January 21st, 2020

Brace for the Long Winter Update!

Our god-like rogue-like dungeon crawler, Hades, is ringing in the new year with its ninth Major Update since launching in Early Access more than a year ago!

The Long Winter Update introduces one of the eldest and most powerful Olympians, as well as a couple of big, new surprises, tons of new story events, new upgrades, new artwork... let's get to the highlights, already!

  • Meet Demeter, Goddess of Seasons, who joins the Olympian fray, granting her powers over desolation and cold

  • Unlock the Rod of Fishing, and capture all sorts of foul river-dwelling denizens of the Underworld

  • Discover the Eternal Spear's fated Aspect of Guan Yu, revealing more of the secrets of your legendary weapons

  • Underworld Renovations Galore! The new and improved House Contractor has scores of new decorations available

  • New Daedalus Hammer Upgrades, Story Events, Improved Boon Info Screen, and more!

Hades already offers dozens or even hundreds of hours of kinetic action and seemingly never-ending story featuring dozens of colorful, fully voiced characters, and the rich worldbuilding Supergiant is known for. With the Long Winter Update, many more story details finally come to light, even as the breadth of activities in the game continues to expand. Hades is slated to exit Early Access sometime later this year. For now, you can play it in Early Access on Steam or the Epic Games Store! Full patch notes are available here on our web site, in the game client, and our official Discord, where we invite you to join a welcoming, international community of Hades players and Supergiant fans. And, of course, in dramatic-reading format, courtesy of our disembodied storyteller:

We hope you enjoy The Long Winter Update, and wish you good luck getting out of hell!

January 21st, 2020

Hades: The Long Winter Update Patch Notes

Hades is in Early Access, which means we're actively working on it based on our plans and your feedback. We expect to keep adding features, characters, weapons, foes, powers, environments, and more, while expanding the story and fine-tuning all aspects of the experience.

Note: 📢 indicates a change inspired by community feedback! Our latest patch notes are below:

Early Access Patch 039 - January 28, 2020

This patch includes more localized content, balance changes, fixes, and improvements for last week's Long Winter Update, as we shift focus to our next Major Update. Until then, thank you for playing!!


General Gameplay

• Reduced prices of Boons sold by Charon
📢 Titan Blood sold at the Wretched Broker now yields more Gemstones


Infernal Arms, Aspects, & Abilities

• Shield of Chaos: slightly reduced Bull Rush charge-up time (to how it was before the Long Winter Update)
• Adamant Rail: increased autolock radius while using gamepad


Boons & Blessings

• Reduced offering rate of 'Exchange' Boons
• Reduced offering rate for Olympian Aid Boons (in general, they should appear less early and often)
• Divine Dash (Athena): slightly increased Deflect duration (still less than before the Long Winter Update)
• Proud Bearing (Athena): improved scaling from Poms
• Holy Shield (Athena): increased duration of Deflect revenge effect
• Curse of Pain (Ares): fixed an issue causing this not to scale correctly with improved rarity
• Urge to Kill (Ares): effect now can scale with Poms
📢 Aphrodite's Call: no longer blockable by shield-bearing foes; no longer stopped by Final Boss urns
📢 Artemis' Call: no longer stopped by by Final Boss urns
📢 Crystal Beam (Demeter): increased tracking speed
• Killing Freeze (Demeter): improved scaling from rarity
• Rare Crop (Demeter): slightly reduced appearance rate
• Demeter's Aid: increased speed at which winter vortex reaches full size
📢 Blizzard Shot (Demeter x Poseidon): increased damage
• Defiance (Chaos): increased appearance rate


Daedalus Hammer Upgrades

• Piercing Wave (Blade): increased damage
📢 Cursed Slash (Blade): increased life-steal effect
📢 Charged Volley (Bow): slightly improved charge-up time
• Charged Shot (Shield): fixed an issue causing it to stop you longer than intended
• World Smasher (Shield): slightly reduced damage; no longer fully automatic
• Cluster Bomb (Rail): staggered firing sequence; reduced damage penalty; increased area of effect


Foes & Encounters

• Thanatos: reduced appearance rate (it is still significantly higher than before the Long Winter Update)
• The Fury Sisters: adjusted some of their attack timings under Extreme Measures (Pact)
• Wave-Maker: adjusted attack pattern; reduced armor; reduced appearance rate in Asphodel
• Burn-Flinger: adjusted attack pattern; reduced appearance rate in Asphodel
• Bone Hydra: reduced tracking of projectile attack
• Gigantic Vermin: Mini-boss creates fewer Poison puddles
📢 Final Boss: improved hit box on some attacks; urns no longer deal damage while being summoned


Keepsakes & Items

• Broken Spearpoint (Fallen Warrior): reduced cooldown


Pact of Punishment

📢 Budget Cuts: no longer locked in as part of Hell Mode
• Lasting Consequences: first rank now locked in as part of Hell Mode
• Underworld Customs: increased Heat
• Forced Overtime: increased Heat; reduced number of ranks (though each rank has a greater effect)
📢 Convenience Fee: no longer raises cost of Bounty resources sold in Charon's shop in Styx


Art & Visual FX

• Added new visual presentation when vanquishing bosses with Winter Harvest (Demeter)
• Improved visual presentation when slaying other foes with Winter Harvest (Demeter)
• Improved visual presentation when revealing Spear (Aspect of Guan Yu)


Music & SFX

• Added new sound effects for Final Boss urn destruction attack
• Adjusted sound effects volume for Mistral Dash (Demeter)
• Fixed sound effects on Charged Skewer (Spear)
• Fixed Delta Chamber (Rail) always playing low-ammo sound
• Fixed victory music stinger being inaudible if a song is being performed in the House of Hades


Voice & Narrative

📢 Restored post-defeat voice lines from Final Boss
📢 Added one-time voice hint about how to get to Eurydice while outside her chamber
• Added new voice lines for various Wretched Broker interactions
• Fixed two Inspect Points in the House of Hades that were not playing or appearing correctly
• Fixed voice lines sometimes not playing when confronting the Bone Hydra
• Fixes to narrative scripting to some events
• Additional fixes and tuning to various contextual voice events


Miscellaneous

📢 Added more new localized strings for content introduced in the Long Winter Update
📢 Improved text and icon distinctions between Max Life increases and Healing
📢 In ultrawide resolutions, sidebar artwork no longer occludes the edges of the display
• Added controller vibration while using the Rod of Fishing
• Reduced frequency of visual effects while taking damage from Lava
• Fixed Cyclops Jerky Select (Fallen Warrior) text to match the effect (the text was less than the effect)
• Minor fixes and improvements to Splendid Lyre interact presentation
• Added subtle visual effect when collecting Bloodstone ammo
• Other minor text fixes and presentation improvements


Bug Fixes

• Fixed an issue where too many different Olympians could appear in a single escape attempt (note: this has no effect on Boon offering rates, only on total number of different Boon-giving characters per escape attempt)
📢 Fixed an issue that could stall progress on Dusa's lounge renovation quest
📢 Fixed instances of invisible collision in the House of Hades
📢 Fixed Boon Rarity markers disappearing from Ambrosia Delight (Eurydice) or Rare Crop (Demeter)
📢 Fixed one more case of being able to use the Rod of Fishing while standing in lava
• Fixed Trippy Shot (Dionysus) sometimes being destroyed unexpectedly
• Fixed an interaction between Bow (Hera Aspect) and Crystal Shot (Demeter)
• Fixed a graphical issue in the biome map travel sequence from Tartarus
• Fixed an animation issue with the floating bobber while using the Rod of Fishing
• Fixed alert icon always appearing on House Contractor even when new items were not available
• Fixed conditions for certain Victory Screen Commendations
• Fixed a minor graphical issue while closing the Fated List
• Fixed instances where icons could remain visible in the Boon Info sidebar unexpectedly
• Other minor fixes


Quote of the Patch

'On the middle 7th cast Demeter's holy grain on the well-rolled threshing-floor, keeping a sharp eye open; and have a woodcutter cut house planks, and all the ship-timbers that are appropriate for ships. But begin building narrow ships on the 4th.' ~Works and Days (Hesiod; M. L. West translation)

Early Access Patch 038 - January 24, 2020

This patch contains various fixes following this week's Long Winter Update. Expect another patch with more localized content and additional changes before we switch focus to our next Major Update.


