Heroes of Might and Magic® 3: Complete

The HOMM series drew me in with the 2nd game, and had me hooked from the very first demo map I played from my PC Gamer demo CD. When 3 came out, I wasn't sure I liked the more serious graphics and change of art style, but soon, I was playing it non-stop. I've owned at least four copies of this game, but finally when GOG released the DRM/CD-free version, I was onboard as quickly as I could type in my credit card number. I've played this game for 15 years now, on and off, and when I need a good game to put on a laptop and take with me for an airplane ride or a business trip, this is the game I go to. Now if only they would release a version for the Mac! My kids now play this game, they introduce it to their friends, play hotseat around the computer at home with them, and spread the joy. This is one of the few games my wife plays with me (she's not a gamer)! Forget the fancy 3D graphics of Heroes V or VI, save your CPU and GPU and just go for this one. It's got everything you need.

Compare with STEAM and GOG version = STEAM version= 1. Only one good thing is "HD Edition" 2. But do not have expansion pack 3. Do not have Cloud save 4. The worst is do not have RANDOM MAP GENERATOR = GOG version (This version) = 1. This is not "HD Edition" but classic (No problem, I very love classic) 2. Have all expansion pack 3. Have Cloud save 4. **The BEST is RANDOM MAP GENERATOR** I decide to buy "GOG version (This version)" because of RANDOM MAP GENERATOR not for expansion pack, not for cloud save, not price (I got this game for $ 2.49 (from $ 9.99)) "Random Map Generator" is the best. "Random Map Generator" rule the world.

I'm terrible at this game, could lose a match to normal level AI, yet I still love playing it ever since I first played it at my friend's house when I was 12. It's complex, there's a lot of broken strategies and the game wants you to use them, that's why its fun! Unlike the remaster, this has all the expansions and if you take the few extra steps to mod the game, it's basically a better remaster than the actual remaster. It has a charming aesthetic that still looks good today! Download the HD and HoTA mods here and you're good to go: https://www.gog.com/forum/heroes_of_might_and_magic_series/heroes_iii_multiplayer_online The HoTA mod is like an unofficial expansion pack and makes minor balancing changes, but don't worry all the broken stuff that makes the game fun is still in the game. Alternatively you can use Tunngle or something and play using local multiplayer, but 2000+ people still play it online using the HoTA mod, despite being a 20+ year old game. Latency is not an issue, it's turn-based anyways. Plus, you can create save files for multiplayer games too! I never played online multiplayer back in the day because I'm bad, I just used the random map generator and played against AI, which gives this game it a ridiculous amount of replayablility, kinda like a CiV game.

After the older Heroes of Might and Magic 2, this is my next favorite turn-based fantasy strategy game. Like the previous game, this game has fantastic music and aesthetics, and incorporates a variety of magical creatures from different myths and religions of the world such as Greek Titans and Minotaurs, to Genies and other creatures from middle eastern cultures, as well as other magical and medieval creatures like wizards, druids, crusaders, etc. This game also seems to bring in creatures from the Christian religion like Angels and Devils as well. I would recommend playing Heroes of Might and Magic 2 first if you are new to the series because it's the best and will familiarize yourself with the game world before moving on to the newer game, particularly if you're playing the single player campaign (which isn't that great imo). The way I most enjoy playing this are the single player skirmish scenarios vs the AI. This is old, but it's a classic. This is the sort of game I still play with friends who used to play this with me in decades past because it's still quite fun even decades later. People will argue over which is the best in the series, but I think the general consensus in my experience is that Heroes 2 and Heroes 3 are the best (by far). If you like medieval fantasy and turn-based strategy games like Civilization 5 or something like that, don't hesitate to buy this! I strongly recommend it.

I'm astounded by how much enjoyment this game still brings me. I've sunk so many hours and will probably sink a ton more as time goes on. This review is with the expectation that you're already familiar with the game or the series as a whole. With that being said, I greatly insist on installing the HD Mod and Horn of the Abyss fan expansion. The HD Mod is a necessity in order to play on modern resolutions, while Horn of the Abyss offers tons of improvements, reasonable balance adjustments, new items, units, tons of new map objectives and a brand new faction with its own story mode. A lot of people struggle with HoMM or the genre in general, because you have to control multiple heroes. However, there is now a very well refined single hero map template, called Duel, which brings all the fun of the series and compacts it into a very replayable, 1-2hour long session, based on how loosely you follow the rules.