Gods & Monsters is an epic new game from the creative team behind Assassin's Creed: Odyssey.
In this game, players take on the role of a hero called upon to save the gods in their hour of need. Most of the trailers have focused on the gorgeous painterly world where the game takes place. However, what draws most of us to this game is the key element of the title: monsters! What monsters can we expect to see in this lush storybook adventure? Creator Ubisoft hasn't revealed all the monsters that are likely to be in the game, but here's a combination of what has been revealed and what we might see based on the mythological context.
10 Harpies
The harpies are featured prominently in the game's launch trailer. They seem like they are likely a low-level villain encountered early in the game. Harpies are usually described as being half-woman and half-vulture, and the vision for this game holds up that description while giving them a unique appearance. In Greek mythology, the harpies normally snatched up wrongdoers and brought them to the cave of the furies, where they received their punishment. It seems the harpies in this game aren't in the service of the gods at all.
9 Gorgons
Gorgons are another creature that has been revealed from the basic game information. The gorgons are also feminine creatures. They had snakes for hair, huge teeth, and protruding tongues. These terrible beasts were so hideous that everyone who looked at them was petrified with fear. In Greek mythology there were three gorgons, and only the most famous one (Medusa) was mortal.
It seems unlikely that the game makers are going to give us two unkillable enemies. Otherwise, the representation of the gorgon seems to fit the mythological description, making it a suitably frightening adversary.
8 Cyclops
Ubisoft revealed that your hero will fight cyclops to help save the gods. This is exciting because the cyclops are among the most terrible and powerful creatures in Greek mythology. The most well-known cyclops is Polyphemus (whose name literally means "famous"). Polyphemus was a giant who grabbed men, bashed their skulls in, and ate them. He could throw boulders great distances, and was a fearsome fighter (though not too bright). The cyclops in Assassin's Creed: Odyssey is a considerable challenge, and we expect the one in Gods & Monsters will be, too.
7 Echidna
Now we get into some speculative territory. Ubisoft hasn't revealed that Echidna will be in the game, but it would be cool if she were. While most of us know echidnas as the spiny Australian anteaters (and Sonic's nemesis Knuckles), Echidna was a terrible and powerful beast in Greek mythology. She was half beautiful woman and half speckled serpent. She was the mother of many monsters in Greek mythology, and the mate of Typhon (the big bad of the game--more about him later). No hero could slay her--she was killed by the hundred-eyed giant Argus.
6 Cerberus
Cerberus is one of the most famous of Echidna and Typhon's children. This hound of Hades is usually depicted as having three heads, though in some myths it has 50. It is often linked with Anubis, the Egyptian god of the dead. This is another monster that appeared in Assassin's Creed: Odyssey, where it was a fire-breathing beast of incredible power.
Cerberus normally guards the underworld, and any Greek mythology game that doesn't let you visit the underworld is missing a great opportunity. Defeating Cerberus was one of the 12 labors of Hercules, so defeating this beast automatically puts you in the rank of elite heroes.
5 Orthrus
Orthrus is another dog creature spawned of Echidna and Typhon. Orthrus has two heads. This comes from his association with Sirius, which signaled the new year in Athens. At one time the Athenian year had two seasons, represented by each head. This terrible beast also lay with his mother and had several children by her, including the Nemean lion, the chimera, the sphinx, and (in some sources) the hydra. Orthrus was the guard dog of Geryon, who in some sources had three heads and in others three bodies.
4 Sphinx
The sphinx appears in both Greek and Egyptian mythology. In Greek mythology, the sphinx is the child of Ortrhus and Echidna. It poses riddles to travelers, and when they can't answer the question, it devours them. She has a woman's head, a lion's body, a serpent's tail, and eagle's wings.
In combat, she is a fearsome foe and was never defeated. However, when her riddle was solved, she threw herself to her death. In Assassin's Creed: Odyssey, they used a fairly traditional-looking sphinx, but with a fully feathered body and a snake for a tail, rather than a snake's tail.
3 Hydra
The hydra is another beast that Ubisoft has revealed will be in Gods & Monsters. Like Cerberus, the hydra was a child of Echidna and Typhon. This snake-like monster may have had eight or nine heads, but some accounts give it 50 or more. Every time a head was cut off, it grew two or three in its place. Plus, one of its heads was immortal. It was also so venomous that just smelling its tracks could kill. Mythological sources give it a dog-like body, but it's usually depicted as being a serpent-like monster. Ubisoft mentions that you might fight multiple hydras in the game.
2 Chimera
The chimera is one of the most fearsome beasts in Greek mythology. Traditionally, the fire-breathing monster has the head of a lion, the body of a goat, and the tail of a serpent. However, modern depictions (and some classical ones) give the creature two or three heads.
In some stories, the beast's hide could not be pierced with any weapon. In order to slay it, the hero Bellerophon, who tamed Pegasus, put lead in the monster's mouth. When her fiery breath melted the lead, it trickled into the beast's belly, killing it.
1 Typhon
We know that Typhon is the main enemy in Gods & Monsters. He is truly a beast capable of defeating the gods. He was the child of Gaea, born after the gods killed her other children, the giants. Typhon's arms spanned three hundred and fifty miles across, and ended in numerous serpent's heads rather than hands. His wings darkened the sky, and from the thighs down, he was all coiled serpents.
When Typhon emerged, almost all the gods fled in terror, with only Athena holding her ground. When Zeus did fight Typhon, he was defeated, and the monster tore the sinews from his hand so he could not wield his thunderbolt. This epic defeat of the gods likely sets the stage for the game, giving your hero the opportunity to restore to the gods what they could not defend for themselves.