There’s a mod that lets you play Hades 1 in Hades 2

There’s already so much to do in Hades 2 that after 100+ hours I haven’t seen it all. (Voice and Vanity is the one prophecy I still need to complete, I’ll get there.) If you, however, have run out of things to do, then here’s some good news: you can replay all of the original Hades but as Melinoë, and with the combat and boons of Hades 2, thanks to a mod.

The Zagreus Journey mod adds a third option to your choice of how to leave the Crossroads, a Chaos Gate labeled “Descend into Nightmare”. Jump inside and you’ll be back in Tartarus, with all the old shades and traps to contend with, before working your way up through Asphodel, Elysium, and the Temple of Styx. Even the original game’s soundtrack is carried over.

What isn’t carried over is Zagreus himself, and so you’ll be playing as Melinoë (and whichever familiar you bring), with one of her keepsakes equipped, and encountering the pantheon and earning the boons of Hades 2. The sequel’s magic-heavy, dash-light combat seems to work commendably against the first game’s enemies, though they have had their hit points and numbers buffed to keep them challenging when facing the kind of endgame builds you’ll presumably be throwing at them.

One place Zagreus does still appear is in the conversations with bosses. These play out just as they did in the original, only with a ghostly Melinoë lurking behind Zagreus like a hot new meme format. Oh, and the Lernaean Bone Hydra’s necks appear to be invisible, which is the one thing that doesn’t transfer over cleanly from the original.

If you want to try Zagreus Journey for yourself, you’ll need to have both Hades games installed. You can download the mod from Thunderstore or Github, and you’ll want to get rid of any other Hades mods you have before you install this one.