Highlights

  • Players can choose various weapons in Hades 2, like the Moonstone Axe Zorephet, to suit their playstyle.
  • The Moonstone Axe offers a slower, high-damage playstyle in the fast-paced world of Hades 2.

Hades 2’s early access has so much content already that even in the first 10 hours of playing it wouldn’t be surprising to hear if the full game had launched. There’s so much for players to do and so many interactions between characters to initiate that it seems as if Hades 2 wouldn’t need nearly the same amount of time to bake in early access as the original, but it’s still great to have it out and available to the public regardless. A lot of players’ muscle memory and familiarity of Hades thankfully carries over to the sequel, though there are far more resources to collect this time around and more to consider as a result.

These resources are crucial regarding progression and a big part of progression concerns which weapons players wish to equip. Melinoe is attuned to magic, as the atmosphere of Hades 2 itself stews in a frothing cauldron of witchcraft amid Greek mythology, and that’s represented firmly in her attacks, specials, and casts. Which weapon players prefer is up to what their personal playstyles are and what builds they grow fond of, but like Blasphemous 2’s debut of the flaming war censer Veredicto it’s exciting that Hades 2 also indulges in a ‘bonk’ build with the Moonstone Axe Zorephet.

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Blasphemous 2’s Bonk Build is OP But is Endearing Because It’s One of a Kind

Blasphemous 2 probably has the most notable bonk build in any game recently and that’s all thanks to its flail. All three of Blasphemous 2’s weapons eventually need to be found and unlocked to traverse through previously inaccessible areas.

However, Veredicto immediately became a fan-favorite for how crunchy and weighty its attacks are compared to the swift grace of Ruego Al Alba or Sarmiento and Centella. Therefore, Veredicto lands comfortably in the bonk build category—commonly massive or heavy weapons that dish out tons of damage at sluggish speeds for high-risk high-reward combat.

This isn’t anything new for action-oriented games as Soulslikes and Monster Hunter games have featured bonk builds prominently, but what Blasphemous 2 achieved with Veredicto—and what Hades 2 is now achieving with the Moonstone Axe—has pedestaled bonk builds higher and demonstrated their entertaining viability.

Hades 2’s Bonk Build is a Rewardingly Labored Option in an Otherwise Hasty Game

Hades and its sequel are breakneck roguelikes with a lot going on at any given time once players enter a new location or chamber and confront a new onslaught of enemies. Usually the more going on is better for players since it means they have more boons and abilities at their disposal, coloring the screen in a wash of respective colors and effects while Zagreus and Melinoe dart around in a frenzy.

Rather, Hades 2 allows players to slow the sequel’s pacing down remarkably to demolish foes with a massive greataxe. Hades 2’s Moonstone Axe may have a steep learning curve for anyone who has already become accustomed to the Witch’s Staff or the Sister Blades before spending 15 silver toward it, but anyone who appreciates and prefers a high damage value per hit at the cost of weapon speed will adore Zorephet as their main armament for Melinoe.

Zorephet is great for crowd control with broad, sweeping strokes, though players will ultimately be face-tanking a lot more unless they also master its defensive block special—its drawn-out combination string can also be interrupted or connected by dashing between attacks to reposition behind enemies before deciding to cash in on damage with a lunging strike at the end of the combo.

The Moonstone Axe also isn’t slow by most games’ bonk build standards, such as the dogged yet astonishingly high-damaging bonk builds in Soulslikes—even Star Wars Jedi has a perilously slow bonk build in Survivor’s crossguard lightsaber stance. Hades 2 is simply so quick that the Moonstone Axe is slower by comparison and requires players to consider their movements and inputs a bit more than they’d need to with a weapon meant to shank rapidly or lob projectiles from a great distance away.