Infernal Arms, Aspects, & Abilities

📢 Eternal Spear (Guan Yu): improved hit box while using Deflect effects


Boons & Blessings

📢 Wave Pounding (Poseidon): damage bonus now correctly applies to your Special as well as Attack
• Support Fire (Artemis): fixed an issue causing Pom bonuses to scale incorrectly (the first one used gave too much of a benefit, while subsequent ones gave too little)


Fated List of Minor Prophecies

• Fixed God of the Seas requirements to include Wave Pounding (Poseidon)
• Fixed A Simple Job being completable below the stated requirement


Rod of Fishing

• Fixed an issue causing Fishing Points to appear more often than intended in the Temple of Styx
📢 Added cannot-interact feedback on fishing points when they cannot be used (such as during combat)
📢 Adjusted positions of some hard-to-reach fishing points
• Minor fixes to some graphic issues related to fishing


Art & Visual FX

📢 Further adjustments to visual clarity while poisoned in the Temple of Styx
• Minor updates to one of the many rugs available from the House Contractor
• Minor updates to some Demeter visual effects
• Minor graphical fixes in the House of Hades and Bedchambers
• Minor graphical improvements to House Contractor screen
• Minor visual improvements to Eternal Spear (Guan Yu)
• Minor visual improvements to a pillar destruction animation in Asphodel
• Minor improvements to one the biome map transitions


Voice & Narrative

📢 Fixed instances where Dusa could not be gifted for no apparent reason
• Fixes to narrative scripting to some new events
• Fixes and tuning to various contextual voice events


Miscellaneous

• Added some new localized strings for content added in the Long Winter Update
📢 Adjusted some player on-hit effects fighting the Minotaur and Final Boss
• Removed money sometimes dropping from destructible pillars in Asphodel
• Added several missing subtitles for Dusa
• Added work-in-progress presentation when Winter Harvest (Demeter) slays a boss
📢 Using Charm effects on Exalted Strongbow now clears their targeting reticle
• Minor text changes and fixes


Bug Fixes

📢 Fixed a crash that could occur while inflicting Chill effects on the Bone Hydra
📢 Fixed crashes with certain Polish-language text strings
📢 Fixed additional cases of being able to use the Rod of Fishing while standing in lava
• Fixed Mistral Wind (Demeter) sometimes activating Dodge effects
• Fixed Eternal Spear (Guan Yu) breaking after swapping a Boon affecting your Special
📢 Fixed a Boon text issue with Deadly Strike (Artemis) and Deadly Flourish (Artemis) (their Critical chance was higher than the text stated)
• Fixed incorrect icon for Nourished Soul (Demeter)
• Fixed several issues where World Smasher (Shield) could be offered with incompatible upgrades
📢 Fixed an issue where Brimstones or Snakestones sometimes could be knocked out of bounds
• Fixed an issue causing life-steal effects to work against ambient shades (they have no life to steal)
📢 Fixed being able to dash out of bounds in a certain Tartarus chamber
• Fixed Daedalus Hammer sometimes appearing as a chamber reward in Styx when not supposed to
📢 Fixed a watery sound effect continuing to play unexpectedly after fishing
• Fixed Court Music items in the House Contractor continually showing as new
• Fixed several issues with toggling certain House Contractor decorations
• Fixed a missing hit reaction on certain obstacles when facing the Final Boss
📢 Fixed Codex entries with special requirements not unlocking as expected
📢 Fixed a display issue in the Fated List while navigating with gamepad should buttons
• Fixed a graphical issue with Demeter's Aid Greater Call and certain visual effects
• Fixed a visual effect popping away unexpectedly in the Final Boss encounter
• Fixed minor collision issues in the House of Hades
• Many other minor fixes


Quote of the Patch

'He had eyes like a phoenix's and fine bushy eyebrows like silkworms. His whole appearance was dignified and awe-inspiring. Presently, Liu Bei crossed over, sat down beside him and asked his name. "I am Guan Yu," replied he.' ~Romance of the Three Kingdoms (Luo Guanzhong; C.H. Brewitt-Taylor translation)

Early Access Patch 037 - January 22, 2020

Thank you for all your feedback and excitement about yesterday's big Long Winter Update! This patch addresses several issues it introduced. Some changes we fully walked back and marked with * below. We're continuing to monitor impressions as we prepare additional patches for the coming days (or nights?).


General Gameplay

📢 Reduced prices of Boons sold by Charon
📢 Reduced price of Daedalus Hammer sold by Charon *
📢 Reduced price of augmented Boons and Poms sold by Charon in the Temple of Styx


Infernal Arms, Aspects, & Abilities

📢 Stygian Blade (Nemesis): increased Critical chance *
📢 Eternal Spear (Zagreus): reworked; now gives bonus damage, range, and speed to Skewer special
📢 Eternal Spear (Guan Yu): reduced penalty to life total and healing; replaced Skewer special with the new Firework Skewer, which deals area damage on its flight path and does not require retrieval
• Shield of Chaos (Zeus): increased damage rate of Throw special


Boons & Blessings

📢 Wave Pounding (Poseidon): newly added! Boons with knock-away deal bonus damage to bosses
• Blinding Flash (Athena): fixed an issue causing bonus damage from this to be less than expected
📢 Divine Dash (Athena): fixed an issue preventing this from activating Blinding Flash and Merciful End (Athena x Ares) as intended
• Life Affirmation (Aphrodite): increased power level at higher rarity
• Support Fire (Artemis): increased damage; increased power level at higher rarity
• Deadly Strike (Artemis): increased Critical chance; reduced damage to compensate *
• Arctic Blast (Demeter): increased damage
• Quick Reload (Hermes): significantly increased effect at higher rarity
• Increased power level of Chaos blessing effects at higher rarity *


Daedalus Hammer Upgrades

• Double Nova (Blade): slightly increased damage radius
• Cursed Slash (Blade): now restores 1 Life per hit (instead of a percentage)
📢 Charged Volley (Bow): slightly increased minimum range
📢 Charged Skewer (Spear): slightly increased minimum range
• Quick Rush (Shield): no longer removes the Bull Rush's innate knock-away effect
📢 Charged Throw (Shield): should now be more responsive to short button presses
• Hazard Bomb (Rail): increased damage; reduced self-damage
• Rocket Bomb (Rail): increased damage
📢 Explosive Fire (Rail): it's back; now briefly slows foes instead of staggering them


Foes & Encounters

📢 Thanatos: reduced maximum number of waves of foes in encounters with him in Elysium and Styx; slightly reduced total enemy counts in those encounters
📢 'Trial of the Gods': reduced radius of Demeter's attack if you spurn her
📢 Wave-Maker: reduced appearance rate in Asphodel
📢 Splitter: reduced appearance rate in Elysium
📢 Reduced damage rate of Poison effects in the Temple of Styx *
📢 Final Boss: toned down a particular combo attack...


Keepsakes & Items

• Evergreen Acorn (Eurydice): increased instances of damage absorption *
• Lucky Tooth (Skelly): fixed an issue causing this to restore less health than intended


Pact of Punishment

• Convenience Fee: reduced effect on shop prices (making this somewhat less punishing than before)


Rod of Fishing

• Fixed an issue causing Fishing Points to appear more often than intended in Tartarus
📢 Fish in the Temple of Styx now net you a tidy sum of Gemstones
📢 Increased how often fishing opportunities occur in the main hub in the Temple of Styx
📢 The Gameplay Timer and Tight Deadline (Pact) Timer pause while fishing ("Relax, boyo!" --Skelly)
📢 Taking damage now interrupts any fishing attempts ("Have you tried NOT standing in lava?" --Hypnos)
• Fish fake-out jukes are harder to detect
• Additional adjustments to timings trying to catch those blasted little...


Art & Visual FX

• Added reveal animation in the Weapon Aspects screen for the Aspect of Guan Yu
• Added unique icon for Demeter's Keepsake (note: this was included as part of a hotfix yesterday)
• Updated visual effect for Aspect of Guan Yu's Moon Cutter Spin attack
• Slightly reduced visual effect for Bloodless Burn-Flinger bomb blast
• Minor updates to some Elysium chambers and artwork
• Minor updates to the recently added chamber in Tartarus
• Minor updates to Charon's Shop in Tartarus
• Minor art fixes in the House of Hades
• Minor art fixes to visual effect for Mistral Dash (Demeter)
• Minor art fixes to Keepsake icons


Voice & Narrative

• Fixes to narrative scripting to some new events
• Fixed Inspect Point for the new Massive Weights decoration appearing prematurely
• Moved an Inspect Point about decorative pillars to a more appropriate-looking set of pillars
• Fixes and tuning to various contextual voice events


Miscellaneous

📢 Added mouse-wheel scrolling to the House Contractor screen
• Added simple interaction to Intricate Contraption and Bloodless Sculpture
• Small adjustment to gameplay timer formatting
• Minor text changes, clarifications, and fixes


Bug Fixes

📢 Fixed a progression blocker opening the Codex or Boon Info screens while fishing
📢 Fixed a progression blocker renovating Zagreus' bedchambers after a character conversation
📢 Fixed some House Contractor decorations being unavailable after deactivating the Scrying Pool
• Fixed Eternal Spear (Guan Yu) causing your burst-damage shield to activate more often than intended
📢 Fixed Crush Shot (Aphrodite) not destroying some obstacles as expected
📢 Fixed Atrophic (Chaos) curse removing more health than intended
• Fixed an issue causing Demeter Duo Boons to only show up from her, not her extended family
📢 Minor fixes to Cluster Bomb (Daedalus - Rail) blast preview
📢 Fixed Dusa's conversation indicator sometimes remaining visible after she bails on you
📢 Fixed Dusa sometimes not being visible after using Companion Fidi
• Fixed Skelly Codex entry showing incorrect unlock conditions in some cases
• Fixed Cursed Slash (Blade) stealing life from urns or even poor Cerberus in the Temple of Styx


Quote of the Patch

'Demeter's true concerns were not on Olympus, but on the earth. She presided over the crops, and over the grains in particular. For some reason she held the bean in contempt as impure.' ~Crowell's Handbook of Classical Mythology (E. Tripp)
Early Access Patch 036: The LONG WINTER Update - January 21, 2020

We wanted to start the year off with a bang with this Major Update! It features a new Olympian, a new weapon variant, new activities, more story, and many other improvements. We plan to follow up with a couple of smaller patches while keeping a close eye on your feedback. Thank you very much for playing!


