Hades 2 in early access "at least through the end of this year", says creative director
As first patch is released.
Hades 2 creative director Greg Kasavin said the game will be in early access "at least through the end of this year".
The much-anticipated rogue-lite sequel released into early access on PC on 6th May, though it's unknown when the game will be fully released.
Speaking to PC Gamer in the wake of the game's first patch, Kasavin detailed Supergiant's plans for the foreseeable future.
"In the short run, we plan to deploy at least a couple of relatively small patches to improve parts of the game where we can think of short-term improvements that alleviate issues we've heard from some players, while hopefully making the game even better for those already pleased with it," said Kasavin.
"Then, we'll focus on our first Major Update, which will take us several months during which the game won't be updated. This Major Update will include new features, locations, foes, and other content. Then we'll patch that a few times to shore up any issues, and repeat this broader process... until we consider the game complete! We expect to be in early access at least through the end of this year."
In its current state, Hades 2 already feels like a more complete experience than Hades 1 was when that began early access.
The first game was in early access for almost two years (across Epic and then Steam), so it seems like Hades 2 will be wrapped up quicker. The 1.0 release of Hades 1 coincided with its console release on Switch, which was later followed by Xbox and PlayStation releases almost a year later.
Does this mean Hades 2 could also see a console release at its 1.0 release after the end of this year? We can but hope.
Kasavin's comments follow the game's first patch, which released yesterday. Much of the focus has been on protagonist Melinoë's movement, allowing players to sprint faster and dash out of attack recovery animations more reliably. Further, players can gather from any resource point once the corresponding Gathering Tool has been unlocked. Full patch notes are available on Steam.
Hades 2 reached a peak concurrent player count of over 100,000 players within 24 hours of release. Player counts have dipped since then, likely as the 1.0 release is anticipated.
"Supergiant's first ever sequel may feel very comfortable and familiar, but Hades' best weapon remains the power of surprise," reads our Eurogamer Hades 2 early access review.