Hades 2 update brings back a fan-favorite "crutch" and even shades you for using it

Hades 2 announcement trailer — (Image credit: Supergiant Games)

Hades 2's first big expansion is here, adding new content that's both fresh and familiar regardless of whether you played the original roguelike. The returning addition I'm most excited about, though, is a real build-crafter's dream that proved a fan-favorite in the original Hades.

Before we crack on, we'll be getting into some minor spoilers, so be aware.

So! While Hades 2's Olympic Update is catching attention as it brings back Dionysus in a speedo, it also brings back Athena. And not just that, but her Divine Dash ability. If you weren't around for the original Hades, it powers up your dash by allowing it to damage enemies and deflect incoming attacks. It rips and was an immediate grab if Athena offered it to you on a run.

The good news is that Athena hasn't left the ability behind in the original roguelike, and may it offer it to you here – better yet, she'll even offer the dash power-up largely unchanged, quickly making her my favorite Hades 2 character.

Amusingly, developer Supergiant Games isn't passing up the ability to comment on Divine Dash's previous popularity, either. As players have noted on Reddit, if you take the ability from Athena, there's a chance she'll remark that it was a favorite of your brother, that being the original Hades' protagonist, Zagreus. A subtle but cutting remark, Supergiant, but don't nerf the ability – please and thank you.

"Early Access has already been an invaluable and eye-opening experience for our team as we continue working to complete this game," Supergiant adds. "As we move forward, we intend to keep making additions, changes, and improvements in an effort to create the biggest, most replayable, most feature-rich game we've made yet, and – most importantly – a worthy successor to the original Hades."

That's cool, but the return of Divine Dash might just be difficult to top.

Here's everything else you need to know about Hades 2's Early Access plan.