Highlights

• Demeter: the Goddess of Seasons brings winter to the Underworld! Seek out her powerful Boons
• Rod of Fishing: capture (& sell!!) Underworld river denizens with this new House Contractor item
• Aspect of Guan Yu: earn this unique new Aspect of the Eternal Spear , and vanquish your foes!
• Underworld Decor Galore: scores of new items are available at the newly renovated House Contractor!
• New Legendary Keepsake: forge an unbreakable bond with Dusa, and summon her to petrify your foes
• Boon Info & Victory Screen Update: pin multiple Boons onscreen for easy reference and sharing
• New Daedalus Hammer Upgrades: look for multiple new upgrades for each weapon
• New Story Events: uncover new secrets in hours of added narrative (with more than 1,000 new voice lines)


General Gameplay

• Increased prices of Boons sold by Charon
• Increased price of Daedalus Hammer sold by Charon
• Increased price of augmented Boons and Poms sold by Charon in the Temple of Styx
• Slightly reduced healing from tasty-looking Health Drops
• Reduced healing from Fountain Chambers; however, new House Contractor upgrades can increase it
• You may now encounter fishing points in various chambers, once you have the Rod of Fishing. Deliver your stock to the Head Chef in the House (who will take very good care of them)


Infernal Arms, Aspects, & Abilities

📢 Stygian Blade (Zagreus): now also increases Dash distance
• Stygian Blade (Nemesis): reduced Critical chance
• Eternal Spear (Guan Yu): newly added! Seek Achilles to learn more (once you have several Aspects)
📢 Eternal Spear (Zagreus): now increases Attack damage and Dash-Strike damage
• Shield of Chaos: slightly increased Bull Rush charge up time; slightly reduced Bull Rush damage
• Shield of Chaos (Zagreus): reduced damage resistance
• Shield of Chaos (Zeus): increased damage of Throw special
• Shield of Chaos (Chaos): now throws additional Shields in a radial pattern
• Adamant Rail: no longer briefly slows foes on-hit


Boons & Blessings

• Demeter: newly added! Seek out 11 new Boons and 4 new Duo Boons
• Billowing Strength (Zeus): reduced power level; increased effect duration
• Zeus' Aid: reduced power scaling from improved rarity
• Scintillating Feast (Zeus x Dionysus): reduced damage
• Divine Dash (Athena): slightly reduced Deflect duration
• Athena's Aid: increased God Gauge cost and effect duration (it cannot be used quite as often)
• Merciful End (Athena x Ares): reduced damage; reduced appearance rate
• Spent Spirit (Athena x Aphrodite): reduced slow effect on foes' projectiles
• Reduced power level of Aphrodite's Weak Status Curse
• Broken Resolve (Aphrodite): newly added! Improves potency of Weak Status Curse
📢 Passion Dash (Aphrodite): now affects foes near your dash destination (rather than at the starting point)
• Crush Shot (Aphrodite): formerly Shatter Shot; updated effect
• Curse of Pain (Ares): slightly reduced damage
• Battle Rage (Ares): adjusted scaling from rarity and Poms (overall power level should be similar)
• Ares' Aid: reduced damage; increased move speed
• Hunting Blades (Ares x Artemis): reduced speed; reduced tracking
• Deadly Strike (Artemis): reduced Critical chance; increased damage to compensate
• Support Fire (Artemis): reduced damage
• Nasty Dash (Dionysus): now deals several instances of damage and Hangover (formerly called Poison)
• Second Wind (Hermes): increased effect duration; increased power scaling from improved rarity
• Passing Through (Hermes): cut from game (Demeter is the new curator of slowing effects)
• Relative Speed (Hermes): cut from game, same reason
• Quick Reload (Hermes): now offered by Hermes (donated by Artemis, who felt sorry for him)
• Slothful (Chaos): reduced how badly this curse can impair your move speed
📢 Defiance (Chaos): increased appearance rate
• Reduced power level of Chaos blessing effects at higher rarity


Daedalus Hammer Upgrades

• Cursed Slash (Blade): newly added! Restores health on-hit, but your life total is heavily reduced
• Shadow Slash (Blade): newly added! Deals bonus damage when striking foes in the back
• Serrated Edge (Spear): newly added! Your Dash-Strike hits multiple times but your Dash is shorter
📢 Charged Skewer (Spear): newly added! Press and hold to power up your Skewer special
• Quick Spin (Spear): no longer quite as quick
📢 Charged Throw (Shield): newly added! Press and hold to power up your Throw special
• World Smasher (Shield): newly added! Your Bull Rush is replaced with a powerful up-close strike
• Chain Shot (Bow): newly added! Your attack bounces between targets, dealing bonus damage
📢 Charged Volley (Bow): newly added! Press and hold to power up your Volley special
• Cluster Bomb (Rail): newly added! Your Bombard special fires a spread of 5 smaller bombs
• Hazard Bomb (Rail): newly added! Your Bombard special fires a big bomb that blasts the area around you, but can damage you ("Have you tried not standing there when it blows up?" --Hypnos)
• Delta Chamber (Rail): formerly Infinity Chamber ; now also fires in a 3-round burst
• Explosive Fire (Rail): cut from game


Foes & Encounters

• Introduction to Olympian Aid now gives you some God Gauge to use Poseidon's Call
📢 Thanatos: should show up more frequently (once you encounter him for the first time in Elysium)
📢 After the other Fury Sisters show up, it is no longer possible to randomly avoid one indefinitely
📢 Alecto: reworked her Rage Gauge (you can knock her out of her rage-building move, but watch out)
• Skullomat: Elite is more powerful; reduced appearance rate in Asphodel
• Burn-Flinger: Elite attack pattern adjusted
• Wave-Maker: non-Elite throws one wave at a time (rather than two); adjusted Elite attack
📢 Reduced number of foes on the Asphodel Barge of Death under Middle Management (Pact)
📢 Bone Hydra: reworked aspects of this encounter to be faster though deadlier to compensate; one fewer phase; removed urns containing health (the Hydra finally realized they were there and ate them)
📢 Elysian Arrow Trap: attack now dissipates as soon as combat is over
📢 Flame Wheels: reduced health and Elite armor
📢 Nemean Chariot: no longer can hit multiple times in one charge
📢 Exalted Greatshield: appearance rate reduced; non-Elite no longer has a spin attack; reduced rotation and increased vulnerability times
• Soul Catcher (Elite): now more aggressive under the effects of Middle Management (Pact)
📢 The Minotaur: no longer gains brief invulnerability when low on health in the battle with Theseus
• Increased damage rate of Poison effects in the Temple of Styx
📢 Final Boss: various changes to attack patterns; resolved issues where cover sometimes did not work reliably against ranged attacks


Keepsakes & Items

• Companion Fidi (Dusa): newly added Legendary Keepsake! Summons Dusa to petrify your foes
• Companion Mort (Thanatos): increased effect radius; increased damage; reduced pre-attack time
📢 Companion Shady (Sisyphus): dropped goodies no longer block foes' movement
• Companion Battie (Megaera): increased damage
• Frostbitten Horn (Demeter): newly added! Raises chance to find Demeter Boons with improved rarity
• Broken Spearpoint (Patroclus): now has a cooldown between uses; slightly increased effect duration
• Evergreen Acorn (Eurydice): reduced instances of damage absorption
• Myrmidon Bracer (Achilles): reduced damage reduction at higher ranks
• Chthonic Coin Purse (Hypnos): reduced bonus money at higher ranks
• HydraLite (Well): reduced healing


House Contractor

📢 Screen now shows all available options by category (instead of a random set of just three)
📢 Screen now shows which items you have purchased, and lets you toggle some decorative items
• Added many new decorative items to the House Contractor inventory (some with light interactions)
• Added renovations that improve health recovery from Fountain Chambers
📢 Reduced costs for many items for this grand reopening


Fated List of Minor Prophecies

• Goddess of Seasons: newly added!
• A Place of Revelry: newly added!
• The Fated Saint of War: newly added!
• The Gift of Song: newly added!
• Updated requirements to fulfill several Prophecies (this won't affect you if you've already fulfilled them)
📢 Increased rewards for Daedalus Hammer and Olympian Prophecies


Pact of Punishment

• Heightened Security: reduced to a single rank
📢 No Choice: increased Heat
📢 Hard Labor: re-scaled to 5 ranks
📢 Tight Deadline: timer pauses in non-combat chambers with characters such as Sisyphus


Level Design & Environments

• Added one new chamber to Tartarus
• Added two new chambers to Elysium
• The first chamber in Asphodel now offers more picturesque views...
• Updated layout of Megaera's chamber to have fewer places to hide
• Updated look of Bone Hydra's chamber
• Updated layout of Final Boss's chamber
• Minor changes to layouts of some chambers to helpfully accommodate the Rod of Fishing
• Minor changes to layout in the House of Hades
• Other minor fixes and improvements to various chambers


