Hades hits iOS as a Netflix mobile exclusive on March 19

Hades is a major get for Netflix as a mobile exclusive. The dungeon crawler is one of the best games in recent memory and it could help bolster the growing audience Netflix has built for its strong library of games. Subscribers will be able to play Hades on their iPhones and iPads at no extra cost on March 19. You can preregister so you're ready to go when the game hits the App Store.

You play as Zagreus, the son of Hades, as you battle through a randomized set of chambers and enemies in an attempt to escape from the Underworld. This is a roguelite game. Every time you die, you'll go back to the start and lose most of the perks you picked up during a run, but you'll gradually unlock permanent upgrades that will help Zagreous make it to Mount Olympus. You may also be equipped with extra knowledge about a certain enemy or trap that caused your demise.

In addition, Zagreus will receive gifts from other Olympians to help him hack and slash through his enemies. It's his interactions with the other characters that form the backbone of the story and help make Hades stand out.

Developer Supergiant Games had long thought of Hades as a good fit for mobile, given its pick-up-and-play nature. Although Netflix's games are typically available on both iOS and Android, that won't be the case for Hades, at least for now. Supergiant has stuck with iOS for the mobile versions of its games (already having a Mac version of Hades helped here since that platform and iOS both use the Metal API). Not only that, the studio is made up of a small team. While Supergiant was preparing the mobile port of Hades, it was also working on the sequel to the 2020 hit.

It took over a year of extra development time to get Hades ready for mobile devices. "The foremost goal was to make this an uncompromising version of Hades," while making sure the game was "as performant and smooth as possible," Supergiant creative director Greg Kasavin recently told reporters.

A major focus of that work was making sure to get the touch controls just right. The buttons have haptic feedback. You can resize and reposition the controls and save your configuration. What's more, the buttons are customized for each action. So, when you go to pet the adorable multi-headed devil dog Cerberus, there'll be a dedicated button just for that. Don't worry if you prefer to use a Bluetooth controller or a plug-in gamepad such as the Backbone One, since Hades will be compatible with those. Other features include 60 fps gameplay, cloud saves, achievements and offline play.

Hades is coming to Netflix Games at an ideal time for Supergiant. It will both bring new eyes to the game and give longtime fans an excuse to revisit the classic ahead of the sequel's arrival. Hades II is set to go into early access on PC this spring.

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