Hades 2 receives new mod that stuff a whole other game inside it

Hades 2 is a bigger game than its predecessor in every way. There are more biomes, gameplay systems, and characters to chat up. Even with that breadth, one Hades 2 player created a mod that makes the roguelike sequel even more expansive.

Modder NikkelM created the mod Zagreus’ Journey and released it on Sunday. It adds, well, Zagreus’ journey from Hades into Hades 2. As Hades 2‘s Melinoë, you play through the biomes Zagreus fought through in the first game: Tartarus, Asphodel, Elysium, and the Temple of Styx. “Battle familiar foes and bosses using [Melinoë’s] unique abilities and weapons, meet Zagreus’ old friends, and reconnect with your family’s past – all integrated into the main game as if it was always there,” reads the mod’s description. The mod adds a ton of new content to Hades 2, like additional resources, tracks from the first game’s soundtrack, new prophecies to fulfill, and more.

People commenting under the mod’s YouTube trailer are equal parts excited and impressed. “I just finished doing and completing everything in the game yesterday, and this drops. Time to drop another 400 hours into it then,” read one comment. “This is so well made that I thought it was official,” another commenter said.

The mod is so eye-catching that it even got the attention of Hades developer Supergiant Games. “We’re blown away by this user-created mod for the PC version of Hades II,” the developer wrote on X.

In terms of official updates, Hades 2 just landed on PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X after being released in 1.0 on Nintendo Switch, Switch 2, and Windows PC last fall. At the same time, it also received an update that secretly added a new mode.

That new mode is available across platforms, but, being a user-created mod, Zagreus’ Journey is only on PC for Hades 2. You can head to Thunderstore.io to download the mod. Here’s everything it includes, according to the mod’s description:

• Play through the original four biomes of Hades as Melinoë: Tartarus, Asphodel, Elysium, and the Temple of Styx.
• Discover and overcome the challenge of fighting all of the original game’s enemies and bosses using Melinoë’s unique abilities and weapons.
• Relive Zagreus’ story by escaping to the Surface, forging bonds with your brother’s old friends, and conversing with the Fury Sisters, the Champions of Elysium and [REDACTED] himself.
• Benefit from a multitude of entirely new boons and effects offered to you by Sisyphus, Eurydice, Patroclus… and other familiar faces that you will now be able to meet along the way!
• Collect 30+ new resources specific to the new biomes, use them for unlocks in this and other mods (see section below), and trade them with the Broker.
• Unlock 29 new musical tracks from Hades’ original soundtrack through the Hades OST for the Music Maker mod integration (automatically installed with this mod).
• Decorate the Crossroads with 45+ new cosmetics, including new Cauldrons, Arcana Card Backs, and Charms inspired by Zagreus’ companions from the first game.
• Discover and complete 35+ new Minor Prophecies at the Fated List.
• Complete 24 new testaments by clearing the new bosses using each of your weapons with new fear levels.
• Discover and perform 20+ new incantations to unlock gameplay features and progress story events in Zagreus’ Journey.
• Unlock six of the original game’s keepsakes by forging relationships with Sisyphus, Eurydice, Patroclus, Orpheus, Megaera and Thanatos through the Shared Keepsake Port mod integration (automatically installed with this mod).
• Challenge yourself with a set of new Chaos Trials, including randomized “Chaos Within” trials in the spirit of (Great) Chaos Above and Below.
• Advance through 50 new cosmetic-only ranks at the Spirit Mixer, from the lowly “Alpha Warden” to the feared “Unseen One“.
• Earn a new set of three statues from Commander Schelemeus by escaping the Nightmare Realm at progressively higher fear.
• The four new regions can also appear in Dream Dives (but you can use the mod config to exclude them if you so wish).
• Read all about the new biomes, enemies, bosses and friends in a new chapter in your Codex.