Art & Visual FX

• Updated main menu based on new Major Update
• Lord Hades can now be seen toiling away in the House
• House Contractor has a new look in the House
• Added many new optional decorative items to the House of Hades
• Added many new visual effects for Demeter Boons
• Added new art, visual effects, and animations for the Eternal Spear's Aspect of Guan Yu
• Updated various animations for Exalted Shades in Elysium
• Added a couple of portrait variants for Dusa
• Updated visual effect for Crush Shot (Aphrodite)
📢 Reduced visual effects of poison in the Temple of Styx (making it easier to find curing pools)
📢 Reduced visual effects of Zeus' Aid (making it easier to see what's going on)
• Updated texture and Codex portrait for Wretched Thug
• Other minor visual changes, fixes, and improvements


Menus & UI

• Boon Info Screen: updated layout shows Mirror and Pact setup; you now can 'pin' Boons for comparison
• Victory Screen: as above; also added various text Commendations based on your performance
• Added graphical icons for each Mirror of Night Upgrade
• Added graphical icons for each Pact of Punishment Condition
• Version number watermark and current Heat switched screen positions as part of these changes
• Songs are now subtitled
• Slightly reduced size of critical damage numbers
📢 Gamepad shoulder buttons now page through the House Contractor and Fated List
• Improved look of choice selection in narrative events
• Other minor fixes, changes, and improvements


Music & SFX

• Added new sound effects for Demeter and her Boons
• Added new sound effects and emotes for Eternal Spear's Aspect of Guan Yu
• Added new sound effect when Zagreus is stunned
• Added new sounds for other miscellaneous contexts
• Added equip sounds for the two new Keepsakes
• Other minor changes, fixes, and mix improvements


Voice & Narrative

• Added many narrative events (with Demeter, Dusa, Achilles, Hades, Aphrodite, the Storyteller, and more)
• Added narrative events around the Eternal Spear's Aspect of Guan Yu
• Added many new Zagreus voice events for contexts such as House Contractor and the Rod of Fishing
📢 Zagreus has more to say to the Bone Hydra and certain other monsters and shades
• Extended Affinity Gauge for Dusa (you can give her more gifts)
• Updated Codex entry for Dusa
• Added Codex entry for Demeter
📢 Primordial Chaos now responds to certain interactions in their realm
📢 In the 'Trial of the Gods', you now hear from the god you choose
• Updated requirements and other minor changes to various narrative events
• Fixes and tuning to various contextual voice events


Miscellaneous

• Added new localized text for some content (note: translation still pending for much of the newer content)
• Updated Development Roadmap to reflect our plans for our next Major Update in March, and beyond
📢 Orpheus: due to the House Contractor redesign, the item to release him can be found more reliably
📢 Most characters impervious to your attacks no longer knock you back when struck
• You need a bit more Darkness now before Nyx upgrades the Mirror with the ability to refund it
📢 Gameplay Timer pauses in non-combat chambers with characters such as Sisyphus
• 'New!' tags on Prophecies in the Fated List clear on selection (rather than after closing the List)
• Credits: Demeter (Laila Berzins) added to voice cast; added new Community Beta Testers (Thank you!!)
• Text: Renamed various Dionysus Boons and effects to be more in-theme with his lifestyle choices
• Minor changes to presentation when the Minotaur leaves his chamber
• Adjusted behavior of mouse-and-keyboard controls while the default 'Attack at Cursor' is disabled
• Zagreus now will always enter chambers at a standard speed (such as when his speed is reduced by Chaos)
• Various text fixes, updates, and clarifications


Bug Fixes

📢 Fixed various text overflow issues in non-English languages
• Fixed Achilles not telling you about Titan Blood and Ambrosia soon after you first find them
📢 Fixed a rare issue where Death Defiance could cause a permanent slowdown
📢 Fixed Numbing Sensation (Dionysus) having a reduced power level at Heroic rarity
• Fixed Black Out (Dionysus) unintentionally being upgradeable by Eurydice
📢 Fixed Companion Rib (Skelly) causing 'Trial of the Gods' effects to occur unexpectedly
📢 Fixed Infernal Gates blocking the aim preview for the Shield's Bull Rush
• Fixed a key narrative event with Megaera sometimes playing twice unexpectedly
• Fixed narrative scripting around events involving Orpheus and Dionysus , which could become unavailable in some cases
• Fixed Bother foe having incorrect material sounds
📢 Many other minor fixes


Quote of the Patch

The Earth did not send up any seed. Demeter, she with the beautiful garlands in her hair, kept them covered underground. Many a curved plough was dragged along the fields by many an ox—all in vain.
~Homeric Hymn to Demeter (Anonymous; G. Nagy translation)

Patch Notes Archive

For patch notes from the previous Major Update, check out The Welcome to Hell Update Patch Notes (December, 2019).

December 20th, 2019

Happy Holidays from Supergiant!

It's the holiday season, and we've got a lot to be thankful for! We wanted to share a variety of great deals happening right now on our titles and merchandise, as well as share a few parting words as we reflect on the year gone by and look ahead toward an exciting 2020.

Supergiant Year-End Deals!

It's the perfect time to pick up our latest games, or complete your collection!! Here's a rundown of a variety of offers on our titles happening right now. Please note most of these deals expire right around the beginning of the new year.

Steam Deals · Hades (Win) -- 20% OFF! includes FREE, giftable copy of Pyre! · Pyre (Win / Mac / Linux) -- 65% OFF! · Transistor (Win / Mac / Linux) -- 80% OFF! · Bastion (Win / Mac / Linux) -- 85% OFF! · Supergiant Collection -- 62% OFF! Epic Games Store Deals · Hades (Win) -- 20% OFF! · Transistor (Win / Mac / Linux) -- 80% OFF! Nintendo Switch eShop Deals · Transistor -- 80% OFF! · Bastion -- 80% OFF! GOG.com Deals · Pyre (Win / Mac / Linux) -- 65% OFF! · Transistor (Win / Mac / Linux) -- 75% OFF! · Bastion (Win / Mac / Linux) -- 75% OFF! App Store Deals · Transistor (iPhone / iPad / AppleTV) -- 80% OFF! · Bastion (iPhone / iPad) -- FREE!! limited time only!

Merchandise Deals · A Bunch of Our Merchandise -- Up to 50% OFF!

HADES: The Verdict (So Far...)

We are absolutely floored by the enthusiastic response to Hades now that it's available on Steam! Thanks so much to everyone who's played and reviewed it! We've been poring over tons and tons of feedback across all aspects of the game. Our next big content update is right around the corner, and will usher in a usher in a new Olympian, deepening both the gameplay and the story. Think you can guess who it is?!

Thank You for Your Support!!

Three folks from our team couldn't be there for our holiday photo this past week, though here's all the rest of us! As a small independent studio, we're so fortunate to have had your support through the years, which has meant we could together and keep making games.

It's been an action-packed thrill ride of a year, centered around our steady work on Major Updates for Hades as we pushed forward with its development in Early Access. We even celebrated our 10th anniversary along the way. We're looking forward to a very exciting 2020. Until then, we're looking forward to a restful holiday and wish you the same! See you in the next one...!

December 10th, 2019

Hades: Now Available on Steam Early Access!!

We are beyond excited to announce that our god-like rogue-like dungeon crawler, Hades, is now available on Steam in Early Access! Read on for details, or cut to the chase and head to Steam to pick it up:

[ ABOUT THE GAME ] In Hades, you hack and slash your way out of the Underworld of Greek myth, growing stronger and unraveling more of the story with each unique escape attempt.

We think it combines the best aspects of our previous games, including the fast-paced action of Bastion, the rich atmosphere and depth of Transistor, and the character-driven storytelling of Pyre. As the immortal Prince of the Underworld, you'll wield the powers and mythic weapons of Olympus as you battle out of hell, toward the surface, all the while defying the god of the dead himself.

[ PRICING & SPECIAL OFFER ] Hades retails for $24.99 on Steam, though now through Jan. 2, 2020, you can get it for 20% off during our launch celebration! But, that's not all: Everyone who purchases Hades on Steam during this period will receive a free, giftable copy of our critically acclaimed party-based RPG, Pyre!

That's right -- act now, and get our two latest games for the price of one!!

[ ALSO AVAILABLE: THE HADES ORIGINAL SOUNDTRACK!! ] The Hades Original Soundtrack, by our award-winning composer Darren Korb and featuring additional vocals by Ashley Barrett, features nearly two hours of pulse-pounding music created exclusively for our latest game, specially remastered for stand-alone listening. You know Darren and Ashley's work from our past titles, including Bastion, Transistor, and Pyre. The soundtrack is now available on Steam.

Note: Due to the Early Access nature of the game, expect a variety of new tracks to be added as we push forward to our v1.0! Want a sample? Listen to it on our YouTube channel.

[ NEW LANGUAGE OPTIONS! ] One more thing: We're pleased to announce that we are in the midst of localizing Hades in a variety of different languages!

These include text translations in French, Italian, German, Spanish, Russian, Brazilian Portuguese, Polish, Korean, and Simplified Chinese.

As we have just recently initiated this process in earnest as part of our Early Access, please know that not all translated content is fully up to date, and we're working through various issues that come with a big localization project such as this. We look forward to your feedback, and thank you for your understanding!

[ ABOUT EARLY ACCESS ] Early Access means you can play Hades while it's still in active development. We expect to be in Early Access till sometime in 2020.

We designed Hades as an Early Access game from the ground up. Our foremost goal is to see if we can create something great in partnership with our community -- a game that is true to our values about design, worldbuilding, and storytelling, and can naturally grow and evolve based on the feedback we get along the way. Every aspect of the game, from its theme to its modular structure to its approach to narrative, flow from this idea.

