Locations in Hades 2 are linked together by doors or gates. Each bears a symbol indicating what’s on the other side of it. You often get a choice of two or more doors, so it’s good to know what the symbols mean.
The door symbols (or “location previews” as the game calls them) in Hades 2 can be grouped into six different types: Boons, Upgrades, Resources, Guardian Bosses, Routes, and the smaller symbols that sometimes accompany the main symbols. Most of them tell you what your reward will be for defeating all the enemies in the next location, but sometimes you get the reward without a fight, and some symbols refer to your upcoming opponent instead.
Some doors bear two or three different symbols, which means all three of those rewards are available in the next location, and some feature two or three of the same symbol, which means you’ll get a double- or triple-sized reward.
All Olympian God Boon door symbols in Hades 2
The most common and varied door symbols in Hades 2 are those that correspond to one of the eleven Olympian gods. Usually, you’ll have to defeat a few waves of enemies before you can summon the god in question and select from a choice of three Boons.
| God | Symbol | Description |
| Aphrodite |  | The Goddess of Love offers Boons that inflict enemies with the Weak debuff and ones that create Heartthrobs. |
| Apollo |  | As the God of Light, Apollo specializes in Boons that cause Daze and increase the area-of-effect of your skills. |
| Chaos |  | The Primordial Originator works differently to the Olympian Gods. This eyes symbol is displayed on sealed gates to the realm of Chaos, and on doors with hidden previews (due to Chaos’ Enshrouded Discovery Boon). Unsealed Chaos gates are open with black smoke pouring out. |
| Demeter |  | The Goddess of Seasons offers Boons that allow you to harness the powers of ice and wind. |
| Hephaestus |  | Boons from the God of the Forge mostly either add blast effects to your attacks or grant you increased protection. |
| Hera |  | As the Queen of the Olympians, Hera grants Boons that add the Hitch effect to enemies, and those that affect the rarity of your other Boons. |
| Hermes |  | The fast-talking God of Swiftness specializes in Boons that increase attack and movement speed, and ones that improve your Dodge chance. |
| Hestia |  | The Goddess of Flame adds a burning Scorch effect to your skills, and adds various additional fireballs and fiery effects. |
| Poseidon |  | As the God of the Sea, Poseidon can improve your resource finds and add Splash and Slips effects to your skills. |
| Selene |  | On your first encounter with the Moon Incarnate, she will grant you a Hex. Later, you can upgrade your Hex using the Path of Stars. |
| Zeus |  | The King of the Olympians is also the God of Thunder as a side gig. And so he offers Boons that add lightning bolts to your skills. |
All Upgrade door symbols in Hades 2
The six types of Upgrade locations in Hades improve your existing stats, weapons, and Boons in various ways. You may get the upgrade for free, as a reward for defeating enemies, or in return for payment.
| Upgrade | Symbol | Description |
| Centaur Heart |  | As someone who’s bad at avoiding damage, this is a personal favorite of mine. Increases your Max Health. |
| Charon’s Shop |  | Lord Charon sells three randomly selected items that you can buy with Gold Crowns. |
| Daedalus Hammer |  | Upgrades your weapon, offering different upgrades tailored to each one. |
| NPC Encounter |  | In the next location you’ll meet either Arachne, Narcissus, Echo, or Circe (depending on which realm you’re in), and they’ll give you a free, unique Upgrade. |
| Pom of Power |  | This magical pomegranate lets you level up one of your Boons. |
| Soul Tonic |  | This bottle, adorned with a pentagram, increases your Max Magicka. |
All Resource door symbols in Hades 2
There are a lot of Resources in Hades 2, and five of the most common and most useful ones can be obtained as location rewards. If a location will grant you a quantity of a specific Resource when you defeat all of its enemies, then its door will be marked by the symbol of that Resource.
