Heroes of Might and Magic: Olden Era - Ubisoft returns to Enroth - coming to Early Access in Q2 2025

[Gandalf]

Huh?

The classic turn-based strategy game series returns to PC (via Steam Early Access) with Heroes of Might and Magic: Olden Era, as you return to the world of Enroth and explore the beginning of the franchise's saga. Expect a full non-linear campaign as well as randomly generated scenarios, co-op and multiplayer modes, and user-generated content, courtesy of an in-game map and campaign editor. A release window has not yet been announced.

 

[Infinitron]

https://news.ubisoft.com/en-us/arti...ight-and-magic-olden-era-unveiled-at-gamescom

Heroes of Might and Magic: Olden Era Unveiled at Gamescom​

Heroes of Might and Magic: Olden Era brings the turn-based strategy franchise back just in time for its 30th anniversary. Releasing on PC in Steam Early Access in the first half of 2025, Olden Era is set before the events of the first game, and will take players back to the world of Enroth and the continent of Jadame. Featuring new factions, biomes, and creatures, Jadame has been referenced but never explored in the main Heroes of Might and Magic series.

Developed by partner studio Unfrozen, Olden Era's turn-based gameplay is split between exploration, with players taking control of a hero to find resources, build towns and castles, and gather armies of mythic creatures; and tactical battles, in which players pit those armies against opposing forces. Expanding on the classic fundamentals of the series, Olden Era will introduce a number of new features: Players will have more control over how they level up heroes and their factions, for example, with faction-specific abilities, new systems for learning skills and magic spells, and artifacts that now impart bonuses if players equip more than one piece from a set.

Additionally, the units players command during battles now have secondary abilities that can be activated when a new energy meter fills. "Graverobbers can summon Skeletons, Dungeon units have unique battle stances, and Sylvan Druids are casters whose array of spells may rival a beginner hero," says Narrative Lead Alexandra "Alphyna" Golubeva at Unfrozen. "That's a lot of options to explore in battle!"

In a nod to the series' history, these skirmishes trade the rectangular grids of more recent Heroes of Might and Magic games for a battlefield of hexagonal spaces. This - like much of Olden Era - is inspired by fan-favorite Heroes of Might and Magic III (which still retains an active player base and community after 25 years).

"Heroes of Might and Magic III is a cult classic and one of the greatest strategy games of all time, perfecting and refining the already great formula established in Heroes I and II," says Brand Director Eric Damian-Vernet at Ubisoft, adding that Olden Era also takes inspiration from other highly regarded installments, including Heroes of Might and Magic II and V. "With Olden Era, we go back to the origins of the series, aiming to recapture the same sense of magic and wonder of traversing a vibrant adventure map full of dangers and mysteries for the first time, building mighty faction towns and assembling massive armies of mythical creatures."

"Heroes of Might and Magic III's systems are robust and complex, yet not unapproachable; they're the definition of 'easy to learn, hard to master,'" says Golubeva. "A vast selection of factions, abilities, and units allow for various playstyles. The three layers - strategic exploration, tactical battles, and RPG-lite character building - support different playstyles, whether one wants to focus on exploration or vicious battles against friends."

Multiplayer Modes and More
Heroes of Might and Magic: Olden Era will feature multiple ways to play, including a story-driven campaign as well as single maps for solo players, and classic multiplayer matches (which support one-on-one duels, but will allow up to eight players in the lobby and enable players to set custom rules). In addition to pre-made maps , Olden Era will also be able to randomly generate new ones, ensuring players can always have something new to discover. Players can also create their own maps and campaigns with an in-game editor.

Players looking for a more streamlined combat fix can also tackle Arena, a new multiplayer mode in which two players draft heroes, artifacts, skills, and creatures before jumping straight into a tactical battle.

"While drafting a legendary artifact and steamrolling your opponent can be fun, it's not fun to be steamrolled by an opponent who drafted a legendary artifact," says Golubeva of Arena's drafting system. "So we ensure that both opponents will have choices of similar power level. If you got a chance to draft a legendary, so did they. The fun, then, lies in drafting the skills, artifacts, and troops that synergize well and support one another, so your victory will depend on skill rather than randomness."