We've come a long way in our first year of open development. We've shipped eight Major Updates so far, roughly tripling the amount of content since launch. We've improved our production process, and grown accustomed to developing our game out in the open (rather than in secrecy as we've done in the past, with Bastion, Transistor, and Pyre). We think this is the perfect time to expand our audience in Early Access by bringing Hades to Steam, so that when we finally hit that v1.0 mark, it's really going to be the best game it can be.

[ ABOUT SUPERGIANT GAMES ] We're a small independent studio in San Francisco best known for our critically acclaimed games Bastion, Transistor, and Pyre, which together have sold more than 10 million copies worldwide, on more than 10 different platforms. This year marks our 10th anniversary. All seven of our original staff are still working together here in their respective roles, now bolstered by the talents of approximately 10 more talented individuals who complete our team. Our ambition has remained the same through the years: to make games that spark your imagination like the games you played as a kid.

Hades represents the sum of our experience working together over the years, looking for unique ways to synthesize exciting gameplay and storytelling possible only through games. We love working on this game, and we hope that will shine through when you play. We'll be looking forward to your thoughts, since with your help, we can make it even better. For more information, have a look at our Hades FAQ.

December 3rd, 2019

Hades: The Welcome to Hell Update Patch Notes

Hades is in Early Access, which means we're actively working on it based on our plans and your feedback. We expect to keep adding features, characters, weapons, foes, powers, environments, and more, while expanding the story and fine-tuning all aspects of the experience.

Note: 📢 indicates a change inspired by community feedback! Our latest patch notes are below:
Early Access Patch 035 - December 17, 2019

This small patch focuses on localization improvements and bug fixes, thus wrapping up our Welcome to Hell Update. Next up is our Major Update in January! Until then, we're looking over all your feedback, and making plans for an exciting year to come. Happy holidays, and thanks so much for all your support.


House Contractor

📢 Orpheus' release paperwork now is more likely to appear, and is required for some later upgrades


Music & SFX

• Updated on-hit sounds on Wretched Pest and Bother
• Other minor changes


Voice & Narrative

• Added several new narrative events for Sisyphus
📢 Minor fixes and improvements to some narrative events and contextual voice lines


Miscellaneous

• Added first-pass Polish localization!
• Added new localized text for content recently added in the Welcome to Hell Update
• Added localization notice on boot-up announcement screen in non-English languages
📢 Ongoing improvements to localized content display issues in some languages
• Foe indicators on Chamber Reward previews should be more consistent
• Added missing subtitles for newer voice lines
• Minor text and subtitle content fixes


Bug Fixes

📢 Fixed a rare crash while using the Codex
📢 Fixed Zagreus referring to Orpheus having returned to the House while Orpheus is still away
📢 Fixed instances of incorrect Fury Sister portrait appearing in some pre-boss scenes
📢 Fixed Premium Vintage (Dionysus) sometimes causing Nectar to spawn out of bounds
📢 Fixed Slothful (Chaos) sometimes causing Zagreus to fail to board the Barge of Death in Asphodel
📢 Fixed some instances of escape attempt clear times not updating correctly
• Other minor fixes


Quote of the Patch

'No, Mother! Why do you not stay for me,
and let me hold you, even here in Hades?
Let us wrap loving arms around each other
and find a frigid comfort in shared tears!'
~The Odyssey (Homer; E. Wilson translation)"
Early Access Patch 034 - December 12, 2019

This patch improves display issues with localized content, adds several narrative events, and makes several balance changes as we close out an exciting week! Expect another patch in the next few days.


Infernal Arms, Aspects, & Abilities

📢 Shield of Chaos (Zeus): the Bull Rush charge-up is no longer interrupted by retrieving a thrown shield


Boons & Blessings

• Divine Protection (Athena): no longer upgradeable using Poms
• Life Affirmation (Aphrodite): reduced power level
📢 Roiling (Chaos): now only adds foes to standard encounters (no longer affects mini-boss encounters)


Daedalus Hammer Upgrades

• Daedalus Hammers can no longer be purchased in the first few escape attempts
📢 World Splitter (Blade): slightly increased damage
📢 Flurry Slash (Blade): slightly increased damage


Foes & Encounters

• Survival encounters can no longer occur on the very first escape attempt
📢 Theseus and The Minotaur: increased damage when facing them under Extreme Measures (Pact)


Keepsakes & Items

📢 Trove Tracker (Well): now causes an Infernal Trove to spawn soon, even if you have not yet commissioned the House Contractor upgrade that normally causes them to appear


Art & Visual FX

• Minor visual improvements to some chambers


Menus & UI

• Removed button shortcut to close the Pact screen (this introduced new issues requiring a different solution)
📢 Improved mouse pick boxes when choosing a Save Slot
• Other minor improvements


Music & SFX

• Minor changes, fixes, and mix improvements


Voice & Narrative

• Added several new narrative events for Megaera and Lord Hades
• Added various new contextual voice lines for Skelly
• Updated several older Zagreus voice lines with newer recordings
📢 Minor fixes and improvements to some narrative events and contextual voice lines


Miscellaneous

📢 Various improvements to localized content display issues in some languages
• Various improvements to presentation of the encounter in the final chamber in Elysium
• Removed Polish and Japanese language settings for now (we do not yet have localized content for these)
• Minor text and subtitle content fixes


Bug Fixes

📢 Fixed a rare crash while using the Codex
📢 Fixed Exit Wounds (Artemis) not correctly interacting with Skull-Crushers
📢 Fixed some issues using Companion Rib (Skelly) in the battle with Tisiphone
• Fixed Heart-Seeking Bow (Chiron) not firing the correct number of Volley shots at certain ranks
📢 Fixed Exploding Launcher (Spear) sometimes causing the thrown spear to remain in the field
• Fixed certain attack behaviors for the Bone Hydra
📢 Fixed a rare soft lock while gifting Thanatos; fixed sometimes being able to gift him after he departs
📢 Fixed one of the Final Boss attacks being canceled by the effects of Death Defiance
• Fixed the effects of Zeus' Aid continuing during the effects of Death Defiance
• Fixed incorrect values listed in the Collection for Shattered Shackle (Sisyphus)
• Fixed Skelly voice lines not playing as expected after pummeling him
• Other minor fixes


Quote of the Patch

'Within my heart plunge all your torches, rend me, burn;
For lo, my bosom open to your fury's stroke.
O brother, bid these vengeful goddesses depart
And go in peace down to the lowest shades of hell.'
~The Tragedies of Seneca: Medea (Lucius Annaeus Seneca; F. Justus Miller translation)
Early Access Patch 033 - December 6, 2019 (Happy Birthday, HADES!)

This patch builds on our recent Welcome to Hell Update with new balance changes, additional story content, and for the first time... multi-language support!! It's a lovely time of year in the Underworld!


Highlights

• Localization: added first-pass text translations in French, Italian, German, Spanish, Russian, Brazilian Portuguese, Korean, and Simplified Chinese!! We also have Polish coming soon.

Additional details:
1. To set the game's language, go to Options > Languages in the Main Menu.
2. We are just beginning to localize this game! Not all translations are fully up to date.
3. Stay tuned for more information about how you can contribute to localization as part of Early Access.


Infernal Arms, Aspects, & Abilities

• Stygian Blade (Nemesis): reduced critical chance; adjusted scaling per rank
• Heart-Seeking Bow (Zagreus): increased critical chance
• Heart-Seeking Bow (Chiron): reduced max shots per Special


Boons & Blessings

📢 Heaven's Vengeance (Zeus): normalized damage (to be generally greater than before)
📢 Typhoon's Fury (Poseidon): increased power level; adjusted power scaling from improved rarity
📢 Poseidon's Aid: increased damage
• Blinding Flash (Athena): reduced power scaling from improved rarity
📢 Dying Lament (Aphrodite): increased damage
📢 Curse of Vengeance (Ares): increased damage; adjusted power scaling from improved rarity
📢 After Party (Dionysus): increased healing effect
📢 Premium Vintage (Dionysus): drops upgraded Nectar if you have the right Contractor Renovation
• Black Out (Dionysus): fixed an issue preventing its damage bonus from applying reliably
• Merciful End (Athena x Ares): no longer upgradeable using Poms
📢 Roiling (Chaos): now only affects standard encounters (it no longer adds foes to mini-boss encounters)


Daedalus Hammer Upgrades

• Relentless Barrage (Bow): now adds a flat bonus of additional shots (instead of a percent increase)
📢 Charged Shot (Shield): increased damage


Foes & Encounters

• Survival encounters can no longer have both elite foes and standard foes of the same type
📢 Splitter: Deflect effects now work correctly against their split-up projectiles
• Bone Hydra: improved target tracking for its wave-shooting heads
📢 Soul-Catcher (Elite): reduced number added by Middle Management (Pact)
• The Minotaur: updated some attack timings under the effects of Extreme Measures (Pact)...
• Temple of Styx: Daedalus Hammers no longer offered as rewards for the clearing mini-boss chambers
• Final Boss: improved pathfinding in some corners of the environment


Keepsakes & Items

• Pierced Butterfly (Thanatos): slightly reduced damage scaling
📢 Cyclops Jerky (Well): increased power level; reduced cost
• Cyclops Jerky Select (Fallen Hero): slightly increased power level


Pact of Punishment

• Middle Management: increased Heat
• Extreme Measures: increased Heat for ranks 2 and 3
• Tight Deadline: countdown now pauses during Thanatos encounters (DEADline, get it??)


