Heroes of Might and Magic 3 - A Smashing Game! (Heroes of Might and Magic 3 (PC))

Member Name: TheChosen1

Product:	Heroes of Might and Magic 3 (PC)
Date:	16/12/08 (741 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: fun, good replay value, nice cut scenes

Disadvantages: average graphics and sound

-The Review-

I would break this review down into five parts. The first is the improvements that I have noticed in the game which I will entitled "What's New." The second is the specifications needed to run the game in "System Requirements." Third is "Introduction to the Game" which highlights how the game is played The fourth. is description of the various towns in "Introduction to the Towns." It highlights each race's strengths and weaknesses based on personal experience. The fifth is "The Verdict" which I will give my thoughts on the game.

-What's New-

-Eight new town classes - Castle, Tower, Rampart, Inferno, Dungeon, Necropolis, Stronghold and Fortress.

-Heroes are now divided into two kinds - one might hero and one magic hero. Each with different statistics.

-Each hero now has a specialty skill. This could range from having a 4th level spell added to his spell book (prayer, chain lightning) to giving bonuses to certain creature types (goblins, elves). Choosing starting heroes matter now.

-Choosing towns matter also. For example choosing the Castle will enable you to have more movement through the stables. Likewise choosing the Dungeon will make one of your heroes have double the spell points in reserve through the Mana Vortex.

-The artifacts have more interaction now. Combining certain artifacts will result in a new artifact being formed.

-The disparity between the towns is not as great as in Heroes of might and Magic 2. Crusaders for the Knight town only had 65 HP while Black Dragons at the Warlock town had 300 HP. Now the Castle has the Arch Angel at 250 HP and the Black Dragon still at 300 HP.

-Each town has more options now. You have the options to build silos that produce resources and defense structures.

-There are new creatures such as Monks, Zealots, Angels,
Archangels and Gremlins.

-A new campaign and new maps.

-System Requirements-

System: Pentium-133 or equivalent
RAM: 32 MB
Video Memory: 2 MB
Hard Drive Space: 200 MB

-Introduction to the Game-

The game is played in a turn based style. A turn is done once you hit the proper icon. Each turn represents a day and each day, your structures such as towns, silos and mines produce resources for you to use. These resources can be used to build creature dwellings which generate troops on a weekly basis or build various defense and resource gathering structures. The game is usually found when you have captured all opposing town and beaten all opposing heroes. However there are campaigns and scenarios where you have to do something like find the Holy Grail or flag creature dwellings to win the game.

Each hero has statistics in Attack, Defense, Spell Power and Knowledge. Attack enhances the own attack value of your creatures. Likewise on the defense that increases the defense value of your creatures.

The game comes in three modes - scenario, campaign and multiplayer. In the scenario, you try to vanquish computer controlled foes. In campaign, you lead Queen Catherine Ironfist to glory against the evil forces of Tatalia, Nighon and Deyja. Erathia has fallen and its up to Queen Catherine to restore its honor. In the multiplayer, you can take turns on the same computer or play with someone over the internet.

-Introduction to the Towns-

The Castle

Description

The Castle takes us back to medieval times. This is because troops are mostly human rather than magical creatures. This army is supplemented by the addition of Griffins and Angels. The might hero is the Knight and the magic hero is the Cleric. The castle is a reprisal of the Knight town of Heroes of Might and Magic 2. The castle represents the Kingdom of Erathia.

Troops

Pikemen /Halberdier
Archer /Marksman
Swordsman /Crusader
Griffin/Royal Griffin
Monk/Zealot
Cavalier/Champion
Angel/Archangel

Advantages

-The town has pretty good melee troops such as Pikemen /Halberdier, Swordsman /Crusader, Griffin/Royal Griffin, Cavalier/Champion and Angel/Archangel.

-Troops such as Marksman and Crusader have double strike. This means they launch two attacks at once.

-Christian is an excellent starting hero that comes with Ballista and Ballista skills. The ballista acts like an extra stack which has a ranged attack.

-Archangels can regenerate fallen troops.

-Most troops are inexpensive.

Disadvantages

-Clerics are average spell casters.

-Clerics do not have good starting offensive spells. The best is prayer and it's not useful without a good creature stack.

The Tower

Description

The tower is a reprisal of the Wizard's town in Heroes of Might and Magic 2. The creatures are almost the same except for the Gremlins and Gargoyles. The might hero is the Alchemist and the Magic Hero is the Wizard. The Tower represents arcane magic and represents the Kingdom of Bracada.

