Hades and the Ancient World in Videogames
Date: Monday, November 2, 2026
Time: 6:00 p.m. EST
Location: Center for Hellenic Studies, 3100 Whitehaven Street, Washington, DC 20008 and via Zoom
Please join us for a conversation on the smash-hit games Hades and Hades II, featuring two leading scholars on the reception of the ancient world in video games.
Released in 2020, the video game Hades has the player control Zagreus, the son of Hades, as he fights his way out of the Underworld. Since its release, this roguelike dungeon crawler has received abundant scholarly attention from a range of critical perspectives. Such interest has only grown with the recent release of its acclaimed sequel, Hades II.
Intended primarily for a public audience, this conversation takes Hades and Hades II as an entry point into the field of classical reception in video games. With CHS Director Naomi Weiss as moderator, scholars Kate Cook (King’s College London) and Alexander Vandewalle (Ghent University) will discuss these hugely popular games’ approach to ancient myth and the reactions they’ve drawn from the media, gamers, and academics alike. From there, they will reflect on the study of the ancient world in video games: its past, present, and future.
“Playing with Gods” is part of the CHS’s “Classics and Pop Culture” event series. This public-facing initiative bridges scholarly and creative perspectives on the ancient world through a focus on antiquity in modern media.
This conversation will be held jointly in-person and via Zoom, with a Q+A to follow. Registration is required. Please note that we have limited seats for in-person attendance. Following the event, a recording will be posted on the CHS YouTube channel.
In-person registration details forthcoming.