No matter the mode, Olden Era will let players tweak the speed of different gameplay aspects, says Golubeva. "While we are proud of our cool and memorable animations, we'll give players the option to speed them up - we all know how frustrating it may be to watch a unit walk... slowly... across the battlefield," she says. "Secondly, autobattles are available in all fights against the AI - players who want to focus more heavily on exploration, strategy, or story may easily skip battles, and even experienced players can save time on simpler battles."

Olden Era, New Story
"By setting the game in the past," says Damian-Vernet, "we wanted to give the Unfrozen team the freedom to create a fresh and unique story that would stand on its own two legs and could be played separately from the rest of the franchise. One that would be a perfect introduction for newcomers to the world of Heroes of Might and Magic, while giving insights on the origins of some beloved characters for longtime fans and lore aficionados."

Olden Era's nonlinear story campaign will let players choose from six new and returning factions, each with their own heroes, creatures, aesthetics, and playstyles: the knightly Temple; the Sylvan fey folk and forces of nature; the dark elves and subterranean dwellers of Dungeon; the vampires and undead of Necropolis; the demon-corrupted insectoids of Hive; and another faction that will be unveiled later.

"All campaign missions have nonlinear events that allow hero choices, like encouraging a cowardly knight to fight alongside you or letting him flee," says Golubeva. "These choices will have consequences down the line. But the grander non-linearity comes from choosing the missions themselves - some of them are mutually exclusive. Do you support Sylvans or Temple in a conflict? Your choice will change the map of Jadame, the standing of factions, and fates of certain characters."

Additionally, Olden Era introduces a system of Faction Laws, which let you level up your kingdom as well as your heroes by choosing perks. Each faction has a specific set of Faction Laws to choose from, however, and these won't change even if you conquer castles or recruit creatures from other factions during a match.

New Heroes (and Ways to Improve Them)
Heroes are central to every Heroes of Might and Magic game: they're the protagonists you control while exploring the world, and each faction has several. While they don't necessarily take an active role on the battlefield, they can intervene with spells and special attacks, and impart passive buffs to certain kinds of troops.

"With every hero, we have several goals," says Golubeva. "Each must represent their specialization: if a hero grants bonuses to hydras, they probably look different from a diplomacy specialist or an arcane mage! We also want the heroes to look different from one another even if they share a faction or a specialization - each needs to be memorable, so we avoid making all attackers hulking brutes.

"Some players may choose to only engage with Olden Era in multiplayer, so the heroes, castles, and units will be their only glimpse into the setting," adds Golubeva. "it's on us to make sure the heroes represent concepts crucial for their factions and the world. Blind Troglodytes are an important race in Dungeon - would a blind human feel at home among them? Can a renegade from Temple find a place among Sylvans? These questions create little stories that become the foundation for character bios and their images."

Heroes will level up as maps unfold, battles are won, and bonuses are discovered, and Olden Era gives players new ways to fine-tune their hero's build. Artifacts - weapons, pieces of armor, and other items that can be found throughout the world and equipped on your hero - return in Olden Era, and now impart extra bonuses if you equip more than one item from a set; the more pieces from that set you equip, the more bonuses you unlock. You can also adjust your build with subskills, a new addition that can augment a hero's "main" skills (once those are unlocked) with passive buffs and perks.

"The benefits of subskills can be very powerful if you think carefully about your build and find the right synergies, but you can also lean towards a jack-of-all-trades playstyle," says Golubeva. "For example, one subskill of Daylight Magic grants more daily mana restoration - obviously useful for a dedicated mage - while another gives more move points, which are helpful to heroes who picked this skill merely for support. Some skills provide unique spells that can't be obtained in any other way, or grant powerful but situational bonuses, like making critical hits deal plus-50% damage."

Heroes will also have a new way of learning spells, which in Heroes of Might and Magic III were available randomly through the Mage Guilds players build up in their towns. "It might be a fun challenge in single-player, but becomes an issue in multiplayer," says Golubeva. "It's neither fun nor fair to lose because of a random number generator."

Mage Guilds return in Olden Era, she says, but their randomness will be smoothed out a bit, ensuring players have better opportunities to grab the spells they need to complete a build, while still not being able to learn everything. More about magic and Olden Era's other new features will be revealed in future developer blogs from Unfrozen, so stay tuned.