Troops

Gremlin/Master Gremlin
Stone Gargoyle/Obsidian Gargoyle
Stone Golem/Iron Golem
Mage/Archmage
Genie/Master Genie
Naga/Naga Queen
Giant/Titan

Advantages

-Many of your troops have ranged attack (Master Gremlins, Mages, Arch Mages, Titans). This allows them to damage opponents without getting hit themselves. This also helps in defending your castles during a siege.

-Through the Library you gain access to more spells than other town types.

-One of the starting Heroes (Solmyr) has a chain lightning spell that gives you a quick advantage since it can hit multiple stacks of enemies. Even with limited troops you can go far.

-The titan is the second most powerful creature in the game after the Black Dragon.

Disadvantages

-One of the starting troops that you have usually consist of Gremlins. Unfortunately they are slow and are easily killed.

-The town has a high gem requirement. If you hope to take advantage of spells and Titans you have to find a source of gems.

-The town has a very low wall that can easily be destroyed.
The Rampart

Description

Creatures of mythology abound the Rampart. This town looks like it was lifted from a Tolkien book. You have elves, centaurs, dwarves, pegasus, unicorns and dragons. The might hero is the Ranger and the magic hero is the Druid. These magical creatures represent the Kingdom of Av-Lee.

Troops

Centaur/Centaur Captain
Dwarf/Battle Dwarf
Wood Elf/Grand Elf
Pegasus/Silver Pegasus
Dendroid Guard/Dendroid Soldier
Unicorn/War Unicorn
Green Dragon/Gold Dragon

Advantages

-The creatures and heroes have very good defensive stats.

-Wood Elf/Grand Elf are the two best ranged creatures in the game.

-The town is rich in resources with a silo, a pond that produces random resources and a treasury that gives interest on your gold.

-The creatures have magic resistance (Dwarf/Battle Dwarf, Unicorn/War Unicorn and Green Dragon/Gold Dragon)

-The Centaur is among the best level 1 creatures in the game.

-The healing tent is excellent for limiting your creature losses.

Disadvantages

-Some of the creatures are very slow. (Dwarf/Battle Dwarf, Dendroid Guard/Dendroid Soldier).

-The offense is not very strong.

-The starting spells of the druids are decent but their spell power is awful so the spells are near useless.

The Inferno

Description

The Inferno looks like what we would imagine hell to be like. It's a place filled with hellfire, brimstone and demons. The might hero is the Demoniac and the magic hero is the Heretic. They represent the Kreegans of the Kingdom of Eeofol.

Troops

Imp/Familiar
Gog/Magog
Hellhound/Cerberus
Demon/Hor ned Demon
Pit Fiend/PitLord
Efreet/Efreet Sultan
Devil/Arch Devil

Advantages

-The creatures that abound the Inferno have a variety of special abilities. The Magog can hit fireballs that do spread damage. The Pit Lords can create Horned Demons out of fallen troops. The Efreet Sultans are resistant to fire and have a fire shield which do extra damage to opponents.

-The can be built to easily transport troops from town to town through the Castle Gate.

Disadvantages

-The Imp (the Inferno's first level creature) is the weakest in the game.

-The creatures you have have lower HP.

-The starting stats of the Heretics are awful and not ideal for spell casters.

The Dungeon

Description

The Dungeon is home to creatures that live underground. You have Troglodytes, Evil Eyes, Medusas and the like. The might hero is the Overlord and the magic hero is the Warlock. They represent the Kingdom of Nighon.

Troops

Troglodyte/Infernal Troglodyte
Harpy/Harpy Hag
Beholder/Evil Eye
Medusa/Medusa Queen
Minotaur/Minotaur King
Manticore/Scrpicore
Red Dragon/Black Dragon

Advantages

-The Dungeon is home to some of the best creatures in HOMM 3 like the Minotaur King (an excellent melee creature with nice attack and speed) and the Black Dragon (the best creature in the game with excellent attack, speed and immunity to all spells).

-Deemer is one the best starting heroes with the ability to cast Meteor Shower. It damages stack to a certain radius.

-Warlocks are the best spell casters in the game with a starting 3 power and 2 knowledge.

Disadvantages

-The Dungeon needs a lot of sulfur to fund your dragon army.

-You have to be reliant on magic if you use Warlocks. They give zero bonuses in attack and defense.

