Heroes of Might and Magic® 5: Bundle

I'll start by saying the same thing that no doubt most of the reviews for this game will say: Heroes 5 is not Heroes 3. That being said, it sure does try hard to fool you. That might be unfair, as HOMM 5 isn't openly deceptive. Rather, it's a repackaging of many of the core gameplay mechanics from the series' perennial instalment with a few updates. Considering the controversy that erupted over Heroes 4, this will likely come as a relief to a lot of Heroes fans, however the question remains: Is it worth purchasing? To its credit, the game does offer some solid improvements over Heroes 3. Most notable is the skill system, which allows each hero to take three "sub-skills" for every secondary skill. So for example, skills such as Navigation and Scouting are now sub-skills of Logistics, allowing the player to pick those skills when necessary without having to miss out on other secondary skills. This adds a new level of depth to hero development and helps balance out the skill trees a bit. Adding to the flavour, each town now has it's own unique special ability. The Necromancers can raise the dead, of course, while the Haven can train lower level units up to higher levels for a fee, and the Inferno can summon in reinforcements who disappear at the end of battle. Some of these abilities become very interesting, such as the Academy who can create artifacts to enchant their soldiers. This diversifies the towns and allows for more strategic options. The Tribes of the East expansion also adds alternate upgrades for every unit, and while the distinctions are usually fairly minor, this still adds an additional layer of strategy to the recruitment process. For example, when upgrading your Archers, you can choose either the Marksman, who ignores enemy defense at close range, or the Crossbowman, who ignores range penalties. Not everything about HOMM 5 is good, though. First, and most notable, is the campaign. The quality of the voice-acting, story, and cutscenes is painful at times, but more noticeable is the bizarre change of setting. Fans of both the HOMM and M&M series will be disappointed to find themselves transported into a much more generic fantasy world, that at times feels like Warcraft-lite. Distinctive factions, such as the collection of subterranean monsters that was HOMM 3's Dungeon, or the mysterious swamp creatures of the Fortress, have been replaced with the standard fantasy fare of Dark Elves and Dwarves (respectively). While this might seem like a cosmetic change, atmosphere is a significant part of fantasy TBS, and the series lost a great deal of its charm with this instalment. Conversely, aside from the special abilities, many of the towns themselves have an awfully familiar ring to them. Specifically Haven, Academy and Necropolis are nearly identical to their HOMM 3 counterparts, while Sylvan seems suspiciously similar to HOMM 2's Sorceress town. As a result, many of the towns end up feeling rehashed from past games, just more dull. Additionally, the new "Town Points" system, in which each building requires a certain amount of other buildings to be built first. For example, the Castle, Capitol and top tier creature dwelling each require 15 points, and so likely will not be available until late second or early third week. This may seem balancing, but in the end it only forces players to adapt the same build orders over and over again, rather than allowing them to diversify between economic and military development depending on the situation. The 3D is no doubt a controversial decision as well. While I never had an issue with it, some have found that it makes the game too clunky. All in all, however, even though Heroes 5 has its flaws, and hasn't quite got the same depth or level of immersion as Heroes 3, its core gameplay is nonetheless still quite enjoyable, and fans of fantasy TBS would be doing themselves a favour to pick it up. Long-time Heroes fans, if they are able to look past the butchering of the game world and a few issues here and there, will end up finding the same classic gameplay that they grew to love, with a few tweaks and improvements that they may come to appreciate.

Trust me when I say, it's best if you don't criticize a game by its predecessors. "It's not as good as HOMM3, therefore it sucks!" so says the rabble, but you and I know better, right? At this point of our lives, we're grown fat ass men and women who, of course, regard their childhood games as unparalleled gems. As things that will never be surpassed simply because we grew up with these titles. Searching for something BETTER than your childhood memories is like asking for a second chance to become a kid again, and let's face it, the only thing that makes us quiver like little gremlins are mechas and giant monsters fighting one another, but I'm getting off topic here. This game is highly worth it. Why? Because I freaking say so, that's why! Forget about HOMM3, stop comparing this underrated gem to an overrated gem, because you'll never find peace between them. If you really want to enjoy this, or any game, you need to think outside the box. This game is not revolutionary, nor is its graphics beyond its time. It's an old game, for an audience of another generation, just like HOMM3 is to the OLDER generation. All I can truly tell to you, dear reader, is: This game is worth it.

Heroes of Might and Magic 5 was my first entry in the entire Might and Magic franchise after I found a physical copy at a garage sale years ago. At the time, I knew nothing of the franchise. I only knew that the Might and Magic series was pretty famous. Thankfully, that blind purchase turned out very well. HoMM5, like all of the HoMM titles, brilliantly combines turn-based strategy gameplay with some RPG mechanics and light managerial sim gameplay. However, unlike previous games which I found somewhat difficult to delve into, this one is a lot more friendly toward beginners. You get a solid tutorial that is just enough to get you going. After that, you're given free reign to play through the story however you want. I'm not typically a fan of turn-based games (excluding 4X, which almost never works with realtime unless it's Stellaris) but this game does it very well. The combat feels truly tactical, with placement and smart use of your units' abilities making for really enjoyable strategic gameplay. On top of that, the story -- while not anything particularly outstanding -- is long and split into different campaigns, each of which almost feels like a game of its own. My personal favorite is, funnily enough, the first campaign where you play as the newly-married Queen Isabel after an incident that led to her wedding celebrations being cut short as her new husband's kingdom is plunged into disarray. She's a great combination of femininity and strong leadership, which are the types of female characters I find most compelling. To tie everything together, the game has a really gorgeous art style along with a whimsical soundtrack, both of which come together to fill the player with a sense of wonder as they explore the world. I always feel outright HAPPY when I play this game and a major part of that are the visuals and audio. Altogether, if you enjoy RPGs and strategy games, this is a great place to try out the HoMM series!

HoMM 3 might still reign supreme, but HoMM 5 translates all that magic to 3D pretty well. Especially with the expansion packs, there is tons of content and variety. Just make sure you use the free HoMM 5.5 Mod, which is kinda like the HD mod is for HoMM 3: a must ! The skill-progression with unique abilities (and skill-wheel in H5.5) is definitely a nice improvement compared to HoMM 3, improving replaybility and tactical diversity. Audio and visuals are great, and the world map aged very nicely for a 3D game; it might lack the 4K resolution sharpness of the latest current gen games, but it has charm and is very colourful. The only small downside is that sometimes you can't see all interactive objects on the map without moving the camera around. The biggest downsides of the game have all been addressed with the H5.5 patch (compatibility, skillwheel, super fast AI, simulataneous turns, detailed Random Map Generator options), and with that in mind it's a 5 out 5 stars for me without a doubt; have been enjoying this game for 15+ years now.