Heroes of Might and Magic: Olden Era will release on PC in Steam Early Access in the first half of 2025, with a full launch to follow at a later date. During Early Access, players can expect to see a new faction, as well as new modes, features, and regular updates. Click here to wishlist it and be notified when it's available.

 

[Gandalf]

It's apparently from the makers of Iratus: Lord of the Dead.

 

[Infinitron]

Steam page is up:

Heroes of Might & Magic Olden Era is a new installment of the renowed series of turn-based strategy games, where action takes place in Enroth, on the continent of Jadame, mentioned but never explored in a Heroes of Might & Magic game before. Traverse a vibrant and living fantasy world full of wonders and dangers, build magnificent capital cities, raise massive armies and clash in epic, highly tactical battles of heroes and mythical creatures.

Play solo with a new campaign, multiple single maps and limitless randomly generated scenarios, or engage in battle of wits and magic with other players — rivals or allies — in multiplayer mode. There is also an option to build your own story with the map editor tool, which you may make available to all the players around the world or keep to yourself.

Enjoy the challenge whether you are a veteran of Heroes of Might & Magic, or a newcomer to the series and the turn based strategy genre.

• An epic campaign set on the mysterious continent of Jadame where rival factions must forge fragile alliances to face the Hive — a swarm of insectoids corrupted by an Inferno demon lord hell bent on subjugating the world.
• Choose from a roster of unique factions mixing returning fan favorites and brand-new creations, each with their unique gameplay style, creatures and heroes and unique faction abilities: Temple (Classic Humans), Necropolis (Undead and Vampires), Sylvan (The Forces of Nature and Fey Folks), Dungeon (Dark Elves and Underground Creatures), Hive (Demonic Insectoids), and a mysterious sixth faction to be revealed later.

• 3 main multiplayer game modes:
  ‣ Classic: a mode where a player can play with one or more heroes, upgrade the castle and explore the map.
  ‣ One-hero mode: a blitz-like system, but you have only one hero, so their demise will become yours as well!
  ‣ Arena: a mode for those who came to battle! Draft a hero, upgrade them, pick your troops, and challenge the enemy right away.
• Dive into the epic non-linear single-player campaign to shape Jadame's history ans seal the fates of its heroes and kingdoms.
• Create your own scenarios to play or share with the other players with our complete and intuitive, pick-up-and-play in-game editor.

• Exploration and strategy: traverse the global map to collect resources and become stronger.
• Castle management: upgrade the castle and expand your kingdom.
• Faction laws that help bring uniqueness and diversity to player’s playstyle.

• A traditional hexagonal battlefield with an orthographic camera.
• New combat mechanics: active abilities are available for creatures and heroes.
• Matchmaking, ratings, and leaderboards — separate for all modes.
• Polished and improved for modern strategy players.
• A Revamped AI and multiple difficulty levels ensure a constant and adapted challenge for every type players, whether they are veterans of Heroes of Might & Magic, or newcomers to the series and the turn based strategy genre.
  

Why Early Access?​

“We see Early Access as a great tool for us to present the game to the community and, by doing that, polish and refine some technical and in-game details and mechanics. We’re versatile enough and very open to feedback, as we believe that the game is great and wish to show it to as many players as possible.”

Approximately how long will this game be in Early Access?​

“We plan for the Early Access phase to last around a year. This timeline allows us to implement your feedback, test the multiplayer features, and ensure a robust final release.”

How is the full version planned to differ from the Early Access version?​

“We aim to enhance the full version with additional content, refined gameplay mechanics, improved visuals, and an overall more polished experience compared to the Early Access version. We will consider player feedback to address any issues and make improvements to various aspects of the game.”

What is the current state of the Early Access version?​

“This version is not only playable but also features core gameplay mechanics and a substantial portion of the content that we have planned for the full release. While it may contain some bugs and incomplete features, we are actively working to address them based on your feedback.”

Will the game be priced differently during and after Early Access?​

“The Early Access price will be confirmed when we get closer to the release based on the amount of content and the general pricing of comparable games in Early Access. We intend to set a fair price for the Early Access so that a maximum of players can participate and help make the best game possible. Depending on the duration of Early Access and the scope of additional content we add to Heroes of Might & Magic: Olden Era over time, we may increase the retail price for the full version release.”

