Now that the Hades II The early access period has begun, opening up a more complete but still early version of the game, I've been fighting the temptation to gorge on it and lose. To be fair, I've had a weak spirit since I loved the first one. Hell, which introduced me to the concept of roguelikes, a genre I avoided out of disdain for repetition. Also, and this is the most important factor in my spiritual war against gaming: I have a Steam Deck, which makes not playing it almost impossible.
Minor spoilers for Hades II continue.
Hades II It's Steam Deck verified with a comfortable control scheme that reminds me of playing on the Switch. I played around with the button mapping a bit, changing them for dash and attack. (It's hard to adapt when control schemes change from one console to another.) But I eventually reverted back to the default control scheme, because why mess with what the gods design?
One thing I have noticed is that Hades II It doesn't seem to overload my Steam Deck like other games do. While playing Tales of Kenzera: width, The system frequently became hot, causing the fan to start. (I didn't experience any frame rate issues or extreme overheating; it was simply a phenomenon that happened enough to take note.) It is not so with Hades II, even though it seems like the most graphically intense game.
The only problem I have when playing. Hades II on Steam Deck has nothing to do with the game. One is a condition I call “claw hand.” With Hades II, I tend to play until the Deck's battery dies. Then, when I finally put the deck down, my hands refuse to return to a resting position, stiff and curved as if they were still holding the deck. This doesn't happen with my Switch, Xbox, PlayStation, or when I spend too much time with the mouse and keyboard on PC. Just my Steam Deck.
Another problem, perhaps too internal to baseball, is that I never remember how to take screenshots. I've been spoiled by the dedicated screenshot buttons on other consoles and can't remember the button combination needed to capture an image on the platform, which is something I want to do a lot because, in case you haven't heard, The gods are hot.
I still haven't made much progress Hades II, and I'm pretty sure it's because my heart isn't in it. I make foolish and reckless decisions in the game, without choosing my weapons or godly gifts wisely. The great ax I just unlocked is atrocious. It packs a punch, but it's too heavy to handle effectively, and I knew that before I even started running with it. But I ventured out anyway and didn't get very far despite being able to reliably reach the first boss.
Despite this, even a bad streak in Hades II remains enjoyable and productive. There are always reagents to collect and grow in your small garden. Additionally, gifting the nectar you find to gods and allies will reward you with equipment that grants permanent bonuses. So while I'm not really making progress, I'm building a solid foundation of strength so that when the time comes to give Chronos the death, I'll be ready.
Hades II It feels tailor-made for the Steam Deck, and thank the gods for that because I'd hate to play if it wasn't. I played the first one hell exclusively on Switch, so maybe I'm spoiled, waiting for my hell experience to always be portable. It's much more comfortable to play on the deck, where I can relax outside or on the couch without being tied to a mouse or keyboard. Hades II on the Steam Deck allows me to take advantage of the PC-only early access limitation without giving up the quality of gaming life I've become accustomed to.
