Angels, Devils, Dragons, Pikeman? (Heroes of Might and Magic 3 (PC))

Member Name: Barold

Product:	Heroes of Might and Magic 3 (PC)
Date:	19/05/09 (26 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Endless replayablilty

Disadvantages: Graphics a little dated

In my opinion the best of the Heroes of Might and Magic series to date (at time of writing there are 5), the gameplay will be familiar to anyone who's played the rest of the series. You control an army or armies each under the control of a hero, and 1 or more towns which you must protect. The object of the game is usually to capture all the other towns on the map and defeat all enemy heroes although some maps / scenarios will have different requirements to complete them. As your heroes win battles they gain levels and abilities. Since there are many more skills combinations than the 8 skills on any given hero allow there is a huge amount of customization available for any hero. Add to this the ability to pick which troop types to put in the army under a given heroes command and you have an endlessly repayable game.
I really enjoy this game - the range of options even at the start of a scenario make each play completely unique. The variety of skills, creature types and abilities let you create armies and heroes personalized to your playing style. The different towns are well balanced, none of them are overpowered compared to another. This isn't a new game so the graphics aren't cutting edge but they are clean and more than adequate. I haven't explored the multiplayer aspect of these games simply because I find the SP campaigns, custom maps and AI difficulty sufficient to keep me entertained but the game can be played over IP/TCP if you so desire. However as it's a turn based game with up to 8 players on any one map I imagine it would involve dull waits while the other player(s) consider their moves.
Overall its a fine game that I've been playing for many years and intent to play of many more.

Summary: Great turn based strategy