If you’re fresh out of the cinema after watching Christopher Nolan’s The Odyssey and you’re looking into reading the actual poem or many of its prose versions, then I’d say do it. But today, we’re going to talk about an alternative art form. Here are some video games you should play if you wish to scratch that itch that Nolan’s adaptation of the Homer epic left in your soul.
Assassin’s Creed Odyssey
This one was almost a given, and you most likely expected it to appear in such a list. Assassin’s Creed Odyssey, loved or hated, places you in the same region where Odysseus lost himself for years before returning to his home in Ithaka. The stakes are similarly high, and while centuries set Kassandra or Alexios apart from the Greek hero or even Homer, you do end up spawning on the island of Kephallonia, right next to the one Odysseus once ruled over as king.
Hades 2
Whether you like roguelites or not, Hades 2 is arguably a very addictive game. A sequel, this game features a bunch of characters from Homer’s epic. You can talk to Circe, you can fight Polyphemus, and you can even encounter Odysseus himself and partner with him to fight Kronos. Overall, a very free interpretation of Greek mythology that will keep your thumbs sore and your Odyssean needs fulfilled.
God of War (Greek Games)
Now, it was a god’s curse that caused Odysseus to wander the seas aimlessly and lose all of his men in a variety of traumatic events. How could we counter that? Well, to kill every single Greek god you come across, of course. Kratos in the original God of War trilogy and its spin-off games is most definitely not the father-figure he transforms into during the Norse games, and he proves it in very gory deity genocidal traits. So, if you wish to avenge Odysseus by slaughtering Poseidon, you most definitely can.
Immortals Fenyx Rising
If you think murdering gods is just a little over the top (it might as well be), then Immortals Fenyx Rising might be what you’re looking for. A Breath of the Wild in a Greek setting, for better and for worse, Fenyx, the protagonist, must restore each of the Greek gods to their former glory to defeat Typhon, who managed to escape his imprisonment and dominate the Greek pantheon while at it.
Age of Mythology
With a few creative liberties here and there, playing through the Trojan War and part of the Odyssey in Age of Mythology is one of my all-time favorite memories. AoM is perhaps one of my favorite games of all time because it combines my love for Age of Empires and RTSs in general with Greek gods and mythical creatures (Egyptian, Norse, and Atlantean, too). With Retold, playing this game nowadays is a no-brainer, so give it a chance to blow you away, as Poseidon did with Odysseus’ ship.
Bonus: Super Mario Odyssey
Now, now, I get why someone might frown upon the inclusion of a Mario game in a “Hey, you liked The Odyssey, play these games” type of list. But the similarities between the two stories don’t stop at their names. Just think about it: a protagonist forced to go from location to location to prevent an evil third party from marrying their significant other? Now that’s what I call inspiration! And no, The Odyssey doesn’t have Moe-Eyes or Magmatos, but if Homer were alive (or real at all), he’d probably enjoy Nintendo’s game regardless.
