After spending almost two years in early access development, Hades has finally gotten its full 1.0 release, along with a surprise drop on the Nintendo Switch. When you think of roguelites, you wouldn’t immediately associate that genre with romance options and dating sim elements, but Hades definitely has some of those. Here’s everything you need to know about how the romance system works in Hades.
Romance in Hades
While it’s not exactly a big part of the game, you can definitely try to romance a few characters in Hades. This doesn’t really affect the overall outcome or story of the game, but it does change up some story elements, and also helps to make your runs feel a little more personal to you depending on how you shape Zagreus’ love and social life.
The first step to romancing characters in Hades is to gift them with Nectar. Giving a character Nectar will reward you with a unique Keepsake, but you can also continue giving Nectar to improve their affinity with Zagreus and eventually, you’ll be able to start romancing them.
To check whether a character can be romanced, check the in-game codex and take a look at their character page. If their affinity gauge shows a heart with a keyhole, this means that you can now complete a quest or favor for them to progress the relationship further.
You’ll usually need to give them around five or six jars of Nectar to trigger this. Once you do, talk to the character to receive the quest. Upon completing the quest, you’ll receive a reward, and you can also progress the relationship by giving them a new item called Ambrosia.
How to Get Ambrosia
Unlike Nectar, Ambrosia is a much rarer and more precious resource in Hades. There are only a few ways to get it, and we’ve listed them below:
- Completing objectives and tasks in the Fated List of Minor Prophecies
- Trading with the Wretched Broker
- Farming bosses and completing runs with the Pact of Punishment
The first two methods are the most straightforward. Once you unlock construction, speak with the renovator next to Hades and you can spend Gemstones to set up the Fated List of Minor Prophecies in Zagreus’ room.
Check it in your room to see a full list of little tasks you can complete to earn rewards. Some will reward you with Ambrosia, so go for those ASAP if you want to start romancing a character.
The Wretched Broker at the lounge just south of Zagreus’ room can also offer up Ambrosia from time to time as a trade.
Finally, as you get towards the end of the game, you’ll receive an item called the Pact of Punishment. This item will make your subsequent runs harder and more challenging, often inflicting Zagreus with handicaps and debuffs. However, defeating bosses and completing runs with the Pact of Punishment will reward you with lots of valuable items and resources, including Ambrosia.
In addition to that, you’ll also be consistently rewarded with Ambrosia by defeating the minotaur and Theseus every time you increase your heat level and difficulty with the Pact of Punishment.
All Romance Options in Hades
At the time of writing, these are all of the available romance options that have been discovered in Hades:
- Megaera
- Thanatos
- Skelly
- Sisyphus
- Dusa
- Achilles
That’s all you need to know about romance options and how the romance system works in Hades. Be sure to search for Twinfinite for more tips and information on the game.