Level Design & Environments

• Minor fixes and improvements to some chambers


Art & Visual FX

• Added a unique icon for the Boon effect while using God Mode
• Updated textures for the Wretched Thug (this was in the previous patch but not previously noted)
• Other minor improvements


Menus & UI

📢 You can use the Interact command as a shortcut to proceed through the Pact screen


Music & SFX

• Minor fixes and improvements


Voice & Narrative

• Added several new narrative events, mostly for Achilles
• Added 100• more contextual voice lines in a variety of contexts related to our latest updated
• Added an Inspect Point to a chamber in the Temple of Styx
• Updated several older narrative events with Lord Hades, Achilles, Nyx, and Skelly
• Minor fixes and improvements to some narrative events and contextual voice lines


Miscellaneous

• Asphodel transit barges no longer appear at entrance points you did not use
• Added last-hit presentation to The Minotaur and Final Boss encounters
• Spectators in the final chamber in Elysium no longer emote as vigorously
• Added some missing subtitles for Thanatos
• Minor text changes


Bug Fixes

📢 Fixed a rare crash caused by Charon responding to some voice lines
• Fixed some narrative events not displaying correctly vs. the Fury Sisters using Extreme Measures (Pact)
• Fixed music sometimes stopping unexpectedly in the Temple of Styx
• Fixed several issues with toggling God Mode
📢 Fixed Theseus not gaining his shield effects correctly under Extreme Measures (Pact)
📢 Fixed Legendary Keepsake inactive presentation occurring in the House of Hades
📢 Fixed Chaos Gates not appearing in a certain Asphodel chamber despite using Light of Ixion (Well)
• Fixed some issues with the clear conditions for Chthonic Colleagues (Fated List)
📢 Fixed some Chaos Boons not showing Fated List Prophecy hints in the choice menu
📢 Fixed a minor UI issue that could occur from the effects of Boiling Blood (Mirror)
📢 Fixed a presentation issue in the first chamber of Elysium
• Fixed various minor visual issues in some chambers
• Other minor fixes


Quote of the Patch

'Some writers identify three of \[the Erinyes\], whom they name Alecto, Tisiphone, and Megaera, but they are usually neither named nor counted. They were described by Aeschylus as frighteningly hideous, but were seldom shown so in art.' ~Crowell's Handbook of Classical Mythology (E. Tripp)

Early Access Patch 032: The WELCOME to HELL Update - December 3, 2019

Welcome to our eighth Major Update, filled with new content and features for our early adopters as well as new players delving into the Underworld for the first time! As with all such updates, we plan to follow up with several smaller patches, closely monitoring your feedback as we go. Thank you for playing!


Highlights

• Hell Mode: a more challenging way to play for veterans of the cycle of death & rebirth
• God Mode: a more forgiving way to play for those who struggling to progress through the story
• Underworld Renovations: the House Contractor has many new improvements available for commission
• The Fated List: acquire this special parchment, & fulfill the Fates' prophecies! (for a reward, naturally)
• Forge Bonds: you now can deepen your relationships with several key characters...
• New Keepsakes: ...& if you do, you might just get something special!
• Extreme Measures: engage the Pact of Punishment, & face Theseus & the Minotaur like never before!
• New Story Events: we have added more new narrative events & voice lines than any previous update!


General Gameplay

• Updated requirements for when many characters and game systems are introduced, to pace out the early-to-mid-game better; Orpheus, Chaos, Alecto, Tisiphone, and Thanatos can be revealed sooner
• Updated Gifting System: several characters' Affinity Gauges can now be maxed out; this involves achieving certain conditions to unlock their gauges past Lv.6
• Wretched Broker: now presents a consistent set of offers plus a Limited Time Offer
• Death Defiance: most items and Boons that previously added charges now replenish spent charges
• Infernal Troves: now lose reward value faster over time while you slay foes summoned to guard them
• Bounty rewards are no longer random; they are now specific to clearing each Underworld region
• Removed Valuable Urns from inter-region chambers


Infernal Arms & Abilities

• Eternal Spear: increased damage of second and third thrusts in the Attack sequence
• Adamant Rail: Bombard special can no longer deal backstab damage
• Increased bonus to Darkness collected while using a weapon imbued with Dark Thirst


Boons & Blessings

• Tidal Dash (Poseidon): slightly increased damage
• Sunken Treasure (Poseidon): now can also drop Gemstones
• Divine Flourish (Athena): removed brief invulnerability period
• Last Stand (Athena): now replenishes a spent charge of Death Defiance (rather than giving you an extra)
• Deathless Stand (Athena): same as above
• Passion Dash (Aphrodite): now deals damage only at the start of the dash; increased damage
📢 Ares' Aid: increased damage
📢 Artemis' Aid: arrow shot now has a chance to deal Critical damage
• Nasty Dash (Dionysus): now deals damage only at the start of the dash; increased damage
📢 Dionysus' Aid: increased damage; reduced power scaling from improved rarity
• Numbing Sensation (Dionysus): this and other Slow effects now affect bosses (to a reduced extent)
• Merciful End (Athena x Ares): reduced power level
• Deadly Reversal (Athena x Artemis): reduced chance of Critical damage
• Heart Rend (Artemis x Aphrodite): increased power level
📢 Black Out (Dionysus): reduced requirements, making this more likely to appear
📢 Defiance (Chaos): rarity set to Legendary (still adds a charge of Death Defiance as before)
• The gods no longer offer 'Exchange' Boons from the start (they will after several escape attempts)
• Several Boons have updated scaling for Heroic rarity


Daedalus Hammer Upgrades

• Double Nova (Blade): reduced damage radius
• Double Edge (Blade): increased damage bonus
• Super Nova (Blade): reduced damage bonus


Foes & Encounters

• Theseus and The Minotaur: they challenge you to confront them using Extreme Measures (Pact)...
📢 Adjusted foe compositions in Thanatos encounters
📢 Erebus challenge chambers now have varied foe compositions based on which region you came from
📢 'Trial of the Gods': reduced duration of Athena shield effects
📢 Updated several mini-boss encounters under the effects of Middle Management (Pact)
• Megaera: increased damage of her whip attack; slightly increased speed of her tackle attack
• Megaera and the Furies: adjusted their encounters under Extreme Measures (Pact); expect to face the Furies in a variety of combinations (sometimes in pairs as well as all together)
• Gorgon: less inclined to fly out onto lava
📢 Bone Hydra: increased lunge damage; attacks slightly less often under Extreme Measures (Pact)
📢 Temple Poison Trap: improved hit box; fixed an issue where they could keep spewing after combat
📢 Temple Axe Trap: improved hit box
• Snakestone: added mini-boss variant in the Temple of Styx
• Bother: added mini-boss variant in the Temple of Styx
• Gigantic Vermin: added mini-boss variant in the Temple of Styx
• Satyr Cultist: added mini-boss variant in the Temple of Styx
📢 Final Boss: slightly reduced duration and frequency while Unseen
• Other minor changes and improvements to encounters
• Bosses now absorb excess damage between phases; previously, very damaging attacks such as Aphrodite's Aid could be used to bypass phases of these fights


Mirror of Night

• Death Defiance: reduced cost of first rank; increased cost of subsequent ranks
• Additional adjustments to ordering and costs of some upgrades


Keepsakes & Items

• Legendary Keepsakes: newly added! See if you can discover all four currently available.
📢 Shattered Shackle (Sisyphus): now also increases damage foes take from traps
📢 Lambent Plume (Hermes): now gives you a bit more time to clear Thanatos encounters
• Kiss of Styx (Well): reduced cost; now replenishes a spent charge of Death Defiance
• Tinge of Erebus (Well): now yields more Darkness, as does the Darkness item sold by Charon
• HydraLite (Well): reduced cost
• A third Daedalus Hammer can no longer be purchased in the Temple of Styx
• The Fallen Warrior now offers a Kiss of Styx Premium, which replenishes all Death Defiance charges
• Skeleton Keys: functionally replaced with Chthonic Keys
• Resource Formerly Known as Chthonic Keys: functionally replaced with Titan Blood
• Resource Formerly Known as Ambrosia: now called Nectar
• Ambrosia: newly added Bounty resource used with gifting, Wretched Broker, and more


House Contractor

• The House Contractor can now be used to permanently upgrade certain resource pick-ups, such as...
• Darkness: can now be upgraded to also slightly increase your life total
• Gemstones: can now be upgraded to also give you some Charon's Obol
• Chthonic Keys: can now be upgraded to also give you a charge of Fated Authority
• Nectar: can now be upgraded to also give a random Boon +1 Lv. (as though you used a Pom of Power)
• The House Contractor is now also the key to upgrading certain aspects of the Underworld, such as...
• Breakable Urns can be upgraded to contain Charon's Obol (and must first be unlocked)
• Infernal Troves can be upgraded to contain greater riches (and must first be unlocked)
• Fountain Chambers in each Underworld region now must first be unlocked
📢 Reduced costs for some outrageously priced House Decor


