There are hints of story throughout, but that's about as far as it goes. Dead Cells, for example, has you play as a headless prisoner who must kill the High King. Some of my favorite roguelike games don't have much of a storyline to follow and lean heavily on addicting gameplay. Source: Supergiant Games (Image credit: Source: Supergiant Games)

Hades has an actual storyline to discover It's a system that's much deeper than what's evident at first glance, and it makes players go for just one more run. Plenty of times I've accidentally discovered a potent combination of boons, turning a throwaway run into a veritable push to leave the Underworld. Your Special, Cast, and Call abilities can all be overhauled with certain boons as well, which means one run you can be a Hangover-inducing party animal and the next you can be a Lightning-wielding Zeus fanatic.

Yes, it is possible to design your character each time you run through, though of course the roguelike nature means there is some chance to what you'll get. This makes it much easier to get a solid start to a specific build during a run. These keepsakes will either give you an immediate boost to some aspect of your character, or they will ensure you see a specific boon to start off your run. Keepsakes are unlocked by presenting gifts to the deities and character you meet during your travels. There are multiple weapons to unlock - you select one before attempting a run - including a bow and arrow, shield, spear, fists, and railgun. Hades takes parts from a bunch of different genres and forges them into something special.

But where an aRPG goes incredibly deep with loot and crafting, Hades fills the hole with roguelike aspects. Hades feels a bit like an aRPG with its frantic isometric action, at least enough to keep me satisfied while we await Diablo IV's dungeon-crawling goodness. I've also dedicated a good portion of the last 20 years of my life to playing Diablo II, one of the best aRPG dungeon-crawlers ever made.

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