Okay first of all, I'm not delusional. MM9 is not nearly as good as the others in the series. It definitely feels unfinished. But I have been playing it for a few hours and I think, huh, there must be something to that.

If I can use a strange analogy, I think the earlier games in the series are like a girlfriend, just really cool. MM9 is kind of like that same girlfriend, after you've broken up for a year, and she comes and visits. But also she has a coke habit. It's like, wow, I missed her, she's still kinda cool... but damn, that coke problem...

So, I'd say, for fans of the series, it's actually still got a lot of that same charm. But it's the same charm with a bad drug habit. Just, not really there. I am def glad I bought it though. I have the patience to slog through the bad interface, the weird design decisions, the feeling of incompleteness. It really does feel like a legit M&M game. but more like a fan game that didn't get completed.

I like it, maybe a 6/10. I'll probably only play it once, though. This is NOT the game to recommend for a new person to the series. If you're a fan, get it on the cheap. At least it's a bit interesting.

I'm playing all the MM games in (release) order, so it's on my list after I finish HoMM 4.

Interesting analogy.

That's a hell of an analogy.

But in all seriousness, I've stated before that Might and Magic IX is far better than any blatantly unfinished game has the right to be. It might be ugly, bland, and a touch boring, but underneath the muck it's still a competent, if underwhelming, Might and Magic game. You can't really say the same for a couple of other ill-fated final installments of popular RPG series.

It really isn't too bad if you take it for what it's worth. Not the best, obviously, not even Might and Magic, in some respects, but as a stand alone game it's decent enough.

That unmoving elf girl in the inn who says "ready to tip one back" gives me the creeps every time, however. This game defined the Uncanny Valley.

I lost interest in the series at MM6....I just couldn't handle the change from turn-based combat, I'm no good at it.

Regardless, years later (decades, really), I looked up the different MMs that followed & I actually liked the concept in Class progression for MM9. I thought it was a rather bold attempt at something different from previous MMs, and that the concept made sense to me...."Brand new to adventuring? What's your focus, might or magic?"

I played it mostly in turn-based mode. I imagine it would be impossible to play MM6+ in real-time all of the time.

I was sort of okay with the class progression, but it's a little messy in practice. It's just more straightforward to pick "Cleric" one time, than "Intitiate -> Scholar -> Healer", and all the hoops that come with it.

When I was a kid I never used the turn-based mode, yet I still eventually beat 6 and 8 (never had 7 at that time). It's not that hard if you grind enough :>

Having not played 9 at all, the worst looking part of the game seems to be the interface. Those heads on the sides take up so much space, and the inventory....
If only it had enough time to develop.

actually played and finished all of these games without ever using the turn based mode.

I actually like 9 enough to have played through it multiple times. It is absolutely unfinished and ugly, but at the same time I find it just as fun and familiar to play as 6-8. A few things about it are incredibly frustrating, like that one city where your map doesn't actually represent where you are properly on it and a whole bunch of other quality of life type things. It also suffers from poor enemy design in a few cases, most notably those things early on that are all over the roof of the sewers that spew out new creatures constantly. Still, you can really see the potential for the new engine, and it's a shame it never really got a chance.

A certain other series that also reached its 9th sequel, certainly. Wizardry 8 was excellent despite being (at best) little better graphically than M&M 9.

I have to admit that I also somehow like MM9. I "wasted" already over 80h playing it. Certainly it has many problems but it is still entertaining. And concerning the graphics: if any of us would really care about eyecandy, no one of us would play old games, right?

Ultima 9 was way worse than MM9, really.

Plan on starting it soon myself...

And finished. Plan to write a few words about my impressions soon.