Melinoë’s journey deepens as new challenges, powers, and encounters shape the next phase of Hades II’s early access.

Hades II storms along in its early access journey with the arrival of its third major update, The Unseen Update. Since first launching on 4 May 2024, Supergiant’s sequel to the acclaimed roguelike has steadily grown through player feedback, new mechanics, and sprawling patches. Now, over a year later, this latest update pushes the game one last step towards its eventual Version 1.0 release, packing in some of the most significant changes to combat, progression, and storytelling yet.

The Unseen Update was released on Wednesday 18 June, along with a new trailer:

With The Unseen Update, the battlefield shifts again. New fighting styles emerge from the depths, bonds with gods and mortals deepen, and the Guardians of the realms grow fiercer than ever. For those who thought they had conquered the Underworld, a fresh gauntlet awaits. With The Unseen Update, new challenges and choices continue to shape the evolving core of Hades II–the cycle of running, falling, and getting back up stronger each time.

Hidden Aspects completely transform every weapon

Each of the Nocturnal Arms now comes with a final form known as a Hidden Aspect. These are more than just late-game upgrades. They introduce entirely new playstyles that can change how a weapon feels from the ground up. One Hidden Aspect might allow you to attack without needing ammo, while another lets you tap into a berserker state that restores life as you fight. Players who thought they had settled into a favourite build will now find plenty of reasons to experiment again.

The Umbral Flames have received a complete overhaul. With snappier attacks and better flow, this rework makes ranged play feel more responsive and dangerous. Other weapons, including the Witch’s Staff and Sister Blades, have also been adjusted to align with the update’s faster-paced combat.

The Vow of Rivals makes every boss fight feel fresh again

Players can now activate the Vow of Rivals through the Oath of the Unseen, a new challenge option that introduces powered-up versions of the game’s Guardians. These boss variants come with unique mechanics that demand new strategies and sharper reflexes. Once you defeat the first set of bosses across both the Underworld and Surface routes, tougher ranks unlock in turn.

Alongside these new boss challenges are additional Warden enemies, found in areas like Erebus and the City of Ephyra. These encounters add more pressure to later runs and keep the pacing tight.

Olympian blessings fuse with Moon Magick

Godsent Hexes offer a new twist on Selene’s lunar magic. These allow you to enhance her Hexes with powers from the Olympians, adding flexibility to spellcasting and encouraging more varied builds. Lightning-charged blasts, fire-infused pulses, or other divine effects can now be layered onto your favourite spells.

The Witch’s Staff has also been reworked, with Circe’s Aspect now causing your Animal Familiar to mirror your Casts. This forms a damaging tether between the two of you, introducing a new way to manage battlefield positioning while staying aggressive.

Deeper bonds and more story events

Melinoë’s relationships take the spotlight in this patch. New optional story scenes help flesh out her connections with gods, mortals, and other figures from the mythic world. These additions offer more than flavour. They provide insight into the shifting alliances and motivations surrounding her mission to stop Chronos.

Supporting the new scenes are fresh music tracks, updated artwork with ambient touches on character portraits, and other visual refinements that continue to polish the overall experience.

Combat tweaks and pacing improvements

Beyond the headline features, The Unseen Update brings several improvements to pacing and game feel:

  • Enemy waves spawn slightly faster in standard encounters to reduce downtime.
  • Melee strikes now hit through certain obstacles, making combat feel more reliable.
  • Many stuns have been replaced with slow effects, reducing frustrating lockouts.
  • Area exits now unlock a bit sooner after rewards are collected.
  • Melinoë’s Olympic Slam hits a wider area and activates more quickly.
  • The second phase of fishing has been removed, simplifying the mechanic.

Arcana and Oath system changes

At the Altar of Ashes, several Arcana Cards have been updated. The Excellence card now boosts your chance of finding Legendary Boons, while The Unseen provides improved magick regeneration. Players using Insights Mode can now inspect max-rank cards to plan builds more effectively.

Oath modifiers have also been adjusted. The Vow of Fangs now gives clearer feedback during its stasis effect, and the Vow of Scars makes it easier to tell when your healing is being reduced. The amount of Fear needed to unlock Surface route victories has also been scaled to match player progress.

The Unseen Update adds more fighting styles, enemy encounters, and story moments to Hades II, continuing its expansion in early access. Version 1.0 is still on the horizon, but this marks another clear step in that direction, as Supergiant is now moving into “the final phase of Hades II development.” You can read the full patch notes for The Unseen Update on Steam here.

Hades II is currently available in Early Access on PC (Steam and Epic Games Store) and will launch on Nintendo Switch and Nintendo Switch 2 as a timed console exclusive when the full version (v1.0) is released.