SCORE:
Gameplay: 8
Graphics: 8
Sound: 8
Overall: 8
Pros: Interesting combat, a variety of features to further customise and personalise your own army.
Cons: Only two factions currently available, slight lagging in areas.
Some days ago, we had look Ubisoft’s newest free-to-play browser MMO title Might & Magic Heroes Online, where tactical combat strategy meets MMORPG and players are tasked with leading their own army in one of two powerful factions as they advance through an epic story of war and conflict.
Entering the game world for the very first time, we were faced with the choice between 2 different organisations that are key factions within the Might & Magic franchise: Haven or Necropolis. Despite the scare information initially available, the faction you opt for largely determines the major story arc you will advance through, the sort of quests you will receive as well as the hero you will control, their abilities, the unit types your army will be made up of, which generally leads to 2 pretty different styles of play.
We then were allowed to select our hero’s class from 2 different options available for each faction: a Hero of Might and a Hero of Magic. For we went with the malevolent Necropolis faction, we were able to choose between the Necromancer and the Death Knight, of which we decided for the former. While each hero possesses their own combat style and abilities, most of the time, you will mainly rely on your actual troops comprising your personal army to do most of the combat. The minimal character customisation options only allowed us to either decide for a female or a male character and to choose from 3 different colours for our costume and 3 different portraits before we headed into the game.
The scene opens up during an attack on what appears to be a Haven stronghold: at the front, a huge Griffen Guardian blocks a gate and we are forced to fight him, getting our first taste of battle and gently walking through the process. During combat, an instance-based map loads up, consisting of different hexes with various terrain features that add to the tactical element of the battle as players manoeuvre around them blocking line of sight for attacks and outmanoeuvring enemy troops to gain flanking and backstab advantages.
All troops are assigned a random initiative order determining the order in which they will be able to perform any actions during the fight. In addition to both sides taking it in turns, they also have the opportunity to have several troops perform before it’s their opponents turn. Each turn, the player’s hero is able to attack and perform special abilities against enemy units on the battlefield or to buffs their personal troops from the sideline. Battle continues until one side has lost all its units and is unable to carry on and the winner gains XP as well as occasionally other rewards, e.g. in-game currency or the premium currency in form of Seals.
When we entered the main part of the game which was populated with other players, we were able to pick up our first quest. Moving across the game world pretty much resembles movement in a traditional isometric top-down RPG, whereas the entirety of battles takes place in instance-based areas. However, players may still team up with each other to form parties and combine their armies in order to defeat their foes.
The earliest quest we received tasked us with settling our personal city which is shown in the game world though. However, you have your personal menu that allows you to construct a variety of buildings to enhance and bolster your army. Since our Necropolis faction focuses on controlling the undead, we were first of all tasked with the construction of a graveyard that enabled us to acquire a healthy income of Skeleton troops that would make up the bulk of our forces.
Combat in these initial levels was evidently easy, but it was nevertheless clear to see to which extend the game would become strategic and tactical further down the line as soon as more advanced troops as well as the option of going head-to-head against other players would be introduced.
The graphics and sound quality were pretty decent and undeniably dynamic and atmospheric enough to set the tone of the game. However, there unfortunately were some lag issues despite the fact that there didn’t seem to be that many players around that early on. As the game operates on a turn-based instanced combat, this slight life shouldn’t be too much of an issue though.
Stayed tuned for our first look video we’re going to publish in a few days and feel free to activate the INFO button below in order to find out more about Might & Magic Heroes Online in the meantime.
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