My background: Started with a demo of HoMM2. Bought everything. I am playing 2 - 4 quite regularly. I don´t play 5, it is a soulless disaster. Bad Userinterface, long waiting times and a ""story"" that is not worth being named that way. I even sometimes go back to HoMM 1! It has it´s flair. HoMM4: Ok, let´s start with the 3 more or less big problems: 1. The very worst AI I´ve ever seen in the series. The computer is just not intelligent enough to put a good hero into a good army. He scouts with big hero-less armies and attacks with 2 high-level heroes without any army °_° Best AI of the series: HoMM 3 (even better in Homm3 complete) 2. The artifacts: The problem already existed in part3. You got to admit it. On a map without an altar you had to carry your 1036 artifacts with you and couldn´t do much about it. So to say I am only missing the altar in HoMM 4. But you could say: In part 4 you always have to handle HUNDREDS of artifacts. Most of them being no use whatsoever. 3. The potions: in your castingmenu you can see the potions nicely stacked. So if you have 100 resurrection-potions... there is a "100". Great. But in your inventory.... omg this must be a bad joke. It is almost unbearable. Point 2 and 3 are caused by the rushing of the publisher to bring the game out. Point 1.... well... the AI wasn´t that good in any part of the series either. Still I gave 5 stars... what the heck? 3DO... there are not many fans out there... And I understand pretty well. You start with weak heroes and they die. But later on they become very strong. And when you discover the resurrection-potions... you can play! I started without an idea into part 4 and had the same frustration like most of the veterans. HoMM4 tries a lot of new things. Of course the balance is difficult with heroes being in the battle themselfs now. But they did quite well with that! Respect for that!!! And no more annyoing gatheringclicks from fairyrings and creaturedwellings! HERE you can become the mightiest hero in all HoMM-Games!! That´s why I give 5 stars!
