Why is Chaos my favorite character in Hades?
There are many delicious, hilarious, empathetic, driven, and relatable characters in Hades. But when looking at this glorious cast, Chaos is the wicked friend that I want to sit next to at a party. Or… if I am very honest, who I want to be at a party!
They are beautiful, they are mystical, they are powerful! And I wonder, can I possibly be that compellingly relevant in my old age?
My initial attraction to Chaos comes from her bitchiness and amusement at the foibles of others. Before we even know who Chaos is, their opening gambit is “…The Olympians have all grown soft.. would you not agree?” How does one respond to that tidbit? Chaos soon follows with “I sensed a certain rumbling here within the bowels of the earth. It is as though it had ingested something that did not sit well… perhaps the earth itself wishes to spit you up and out…?” Ummm, did they just call Zagreus, my player avatar, and therefore me, uh… vomit?!? I’m insulted, afraid, and intrigued all at once.
The heart of loving Chaos is their willingness to help Zagreus achieve his dream of escaping the Underworld, albeit in their own twisted way. Each of Chaos’ boons comes with a sting. If you, the player, are willing to select and endure a penalty of Chaos’ design, then Chaos will help you. I love figuring out which of the penalties I can withstand. How would I like my pain? I can handle being a sloth. I can handle not knowing what reward I will achieve, but I cannot handle extra foes or damage. I’m strategic. I am not good at combat. I play Hades for the characters and the stories. Visiting Chaos forces me to look at myself as a player.
The undertone that finally hooked me is when Chaos is self-reflective. Regarding Nyx, Chaos says “Though, it has been a while since we last communicated, and I fear… well, I was not the charitable sort, back then. It is my hope that Nyx is faring well.” When I heard this, I felt the bittersweet wisdom that comes with age, recognizing I’ve made mistakes in the long ago past. Feeling this, I knew that Chaos was my crone power fantasy: bitchy, omnipotent in a twisted way, and ultimately very aware of themselves and their place in the universe.
The realm of games, traditionally the space of youth, has evolved at the right moment in time to allow me a late-age creative renaissance. I’m finding my soon-to-be crone-relevance without the need of twisting the fate of others… except perhaps in game play!