How are you planning on involving the Community in your development process?​

“Your involvement in the community is crucial to us. That’s why we’re building several channels for you to reach out to us on the most popular platforms. We’ve started a Discord channel that is open to everyone, where you can chat with us and other top voices in the community. [LINK to Discord]
Also, we’ve made a separate landing page for feature requests - feel free to use it [LINK].”

 

[ADL]

This looks promising. Ubisoft should work more with external developers going forward. The Rogue Prince of Persia is great.

 

[Gandalf]

Cool thing to see HoMM back and not the MM:H as the title, cool to see it's inspired by the older title(s), but 6 factions is pretty much the same story as they did with the latest titles.

I guess the sixth city will be a mage one.

 

[Dr1f7]

surprisingly doesn't look AWFUL
doesn't look great, but hey what can you expect in 2024

It's apparently from the makers of Iratus: Lord of the Dead.

i knew the high-res-but-cheap-looking aesthetic seemed familiar

 

[Wirdschowerdn]

I liek teh graphics.

 

[Lagole Gon]

Visual design looks like the most souless "chinese mobile game" trash possible.

 

[Gandalf]

Of course it's going to be worse than HoMM3. Ubisoft, early access. Wish this was M&M instead.

I also wish I did the next HoMM.

One of my ideas for HoMM 3.5 was to sometimes make neutral units consist of mixed classes like for example party of Gnolls aside Gnolls and Gnoll Marauders could include some special units like Gnoll Swordsman, Gnoll Shaman, Gnoll Poacher, etc.

 

[Aemar]

Olden Era's nonlinear story campaign will let players choose from six new and returning factions, each with their own heroes, creatures, aesthetics, and playstyles: the knightly Temple; the Sylvan fey folk and forces of nature; the dark elves and subterranean dwellers of Dungeon; the vampires and undead of Necropolis; the demon-corrupted insectoids of Hive; and another faction that will be unveiled later.

Sylvan elves and dark elves are part of the generic Ubisoft shit lore. This is not original NWC lore, it's garbage. Those town screens look soulless.

 

[Abu Antar]

I don't actually want to gouge out my yes looking at that.

 

[ferratilis]

Well, I must be in the minority here, it looks like shit, completely incongruous with the rest of the series.

 

[Elttharion]

I watched the trailer and cant say I am a huge fan of the visual design. Not a D1P for me but, meh, even if its half as good as HOMM 3 it will still be vastly better than almost any other modern game so might as well check it out in a couple of years.

 

[Black]

Pox upon you, never trust a fr*nch man.

 

[stephensmall]

alphyna(Pathologic 2's narrative designer) is working on this in some capacity

 

[Vagabond Merchant]

Doesn't seem as bad as the mobile crap they have been making, but the aesthetics are shit.

 

[cvv]

a new mobile homam game, cool

 

[Catacombs]

"Olden Era"
They're missing the "G."

 

[Cross]

Well, I must be in the minority here, it looks like shit, completely incongruous with the rest of the series.

I wouldn't call it incongruous with the rest of the series. Unfortunately, it looks like a continuation of the cartoony WoW-esque art style introduced in HoMMV.

 

[Arthandas]

Fuck you all, it looks great! I'm not allowing any negativity on this shit, Iratus was great too.

 

[IDtenT]

I know I will be disappointed, but this might be the only game I'm looking forward to. So I'm excited.

 

[Sweeper]

It's apparently from the makers of Iratus: Lord of the Dead.

Not exactly a vote of confidence. But it does look like they'll stick closer to original formula than the guys who did Songs of Conquest, which is a good thing.
I thought this was a spin off kek, nah it's gonna be absolute shit.

 

[Sentinel]

I think it looks pretty good in terms of presentation. Looking forward to it.

 

[Vagabond Merchant]

The old buildings looked more grounded and based on real architecture. Also way clearer. New ones almost look AI designed and the buildings meld into each other due to all the small elements.
Also any subtelty goes out of the window in the new ones. Necropolis? Let's add a giant grim reaper on top of the castle! People might be confused!