In an existential crisis, Zagreus discovers that his entire life had no purpose, struggling to meet his father's expectations and feeling useless to the House for not being able to contribute to the functioning of the Underworld, feeling distant and alienated among the other inhabitants of Hades and having 'nothing to call his own.' Despite this, he finds purpose when he discovers the existence of his true mother, long lost, Persephone, and decides to escape the realm of the dead to find answers about her and himself.

Zagreus is characterized by his good humor, humility, kindness, and relentless persistence, with a tendency towards self-deprecation and a complex about the fact that he 'bleeds red.' Having spent most of his immortal life enduring frustration and repressed anger from his toxic upbringing, Zagreus is determined and will do anything to escape his infernal prison. His personality does not reflect anything from the place he comes from. Zagreus is the Prince of the Underworld and the rebellious son of Hades. These battles, combined with the dangerous landscape of the Underworld, serve to bring a painful end to Zagreus's escape attempts sooner or later. He is mostly faced with various aggressive shades working for his father, but he also has run-ins with the Furies ( Alecto, Tisiphone and Megaera), the skeletal remains of the Lernaean Hydra, and the champion of Elysium, Theseus, and his friend, Asterius, in order to arrive at the Temple of Styx. Zagreus is met with numerous obstacles throughout the realms of Tartarus, Asphodel, Elysium, and the Temple of Styx. Others outside the House of Hades, such as Sisyphus, Charon, and the Olympians sometimes offer their aid as well.

He is aided and encouraged in his journey, primarily by his caretaker Nyx and his mentor Achilles. Sometime before the start of the game he decides, against his father's will, to escape from the Underworld-no matter how many tries it might take him. Zagreus has always had a sense that he doesn't belong in the House of Hades. Darren Korb Zagreus, Prince of the Underworld, is the son of Hades and is the protagonist of the game Hades.

Charon hades faction icon