I'm at about 80 hours in Hades and I think nearly completed: there's an epilogue and a couple storylines to tie up. 80 hours for $20 is a great deal.
No spoiler alerts from me - talking about playing styles/tips isn't going to spoil anything. Also, for anyone who hasn't gotten to the end....the final boss is Hades. If you hadn't figured that out before even purchasing the game, you fail at life.
Really good tips. What I really like is that boons/upgrades are random so you're forced to explore playstyles. Yes, you can favor things when you have choices, but eventually you'll get a taste of everything with enough plays.
I've beat Hades six times now - once with each weapon; now I'm working on doing an 8-heat run in order to unlock the mystery weapons.
Early on, it was Theseus and Asterius that really tripped me up. I wasn't patient enough and I didn't use the space and environment well enough. Now that I've got it down, I can get through it well with most builds/weapons.
I think I also hurt myself by favoring the shield early on. I got too used to the ability to, well, shield myself. It's the first weapon I completed with and, honestly, I hardly play with it anymore. It's actually the least fun weapon, IMO.
Athena's Divine Dash is indispensable for me with every weapon that's not the shield. I try to get it early on; especially by Asphodel where you have projectiles and lava to avoid.
One thing I didn't do early on that I wished I had - I didn't prioritize Daedalus' Hammers enough. For example, if I got a heart or maybe even coins as a choice, I might take those. Not anymore - the weapon upgrades are prime choice. Some of them totally change the way you can run through chambers.
I've come to heavily preference chill effects. I like Demeter's call, the cast (especially if you can then get chill add-on boon; or Ares rift cast and then get the Duo w/ Demeter that makes the rift also chill), and - with certain weapons - the chill attack or special (with how damn quick the spear is, chill effects do wonders).
I also didn't give enough weight to Artemis' boons early on. I always like her call and the boon that produces a seeking arrow anytime you attack, special, or cast (that's a no-brainer). I think because her boons add crit chance and some damage but don't have anything flashier (no lightning?! no knockaway?!) I kind of ignored them. That was folly. That crit chance is often worth it - heck, when you unlock the Aspect of Arthur for Stygius, Artemis' boons are sweet.
Lastly, later in the game (before getting to Hades) I like to get some of those health preservation boons. Stubborn Root (Demeter/Athena Duo) is by far my favorite to grab - auto-generates health when you're on your last stand at a rate of 1-health point/second (I believe). You can very well hang in there and defeat Hades if you have that but have been playing recklessly otherwise. As well, things like Positive Outlook (Dionysus) also are nice to have toward the end.
Note on weapons -
Adamant Rail & Gloves are probably my two favorites. They're just super fun. The rail gives you a fun run-n-gun and using the special while you dodge for your life is exhilarating. It also makes an already chaotically hectic screen even more chaotically hectic. The gloves are just satisfying - throat-punching baddies, ya know? Especially with the "get over here!" magnetic cutter perk of the second aspect's special.
The spear is the most fun if you want to play super fast. The ability to backstab and just race around the screen is unparalleled. With the Divine Dash, I've cleared screens faster than with any other weapon. (Inversely, the shield is the slowest)
For Stygius, I found (so far) the Aspect of Arthur to most change how the weapon operates. The fact that it becomes a heavy attack and so much slower is unlike its other aspects (I'm not saying it's a bad thing; I haven't done much with that aspect, but what I have I've enjoyed).
I thought the bow was going to be the most difficult for me. In fact, it's the last I used to beat Hades with and I thought I was going to be shit with it. Not at all. In fact, I handed Hades his most devastating defeat with the bow. I read someone on Reddit who said you can just create a version of the bow that cuts through baddies - and they were right. I used the second aspect, I believe, where the special volley tracks the last enemy you hit with attack. With some good Daedalus upgrades, by the time I got to Hades the bow was like butter through a hot knife - I was able to concentrate on evasion while effectively dealing damage on the back end.
I can't stop heaping praise on this game. I'm floored with how good it is. In some ways, it is so simple. But you start peering behind every corner and it is deceptively complex - in replayability through boons/upgrades/weapon choices, and in how it fills in the story time-after-time and little-by-little.