Fated List of Minor Prophecies

• You are destined to obtain this newly added system from the House Contractor


Pact of Punishment

• Increased max. Heat threshold for earning Bounties (doubling the previous cap)
• The max. Heat threshold for earning Bounties is even higher in Hell Mode
• Snake Oil: cut from game as a stand-alone Condition; its effect is now part of...
• Extreme Measures: now affects bosses region-by-region, from Tartarus through Elysium
• Middle Management: reduced to one rank; now affects each mini-boss encounter in a distinct way
📢 Tight Deadline: countdown pauses at the same times as the 'Show Timer' setting; adjusted timers per each region; the out-of-time effect now can deal lethal damage
• Personal Liability: newly added! Limited to Hell Mode, this removes your post-damage invincibility
• Increased Heat clear requirements for earning Skelly's unlockables; these are now introduced later, after several successful clears (so you can first get used to the Pact)


Level Design & Environments

• Added four new chambers to the Temple of Styx
📢 Some Chaos chambers now have multiple exits; the exits now have Chamber Reward previews
📢 Exits from Chaos chambers can now be altered using Fated Authority
📢 Reduced appearance rate of Pools of Purging; they no longer appear in Tartarus
• Other minor fixes and improvements to various chambers


Art & Visual FX

• Map of the Underworld: updated look and presentation when traveling between regions
• Sisyphus: now has a new portrait and character model!
• Added portrait variants for Zagreus, Megaera, Thanatos, Theseus, and The Minotaur
• Updated portraits for Megaera and Hypnos
• Minor changes to portraits for Eurydice, Aphrodite, and Zagreus
• Added various emote animations to some narrative events
• Added several new expressive character animations for Megaera, Thanatos, and Zagreus
• Updated look of Brimstones
• Updated look of Satyr Cultist mini-boss
• Valuable Urns now glint in a tastefully attention-grabby way
• Death Defiance: updated effect presentation to be clearer and more dramatic
📢 Toned down the look of Zeus lightning effects (don't tell him)
📢 Added a new screen effect for when foolishly trudging through lava in Asphodel
• Further visual improvements to various chambers, such as the final chamber in Elysium
• Some of the shades in Asphodel now writhe for eternity
• Updated look of narrative panels and tooltips
• Updated visual FX for the Throw special using the Chaos Shield
• Updated visual FX for the Raging Rush using Achilles' Spear Aspect
• Minor improvements to Heart-Seeking Bow charge-up recovery animation
• Optimized textures and animations on the Bloodless
• Other minor visual changes, fixes, and improvements


Menus & UI

• Hell Mode: added option when starting a new game. Makes you have to use the Pact from the start
• God Mode: added to Settings Screen. Instantly makes you tougher; effect increases when you die
📢 Boon Info Overlay: minor presentation improvements; changed default hotkey; can now be accessed while interacting with characters such as Eurydice
• Updated look and screen position of subtitles (formerly called 'captions' but they are officially subtitles now)
• Subtitles now have a unique color depending on which character is speaking
• Subtitles now enabled by default on new save slots (a majority of players were toggling them on)
• Wretched Broker: screen has an updated look
• 'Play' Main Menu Screen: updated look; added one additional Save Slot
• Underworld Codex: screen has an updated look; updated alert prompt
• Updated look for the Affinity Gauge in the Codex (for characters you can give gifts to)
• Other additional presentation changes around Gifting
• The House Contractor may prompt you to stop by from time to time
📢 Additional minor improvements to Pact screen feedback and usability
📢 Minor improvements to Weapon Aspects screen feedback and usability
• Added distinct Chamber indicators for elite, mini-boss, and boss chambers
• Minor updates to the sorting of resources on the right side of the screen
• Added Fated List indicator when choosing Boons and Upgrades tied to Prophecies
• Added keyword tooltips to distinguish types of Well of Charon items
• Improved feedback when trying to Cast while out of Bloodstone ammo
• Improved feedback when trying to enter Infernal Gates with too little Heat
• Added keyboard selection input in Well of Charon
• Other minor fixes, changes, and improvements


Music & SFX

📢 The song of Eurydice does not always start from the beginning when you find her
• Added many new sound effects to accompany new and updated systems, such as the Fated List
• Added new sound effects for the Map of the Underworld
• Added new sound effects for Death Defiance activation
• Added new ambient sound in and around the final chamber of Elysium
• Added sound effects for Hera's Bow Aspect special ability
• Updated some sound effects for the Bone Hydra
• Added different sounds while choosing Boons or Upgrades based on the god or upgrade type
• Added impact sounds to Support Fire (Artemis) arrow shot
• Added impact sounds to Nasty Dash (Dionysus) and Dionysus' Aid
• Updated impact sounds for Tidal Dash (Poseidon) and Poseidon's Aid
• Added ambient sound to the Lounge in the House of Hades
• Other minor changes, fixes, and mix improvements


Voice & Narrative

• Added many new narrative events (including with Megaera, Thanatos, Sisyphus, Skelly, Lord Hades, Achilles, Theseus, the Minotaur, Ares, Dionysus, and more)
• Extended Affinity Gauges for Megaera, Thanatos, Sisyphus, and Skelly (you can give them more gifts)
• Normalized the Affinity Gauges for some other characters, capping them to Lv.6
• Updated Affinity Gauges for certain characters.
• Added many new Zagreus voice events for various gameplay contexts
📢 If Meg blames her losses on the Mirror and you face her without its effects, she will acknowledge it
• Added Codex entries for Titan Blood and Ambrosia
• Added to Codex entries for Megaera, Thanatos, Sisyphus, and Skelly
• Updated Codex entries for Nectar and Chthonic Keys
• Added presentation the first time you enter a Chaos Gate
• Updated requirements and other minor changes to various narrative events
• Fixes and tuning to various contextual voice events


Miscellaneous

• Updated Development Roadmap to reflect our plans for our January 2020 Major Update, and beyond
• The final chamber in Elysium is now quite a bit livelier
• A certain letter written to a certain god appearing in a certain scene has a new look
• Sisyphus: we are investigating reports of unusual interactions with an inanimate object in his chamber
• Orpheus: you now have to do something to 'unlock' him (if you haven't met; he can be unlocked sooner now)
• When you first get the Codex , it now is back-filled with any entries you would have already unlocked
• The alert prompt to open the Codex will no longer play during combat (it will show up after)
• Zagreus has lost the will to senselessly somersault in the House (reminder: no fighting in the House!)
• Adjusted Thanatos entrance and exit interacts during his encounters
• Added an animation for when Zagreus is stunned by certain attacks
• Pausing the game now reliably pauses any voiceover in progress
• Pausing the game now possible while Boon Info Overlay is displayed
📢 Damage numbers from Deflect attacks show up in Athena's colors
• Added a custom weapon objective hint in the Courtyard after equipping Achilles' Spear Aspect
• When starting a new escape attempt, a perfect landing must be executed with greater precision
• Updated Credits; including with some more exceptional Community Contributors (Cheers!!)
• Various text fixes, updates, and clarifications


Bug Fixes

📢 Fixed a crash that could occur while rapidly switching pages in the Codex
• Fixed several additional scripting issues with the Eurydice & Orpheus story subplot
• Fixed an issue where deflecting attacks from Skull-Crushers could still deal damage
• Fixed various issues that could occur while exiting a chamber during an Infernal Trove battle
• Fixed an issue causing the special shot of Hestia's Rail Aspect to fire unexpectedly
• Fixed Hestia's Rail Aspect not interacting properly with certain Boons and Hammer Upgrades
📢 Fixed Tipsy Shot (Dionysus) not interacting properly with Flurry Cast (Hermes)
• Fixed Divine Dash (Athena) sometimes hitting twice unexpectedly
• Fixed Battle Rage (Ares) not benefiting from improved rarity
📢 Fixed several issues with switching between different Weapon Aspects
• Fixed some obstacles in Asphodel not having impact feedback
📢 Fixed Tight Deadline (Pact) timer appearing in the House
📢 Many other minor fixes


Bug Additions

• Will get back to you next patch


Quote of the Patch

'And I saw Sisyphus too, bound to his own torture,
grappling his monstrous boulder with both arms working,
heaving, hands struggling, legs driving, he kept on
thrusting the rock uphill toward the brink.'
~The Odyssey (Homer; R. Fagles translation)

Patch Notes Archive

For patch notes from the previous Major Update, check out The Superstar Update Patch Notes (October, 2019).

December 2nd, 2019

Delve into the Welcome to Hell Update!

Our rogue-like dungeon crawler, Hades, goes deeper than ever with this latest Major Update, marking the first anniversary of the game's announcement and Early Access launch!

The Welcome to Hell Update features new ways to play, big game-wide improvements, and tons of new story events, making it a perfect time to jump back in -- or descend into the Underworld for the first time. Highlights include:

  • Experience new ways to play with Hell Mode, for seasoned veterans unafraid of death, and God Mode, for those who want a little extra help!

  • Get closer to the game's colorful cast of characters with the expanded Gift System & earn Legendary Keepsakes with spectacular new effects!

  • Find the infamous Fated List of Minor Prophecies, and fulfill a wide-ranging list of inevitabilities for fabulous rewards!

  • Authorize scores of New Underworld Renovations, altering the ever-shifting chambers of the Underworld more to your advantage!

  • New Text Language Translations! In a December 6 update, we added first-pass text translations in French, Italian, German, Spanish, Russian, Brazilian Portuguese, Korean, and Simplified Chinese!! We also have Polish coming soon, and are investigating Japanese.