| Resource | Symbol | Description |
| Ashes |  | Used to unlock Arcana Cards, although you can’t equip them unless your Grasp is high enough, so I always choose Psyche over Ashes. Also used in some Incantations. |
| Bones |  | This is the Wretched Broker’s currency of choice. Use it to buy Ashes, Psyche, and Fate Fabric. |
| Gold Crowns |  | Lord Charon only accepts Gold Crowns at his shops and wells located in the Underworld and on the Surface. |
| Nectar |  | This is the most common gift that you can give to Olypians and other NPCs to improve your affinity with them. It’s also used in some Incantations. |
| Psyche |  | This is the one Resource I always want more of. It’s mainly used to increase your Grasp (which costs a lot), but you’ll also need it for some Incantations and Weapon Aspects. |
All Guardian Boss door symbols in Hades 2
Just like most other doors, the Guardian Boss doors bear the symbol of the reward you get for winning the battle in the next location—but these fights are much harder, with unique rewards.
| Guardian Boss | Symbol | Description |
| Headmistress Hecate |  | Every time you defeat Headmistress Hecate and her two illusory clones, you get a Cinder. |
| Scylla and the Sirens |  | Scylla and the Sirens is the Underworld’s biggest, loudest rock band. Every time you defeat them, you get a Pearl. |
| Infernal Cerberus |  | Infernal Cerberus is a good doggie gone bad. You get one unit of Tears every time you defeat him. |
| Polyphemus |  | Polyphemus is the first of the two Surface Guardian Bosses. He’s a Cyclops with an insatiable appetite for sheep and who drops Wool each time you send him back to sleep. |
| Eris, Strife Incarnate |  | If you’re better at Hades 2 than I am, then you’ll encounter Eris whenever the game decides you’re playing just a little too well. If not, then you’ll encounter her in the final location of the Surface. And if you defeat her, your reward will be a Golden Apple. |
| Chronos, Titan of Time |  | The Hades 2 Early Access welcome message signs off with “Good luck killing Time.” And this is a clue to the identity of the game’s current final boss: Chronos, Titan of Time. Each time you kill Chronos, you get Zodiac Sand. |
All Route door symbols in Hades 2
Sometimes, the door symbols in Hades 2 are simply telling you, “This way out.” But some routes are locked, and some take a little more explaining than others.
| Route | Symbol | Description |
| Exit |  | In some locations (e.g. after defeating a Guardian), the only way out will be marked with an arrow. In the Underworld, the arrows point down, and on the Surface, they point ahead. These arrows are basically just exit signs. |
| Express Route |  | At some point in Tartarus, the final stage of the Underworld, you’ll come to a door with this lock symbol on it (although you don’t need a key). Unseal this gate and the symbol will change to a Roman numeral (III, IV, or V), and you’ll get a message telling you that the Express Route has been unlocked. If you want to reach Chronos as fast as possible, then keep using the doors marked with numeral symbols. If you want to take your time and buff up as much as possible, ignore the numerals. |
| Sealed Gate |  | In Oceanus, some gates are marked with locks that look like this, which means that it’s sealed. There’s always at least one unsealed gate nearby too. If you like the look of one of the unsealed doors, then proceed through it. But if you don’t, then you can unseal one of the sealed doors to reveal its symbol and open it up. The catch is that unsealing a sealed door draws the attention of a fresh wave of enemies. |
All small door symbols in Hades 2
So, I’ve now covered all 31 of the different types of main door symbols in Hades 2. But eagle-eyed Underworld explorers will have noticed that there are three smaller symbols that sometimes appear on doors just underneath the main one. And here’s what each of them means.
| Meaning | Symbol | Description |
| Guardian Boss |  | The red demon/devil symbol tells you that the next location is inhabited by a powerful Guardian boss. So, you know, you might literally want to ask the Gods for some help right about now. |
| Fated List |  | This symbol comes up pretty rarely and, in Early Access at least, a little inconsistently. And that’s my excuse for not getting an actual screenshot of it. It is essentially a miniature version of the Fated List of Minor Prophecies found at the Crossroads. Each Prophecy is a meta-quest that rewards you for collecting a certain number of things, or all of a certain type. The Fated List door symbol indicates that a Prophecy objective awaits in the location beyond the door. |
| Warden Boss |  | This little skull indicates that you’ll be up against a Warden mini-boss in the next location. Wardens are nowhere near as tough as Guardians, but they still present a challenge for new players. |