The Fortress

Description

The Fortress is a swampland inhabited by insects and reptilian creatures. They are very tough as they can absorb a lot of damage because of their defensive statistics. The might hero is the Beast master and the magic hero is the Witch. They represent the Kingdom of Tatalia.

Troops

Gnoll/Gnoll Marauder
Lizard man/Lizard Warrior
Serpent Fly/Dragon Fly
Basilisk/Greater Basilisk
Gorgon/Mighty Gorgon
Wyvern/Wyvern Monarch
Hydra/Chaos Hydra

Advantages

-The creatures here are very tough. They have high defensive statistics.

-The Beast master is the best defensive might hero.

-The healing tent is perfect to further shore up defenses. The creatures are tough to damage and when they do, they get healed.

Disadvantages

-The offensive skills of the creatures and heroes aren't great.

-The witches are not powerful spell caster. They have weak stats.

The Necropolis

Description

The Necropolis the home of the undead. They are filled with creatures such as zombies, skeletons and vampires. Playing this is like playing a horror movie. They represent the Kingdom of Deyja.

Troops

Skeleton/Skeleton Warrior
Walking Dead/Zombie
Wight/Wraith
Vampire/Vampire Lord
Lich/Power Lich
Black Knight/Dread Knight
Bone Dragon/Ghost Dragon

Advantages

-Necromancy gives you free troops! For every army you vanquish a percentage of it is risen up as Skeletons/Skeleton Warriors. Imagine the huge army you can generate!

-Vampire Lords are one of the best midlevel creatures in the game because they can regenerate so long as they are dealing with living flesh. I have decimated an army of living creatures using just a few vampires.

-There are spells that resurrect dead creatures.

Disadvantages

-The undead are many but not that tough. They are quite fragile.

-The undead are vulnerable to certain spells that target only undead creatures.

The Stronghold

The Stronghold is a reprisal of the old Barbarian town. The place is filled with big strong brutes and monsters such as goblins, orcs and ogres. The might hero is the Barbarian and the magic hero is the Battle mage. They represent the Kingdom of Krewlod.

Troops

Goblin/Hobgoblin
Wolf Rider/Wolf Raider
Orc/Orc Chieftain
Ogre/Ogre Mage
Roc/Thunderbird
Cyclops/Cyclops King
Behemoth/Ancient Behemoth

Advantages

-The Stronghold is the easiest one to use for new players. All you do is attack, attack and attack.

-The creatures are very strong and can do a lot of damage.

-The heroes have very good offensive stats.

Disadvantages

-The town has limited magical capabilities. The mage guild can old reach level 3 maximum.

-The heroes don't have very good defensive statistics.

Graphics

The graphics are average 2D with some 3D cut scenes. The graphics are quite detailed in battle scenes. The graphics on the main screen are similar to old games like Warcraft and Starcraft. The graphics are more realistic looking than the cartoonish Heroes of Might and Magic 1 and 2.

Sound

The sound isn't great compared to newer games though it was good when the game was released. You could here the voices in the cutscenes quite well especially Queen Catherine and you could hear realistic sounds like a unit getting hurt or the thundering of horses' hooves.

-The Verdict-

I thoroughly enjoyed the third installment of the Heroes of Might and Magic series. It added a lot of new elements to the series while maintaining the elements that made it fun, engaging and highly addictive. The game also has endless replay value.

Whether you are gunning for a faster finish in the campaigns or are battling wits with a human nemesis. Though the graphics are smooth and so is the animation, it pales in comparison to today's 3D filled environment. But more graphics power does not always mean more fun. Take for instance some of the most fun games of all time like Pac man, Donkey Kong and the original Mario Bros. series they are inferior in terms of looks but are so fun that they keep on getting re-released and bought.

On a personal note my favorite town is the Tower. This is because I like to use spells to vanquish foes. Building creature dwellings and gathering enough troops take time and a lot of resources. Taking advantage of spell caster's bonus spells like in this case Solmyr's chain lightning spell is an easy way to even the odds with opponents having stronger heroes and a larger army. I also like the fact that the Tower's troops have ranged attacks so that I can avoid creatures getting killed.

I recommend this game to any person especially those who love strategy games. This game was released in 1999 and has outdated features as compared to today but the fun factor can never be outdated.

-Also published in Ciao and Ciao UK

Summary: This review is about Heroes of Might and Magic 3.