  • Plus! New story events, boss fight variations, & many more surprises!

Hades is already a big feature-rich game, filled with thrilling action, dozens of colorful characters, and the rich worldbuilding Supergiant is known for. With the Welcome to Hell Update, it's even bigger and better than before, and comes one step closer to its full v1.0 launch slated for sometime in 2020.

Be sure to take a look at the updated Development Roadmap in the game client for a recap of all we've done this year, and a preview of what's in store!

Want a tour through many of the new features? Check out our dev stream:

Full patch notes are available here on our web site, in the game client, and our official Discord, where you can join a welcoming community of Hades players and Supergiant fans. Or... perhaps you'd like to hunker down for the next 20 minutes and listen to them, courtesy of the game's disembodied storyteller?!

We hope you love this new update, and thanks so much for all your support in 2019! You've inspired us to make Hades bigger and better than we even imagined, heading into this year!

November 13th, 2019

Engine Programmer @ Supergiant

Update 12/6/2019: Thank you to everyone who expressed interest in this job listing! At this time we're no longer seeking new applicants. Should we have any additional job openings in the future, we'll likely post about it here and via our Twitter feed.

Our small team is growing just a bit! We are seeking a talented generalist software engineer to port, extend, optimize, and maintain Hades and our proprietary code base across a variety of platforms. Our ideal candidate would relish the technical challenges inherent in cross-platform engineering, rendering, multi-threading, systems architecture, and optimization.

Requirements:

  • 2- or 4-year college Computer Science or Engineering degree or equivalent work experience

  • Credit on at least one commercial game project

  • Experience certifying and shipping a console or mobile game

  • Experience with multi-threading and rendering

  • Fluent in C/C++ and excellent math skills

  • Strong written and verbal, technical and non-technical communication skills

  • Local resident or willing to relocate to San Francisco area

Responsibilities:

  • Optimize our game engine for performance and compatibility with existing platforms

  • Help port our game engine to new or emerging platforms

  • Work with Quality Assurance to identify and fix performance, compatibility, and functional issues across different platforms

  • Implement new engine features, pipeline improvements, and tools on future projects in collaboration with the development team

What we offer:

  • Competitive compensation and medical benefits, including 401k

  • Work on a small, creative, high-performance team

  • Help architect and implement the underlying technology of Supergiant's current and future titles

To apply, please follow these instructions exactly:

  • Send your resume in the body of an email (no attachments please) with the subject line “Engine Programmer” to jobs@supergiantgames.com

  • Complete the questionnaire below and include it in the body of the e-mail

Questionnaire: Please answer the following questions as you might if responding to a colleague via email. Use your best judgment to answer as completely and concisely as possible. There is no minimum or maximum word count.

  1. Why do you want to work at Supergiant Games?

  2. What is a technical feature or project you are proud to have worked on, and why? What did you contribute to the project? Please describe how it works for a non-technical reader.

  3. Discuss your experience with an existing codebase and how you became familiar with it. Describe a feature or fix that you contributed to the project for a technical reader.

  4. When, if ever, is it appropriate to use a “hack”?  Please describe a hack you’ve used and why you chose to use it.

Thank you for your interest in working with us!

October 8th, 2019

Rock Out in The Superstar Update!

Get ready for our most game-changing Early Access update yet when next you delve into the Underworld of Hades!

The Superstar Update introduces a variety of new systems and improvements that will keep you battling out of hell in even more spectacular fashion -- all while living the Underworld life in style. Here are just some of the highlights:

- Unlock almighty Weapon Aspects, revealing legendary past incarnations of each of your weapons, along with powerful new properties.

- Brave the reworked Pact of Punishment, providing an all-new endgame challenge. Which nasty Conditions are you willing to accept to earn valuable Bounties?

- Meet star-crossed lovers Eurydice & Orpheus, and discover their all-too-tragic past... and see if you can help their future?

- New House cosmetics, resources, upgrades, & more! You can now decorate the House of Hades, or collect many rocking tracks for the new Music Stand.

For good measure, this update introduces a brand-new music piece, featuring the beautiful voice of longtime Supergiant Games collaborator, Ashley Barrett:

There are so many new fully-voiced story events, visual improvements, exciting new balance changes and upgrades that we think you'll agree this is our most jam-packed major update yet. Full patch notes are available here on our web site, in the game client, and our official Discord, where we invite you to join the conversation with many more players and Supergiant fans. Oh, and we also have then in highly-listenable, fully-recorded form:

Hope you enjoy, and keep letting us know what you think!

September 23rd, 2019

Big Bastion Update Coming to iOS

Update November 7, 2019: Our self-published version of Bastion is now available for iPhone and iPad! Get it here.

This fall, we'll be launching an updated version of the iPhone/iPad version of Bastion. This will affect existing customers of that version, so we wanted to let you know what to expect in advance. Here's what's going to happen, and look further down this post for in-depth Q&As:

1. The currently-available version of Bastion for iPhone/iPad, published by Warner Bros., will be delisted soon, in early November. Once delisted, it will no longer be updated or available for purchase. If you have already downloaded, it will remain on your device.

2. An updated version of the game, published by Supergiant Games, will be available at around the same time. This latest version has several enhancements:

  • Improved support for newer devices such as iPhone X and 11.

  • Simplified Chinese language option (set via your region setting).

  • The game is now free-to-try, just like the original Xbox LIVE Arcade classic!

After the trial levels, a one-time in-app purchase unlocks the full game. The in-app purchase is just $4.99. Although...

3. This updated version of Bastion will be FREE for a limited time, as part of our 10th anniversary celebration! We couldn't have come this far if not for the success of Bastion, and for all your support.

Bastion iOS Update - Q&As

You might have questions about some of these changes, so we wanted to answer them right here:

Q: Why is Bastion for iPhone/iPad being delisted soon? A: The reason is, the term of our distribution agreement with Warner Bros., our publishing partner for Bastion since we first launched the game in 2011, is expiring. (Back then, we didn't expect we'd still be supporting Bastion all these years later...!) Due to technical limitations, we cannot switch publishers for the existing app. Our only option was to work with Warner Bros. to delist the existing version, then publish the game ourselves. We sincerely apologize for the inconvenience.

Q: What does it mean that your distribution agreement with Warner Bros. has expired? A: It simply means anything Bastion-related will now be published by us at Supergiant Games. We have self-published each of our games since Bastion, so we're happy to have all our titles under our umbrella. We're very grateful to our partners at Warner Bros. for all their support along the way.

Q: If I own the existing version for iPhone/iPad, will I get the version published by Supergiant Games automatically? A: No. You will have to download it as a new app. It will not appear as an update to the existing app.

To help ease this transition, and in light of our 10th anniversary, you will be able to get the full game unlock FOR FREE for a limited time. Simply download the new version (once it's available), and look for the one-time in-app purchase, which will cost $0 for the rest of the year. Afterward, it will be $4.99.

Q: Will my cloud save data transfer from the current version of Bastion to the version published by Supergiant Games? A: No. Due to technical limitations, unfortunately your cloud save data cannot be transferred between these versions. We apologize for the inconvenience.

Q: I wrote a customer review of Bastion for iPhone/iPad. Will it transfer to the new version? A: No. All the wonderful words of praise we've received over the years for Bastion for iPhone/iPad will unfortunately be removed when the app is delisted. We would be deeply grateful if you gave the new version a review once you've tried it. If you have a review up, please consider making a copy of the contents in case you want to repost it.

Q: Will my Game Center achievement progress transfer between versions? A: You probably know the answer by now, which unfortunately is No. On the other hand, you'll be able to earn all the Bastion achievements again in the version published by Supergiant Games.

Q: What's new and improved in this upcoming version of Bastion for iPhone/iPad? A: We've made a number of quality-of-life improvements to make sure Bastion runs great on the latest iOS devices. Changes include:

  • Improved support for newer devices such as iPhone X and 11

  • Simplified Chinese language option (set via your region setting)

  • The game is now free-to-try, just like the original Xbox LIVE Arcade classic!

  • Numerous bug fixes

Thank you for your patience and understanding as we make this transition! Bastion for iPhone/iPad is one of the most-played versions of any of our games from over the years, so we're doing everything we can to reduce the friction here as we bring our first game back into the fold here.

Q: What are the device and OS requirements for the upcoming version? A: Bastion requires a device with iOS 9.0 or later. The OS requirement is updated from previous versions of the game, so please note it means the updated version of the game will not work on older devices, including the original iPad, iPhone 4, and iPod Touch. If you wish to continue playing Bastion on these devices, please be sure you have the existing version of the game downloaded before it is delisted in early November.

August 23rd, 2019

Ridiculous Deals for our 10th Anniversary!

Update Aug. 27: Please note one or more of the deals below have expired! Thank you for your interest, and we'll see you in 10 years (OK just kidding, we'll probably have more sales between now and then).

As part of our 10 Year Anniversary celebration, right now you can get amazing deals on our entire game catalogue, plus tons of merch in our online shop!

Here's a rundown of all the deals available right now:

* = North America only; we apologize for the inconvenience!

Plus, get our 10 Year Anniversary Poster and great deals on merch at our online shop!

Thanks so much for all the love and support for our first double-digits birthday, and we hope our games continue to bring you wonderful lasting memories for years to come.