I want to play the most. I finished Hades 2 last week and have not touched it since, and really have no desire to. This happened because of one thing: Hades 2 had a really lousy ending.

I was somewhat alerted to this from the place where all good video game opinions go to die: Reddit, or more specifically, the Hades subreddit. While scrolling through excellent fan art and goofy builds and strategies, you'll eventually come across posts like 'The ending doesn't make sense' or 'Here's what I think the ending should be,' which is never a good sign, but this is Reddit, of course, homeplace to every gamer's largest complaints. But I was also seeing posts from more "reasonable" places like ResetEra and Bluesky. Even some of my friends in our private Discords expressed their disappointment with the ending.

 

The Hades subreddit was and is a lot of this.

When I eventually reached the ending, I had accepted that either it was some unmitigated disaster or something so out of left field it didn't make sense. What I got was a deflating balloon slowly losing all the air until it lies limp and lifeless on the ground like a dead fish. Now I want to make it clear I am not going to spoil what happens in the end because I genuinely think it is an important part of the Hades 2 experience. If you are or planning to play Hades 2, you should finish the game and get to the ending because it is quite the experience.

Please note that at no point did I say that Hades 2 was a 'bad' ending because it isn't. It might not have been the direction I would have gone with, but it did end, and that is super important. A bad ending to me is either an ending that does not conclude the narrative in a satisfying way or just kinda stops. Mass Effect 3 had a bad ending. Halo 2 had a bad ending. Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain had an atrocious ending. Hades 2 doesn't come even close. But the ending still leaves that bitter taste in my mouth. 

Hades 2 is in contention with being my personal Game of the Year, currently a three-way tie between it, Abiotic Factor and Death Stranding 2. It is the example of weaving gameplay and narrative together that only masters of their craft can accomplish. It looks great, plays great, sounds great and has loads of post-ending content to keep you playing, and I have no desire to play any more of it.

*That photo*

This Hades 2 experience left me asking if an ending, good or bad, is the thing that defines a game for most people. It is usually the last thing people see and do in nearly every medium, but in totality only contributes a small part of a game, book, movie or whatever. Those examples of bad endings I gave before, all of them are excellent games as well, but most people don't talk about those great aspects; they talk about the ending. This situation actually reminds me of the ending to Xenoblade Chronicles 3, which was fairly good. It was emotionally resonant with a satisfying conclusion that leaves just enough unknowns to keep fans talking about it. But that’s not what I remember Xenoblade 3's ending for. Anyone who is a fan of Xenoblade knows exactly what I am talking about when I say *that photo*. During the ending, they briefly show *that photo* and that was all I could think about. The processing power of my brain was all dedicated not to the emotional themes or stunning visuals but to *that photo* which made the rest of the ending almost redundant. That's how I sort of felt about Hades 2: all that artistry and all I wanted to talk about is the ending. There is a reason this isn't a review of Hades 2.

Hades 2 is still a phenomenal game

 But at the same time, although I have been ragging on the ending to this game for what seems like an eternity, I would still recommend Hades 2 to anyone who is a fan of action games. It remains one of the best games I played all year. I guess the conclusion I've come to is that you can still finish a race even if you trip on the last hurdle.