Recent years have proven that TV displays based on video games are here to stay, with undeniable examples like Fallout, The Last of Us, The Witcher, and many more. However, even as this trend grows, some of the best video games haven't received the adaptation they deserve. Among these is the 2020 game Hades, a roguelike action role-playing game with a lot of potential.
Supergiant Games'masterpiece gained considerable attention following its release, and even got a sequel game in 2025, Hades II. Together, these two games tell an epic story that could easily be turned into a thrilling TV series perfect for the ever-growing fantasy genre. Known for its unique comic-book-like animation and story-driven narrative, the Hades series has a lot to offer.
One thing that sets it apart is a Greek-mythology-based story, making the game especially notable because these legends remain beloved. In fact, with The Odyssey's recent release, Greek mythology is more relevant than ever, with Odysseus even being a character you can interact with in Hades II. This connection makes it the perfect time to adapt the beloved game and give fans what they've been asking for.
Hades became a smash hit in 2020 because there was nothing quite like it. The story is based on Greek mythology, specifically on the relationship between Hades and his wife, Persephone, but Hades takes its own path, instead creating a unique version of these characters as the players uncover the story. The story follows Zagreus, the son of Hades, who hopes to escape his father's realm and discover the truth about his absent mother, Persephone.
In his journey, Zagreus seeks help from Nyx, the goddess of night, and several other Olympian gods. However, to do so, he must face all the monsters of the Underworld. This creates a cycle as each time Zagreus is slain, he reappears in the Underworld to try again.
Your answers have pointed to one action hero above all others. This is the person built to have your back — for better or considerably, spectacularly worse. Your partner doesn't talk much, doesn't need to, and will have assessed every threat in your immediate environment before you've finished your first sentence.
John Rambo is not a man of plans or politics — he is a force of nature shaped by survival, loyalty, and a capacity for endurance that goes beyond anything training can produce. He will not leave you behind. He has never left anyone behind who deserved to come home.
What you get with Rambo is the most capable, most quietly ferocious partner imaginable — one who has been through things that would have broken anyone else, and who chose to keep going anyway. You'll never need to ask if he has your back. You'll just know.
Your partner will arrive perfectly dressed, perfectly briefed, and with a cover story so convincing it'll take you a moment to remember what's actually true. James Bond is the most professionally dangerous person in any room he enters — and the most disarmingly charming, which is the point. He operates in a world of layers, where nothing is what it appears and every advantage is used without apology.
You'll never be bored. You'll occasionally be furious. But when it matters — when the mission is genuinely on the line and the margin for error has collapsed to nothing — Bond is exactly the partner you want.
He has survived things that have no business being survivable. He does it with style. That is not nothing.
Your partner will know the history, the language, the cultural context, and exactly why the thing everyone else is ignoring is actually the most important thing in the room. Indiana Jones is brilliant, reckless, and occasionally impossible — but he is also one of the most resourceful, most genuinely knowledgeable partners you could find yourself beside. He approaches every situation with a scholar's eye and a brawler's instinct, which is an unusual combination and a remarkably effective one.
He hates snakes and gets personally attached to objects of historical significance, both of which will slow you down at least once. It doesn't matter. What Indy brings is irreplaceable — and the adventures you'll have together will be the kind people write books about.
Assuming you survive them. Your partner was not supposed to be here. He does not have the right equipment, the right information, or anything approaching the right odds.
He has a sarcastic remark and an absolute refusal to accept that the situation is as bad as it looks. John McClane is the greatest accidental hero in the history of action cinema — a man whose superpower is stubbornness, whose contingency plan is improvisation, and whose capacity to absorb punishment and keep moving would be alarming if it weren't so useful. He will complain the entire time.
He will make it significantly more chaotic than it needed to be. And he will absolutely, unconditionally, without question come through when it counts. Yippee-ki-yay.
Your partner has already run seventeen scenarios by the time you've finished reading the briefing, and the plan he's settled on involves at least two things that should be physically impossible. Ethan Hunt operates at the absolute edge of human capability — technically, physically, and intellectually — and he brings the same relentless precision to protecting his partners that he brings to dismantling organisations that shouldn't exist. He is not easy to know and he will never fully tell you everything.
But he will carry the weight of the mission so completely, so absolutely, that your job is simply to trust him — and the remarkable thing is that trusting him always turns out to be the right call. The mission will be impossible. He will complete it anyway.
While Hades II informs a different story, it utilizes this same roguelike concept. The sequel is about Zagreus' sister, Melinoë, who is the only member of her family to be saved from Chronos, the Titan of Time. While Melinoë fights for revenge, Chronos'powers make her victories impermanent, forcing her to become caught in a cycle similar to her brother.
Her mission becomes an epic adventure as she seeks blessings from various Olympians and interacts with figures from the myths, ranging from Achilles to Circe. These two games explore an exciting world full of dangers, complex character dynamics, and familiar mythological figures while constantly surprising the audience, no matter how familiar they may be with the legendary characters. Realistically, not every video game is right for an adaptation, but Hades and Hades II are ideal options to make it to the screen.
Not only does the interpretation of the gods allow for nuanced characters as the games explore the Olympians and their relationship with the Cthonic gods, but the modern twist on beloved myths adds a unique flair that hasn't existed before. These elements would translate beautifully to a show, keeping the audience engaged, as would the story structure. Most game adaptations must overcome the challenge of the game format, which allows players to die and restart, creating especially challenging enemies, but the Hades franchise is structured to allow this.
The game relies on a repetitive cycle that a TV series can lean into, with Zagreus and Melinoë learning more about their missions after each "Death." The other element of these games that a TV show can take advantage of is the award-winning art style. Hades lends itself to an animated adaptation, which works well for video games, as seen by Arcane and Castlevania.
With The Odyssey becoming the summer's biggest movie, bringing Hades' stories to the forefront of pop culture can shine a light on a side of mythology not often explored. An adaptation like this could also benefit from the fact that quite a few characters from The Odyssey appear within the story. This is especially true of Hades II, where Melinoë must face many of the same enemies Odysseus (Matt Damon) encounters in The Odyssey, including Scylla (accompanied by the sirens), Charybdis, Polyphemus, and Circe.
The popularity of The Odyssey proves that there is room for unique retellings of Greek mythology in fantasy stories, and an adaptation of Hades should be the next adaptation we get.