Released in 1999, Heroes of Might & Magic III:The Restoration of Erathia is a turn-based strategy trò chơi developed by New World Computing và first published by the 3DO Company. It got its gameplay inspiration from what is now considered the forerunner for the whole HoMM series, 1990’s King’s Bounty – another turn-based game developed by the same company. In the year it was released, the game achieved high marks all around, going as far as almost winning the best strategy game of the year.
Bạn đang xem: Heroes of might & magic iii hd
Following the same style as its predecessors, the trò chơi is all about collecting resources, developing your centre, creating an army full of fantastical creatures & capturing other towns. The trò chơi received two expansions – 1999’s Armageddon’s Blade &2000’s Shadow of Death –which addedmore campaigns and a ninth faction lớn choose from.
Over the years, there’s been endless arguments over which HoMM trò chơi is the best in the franchise. Although opinions regarding older games can be heavily influenced by nostalgia, many arguments can be made that the third instalment is the best & most important of them.
When it’s Heroes 3 against all the others, Heroes 3 wins
Heroes of Might and Magic III phối out khổng lồ be an updated version of the second trò chơi in the series, without making any drastic changes khổng lồ it. They wanted to lớn take a well loved game và give the fans more of it, and that’s exactly what they did. Without modifying the game play all that much, they gave an extra two factions (3 counting the DLC) và made the creatures available more thematic to each town, even adding an extra unit to lớn them while making sure each had an upgrade. They also added abilities khổng lồ the heroes, allowing them to develop more through battles và giving players a bigger choice in which skills they would learn.
Other additions included subterranean levels, bigger maps & more objectives aside from capturing your adversary’s town(s); you may also need to lớn find the Holy Grail, or capture an abandoned city that is lost somewhere in the map. I’ll never forget when my cousin and I were playing & absolutely destroying my sibling’s armies when they, with one day left to find a new town lớn remain in the game, found the castle that was the map’s main objective, giving them instant victory… RIP. With over 50 skirmish maps & many that allow you to lớn have allies, the third trò chơi is still unmatched in the single và multiplayer scenarios, allowing you lớn quickly amount to lớn over 100 hours ingame.
After finding the perfect formula in Heroes III, Ubisoft only needed to vày what had been done between this và the second game: improve on what existed without trying khổng lồ actually modify key features of the game. The games that followed, although mostly enjoyable were not as addictive. Following the huge success of the third game, Heroes IV had a difficult task ahead from the start and, unfortunately, it didn’t quite succeed. Released in 2002, the game introduced many changes lớn the chơi game that ended up being greatly criticised.
Amongst plenty of complaints about graphics, the change of the battle grid & a significant reduction of creatures và towns available, a big one was about the heroes. They could now attack without magic, but the trò chơi also made it so you could have more than one anh hùng in your army or none at all. With one of the main premises of the game being having a nhân vật (it’s right there, in the title!), mastering either might or magic, that commands armies, taking that away from the players proved to be a very unpopular decision. It did, however, showroom one successful feature: the caravans, which allowed you to send troops recruited around the map to be sent directly khổng lồ your town – something that returned in Heroes V (as an add-on) và Heroes VII.
Heroes V khổng lồ VII saw the franchise go from 2d to full 3D. Though they look very nice (especially the models on VII, which look absurdly good), it felt lượt thích losing the charm Heroes II và III’s art had. It became, in a way, a generic looking 3 chiều game, with graphics a little too similar khổng lồ games like Warcraft 3 – while not a bad thing, it doesn’t stand out as much. After the debacle of Heroes IV, the series reverted closer to Heroes III gameplay, adding some things here & there that, while interesting, didn’t really work that well. Heroes V got a tree system in towns, meaning you could not see all the constructions in the beginning, which hampered planning.
Xem thêm: Cách Vẽ Mắt Hoạt Hình - Cách Để Vẽ Mắt Nhân Vật Hoạt Hình Đơn Giản
Measure of Success
HoMM 3 was a success from the moment it was released, especially for a turn-based game. While more famous RTS titles, such as the highly anticipated Age of Empires II, sold around 2 million copies by January, 2000; Heroes III managed to lớn sell an impressive 1.5 million copies by December 1999, even with its more old-fashioned turn-based style.
Its influence reached so far and for so long that it’s the most streamed of the franchise and the only game in the series lớn get a re-release, which was put out in the asHeroes of Might and Magic VII, in 2015. Coincidentally, there haven’t been any further new HoMM games since then.
More like this:Check out the best strategy gameson PC
The simplicity of 2 chiều maps, popup windows & charming improved art style make the screen quite easy on the eyes. While very colourful & full of little places khổng lồ visit, the maps don’t get overwhelming even after playing for hours on end.
Furthermore, another of the reasons that the game attracted so many people lớn it to begin with, was the improved Hot-Seat multiplayer option. Released at a time when computers were becoming more common in households, but internet only reached around 4.1% of the international population, Heroes provided gamers with an opportunity lớn play a strategic trò chơi with others using only one computer – something that still holds a lot of value today when you can’t use Wi-Fi for some reason or other and want lớn play a trò chơi by yourself or with nearby friends.
The main complaints Heroes III received were regarding its campaign, which was considered broken và oddly paced. Instead of a linear story that would take you through every faction, you instead have five individual ones where you have khổng lồ start all over again each time. They are also not ordered in a rising màn chơi of difficulty, for example having a very hard last mission on an otherwise easy campaign. Although true and disappointing, the campaigns provided by the expansions were a huge improvement, making them more interesting & evenly paced. Nonetheless, the gameplay remained fun through it all.
The legacy of Heroes3
I’ve been arguing that Heroes III is the best of the franchise with each new addition & often heard that it was merely nostalgia. While I recognise that it does play a part in it, it doesn’t change it being the most liked trò chơi in the franchise by fans and critics alike. It is also important lớn look at the context in which it was released, và what it meant to lớn the community at the time. Nowadays, Heroes III is a game that will run on any laptop, even having versions for di động phones và tablets. Its simplicity in style & intuitive frame allows even people who vì not speak English fluently khổng lồ play và actually vị reasonably well in the game.
While the other games tried, they missed the mark with little things here and there – which ultimately doesn’t really stop one from enjoying playing them. I particularly lượt thích Heroes V and VII, despite their glitches and some modifications, I bởi love the graphics & enjoy seeing some of the features and models from the third game in 3 chiều models – even if they thua trận some of its charm. From the get go, however, Heroes III was a game that achieved what it mix out lớn do: an improved, more complete version of its predecessor. It fixed all the small issues Heroes II had, & expanded the universe in a way that made it the well-rounded trò chơi it is.
Great! I am convinced và want khổng lồ buy; where can I do that?
Well, Ubisoft re-released it in 2015 on Steam as a HD edition, but without the DLCs due the loss of their code. It is a big drawback, since it takes away over 10 campaigns from the game. Fortunately, you can purchase the game on GOG (for a lower price và with the two DLCs) and can even choose the bundle with games I thru V for not much more. Although GOG’s is the original & not HD you can just tải về the HD gian lận – and to play it online, you can always use GameRanger.