This year, something special happened with the Hugo Awards - something that may become relevant to video games in the future. It was announced early in the year that the2021 Hugo Awards would include a video game category, and now the winner has been announced.
For those not in the know, the Hugo Awards are a series of literary awards given to novels, editors, artists, etc. revolving around the science fiction and fantasy genres. As such, the games nominated were some of the best released in 2020 falling into those categories, includingThe Last of Us 2,Spiritfarer, andHades.
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Out of five games with exceptional gameplay and story, the latter of which is most important for a literary award, it wasHadesthat emerged victorious. Considering its competition and the level of quality the Hugo Awards deals with on a regular basis, that’s quite an accomplishment. That said, it’s not exactly surprising thatHadeswould ultimately emerge victorious. The Hugo Awards honors fan work in its own category, andHadesis essentially an enormous piece of comprehensive and beautiful Greek mythology fan fiction. Not every game lets playersreunite lost lovers Achilles and Patroclusin the afterlife, after all.
Furthermore,Hadeshas a unique spin on how it presents its story to the player. As a roguelite,Hadeshas players dying and restarting a lot, and for many such games this is a total block on progression.Hades, however, progresses its story whenever the player returns to its main hub, either through death or the rarer successful run. It also progresses the story depending on what the player has done and said previously, making for an expanding tale that feels dynamic like few others. It’s one of the reasonsHadestook home prizes at the Industry Game Awardsin 2020.
On top of that, the writing forHadesis fantastic overall, with characters being fun, interesting, and surprisingly heartwarming when they interact. This ranges from the deep heart to hearts of the romance options to the excitement of each God as they offer Zagreus their legendary boon.
Hadesis not just a game with a great story, it is a game filled to the brim with great story and unexpected things. There are stillthings players don’t know they can do inHades, and maybe even more to be discovered. This award was a one time thing, but if there’s enough interest, perhaps it will become a semi-permanent or permanent Hugo Awards category.
Hadesis available now on PC, PS4, PS5, Switch, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X.
MORE:Hades Deserves More Exposure, But Switch is Still the Best Place to Play
