Heroes of Might and Magic, the nearly 30-year-old real-time strategy video game series published by Ubisoft has gone back to an old naming convention for its first sequel in a decade.
Known since 2011 with a “Might & Magic Heroes” prefix, and then a sequel number, the next game will be called Heroes of Might and Magic: Olden Era when it launches on Steam in 2025. The shift in titling the game suggests Olden Era will be a prequel in the canon established by 1995’s Heroes of Might and Magic for PC.
What is Heroes of Might and Magic?
The series’ origins can be traced to the 1990 precursor King’s Bounty, which was developed by New World Computing, whom Ubisoft later purchased.
The most recent game in the Might & Magic series was 2015’s Might & Magic: Heroes 7. The storyline of the PC-only main series centers on Lord Morglin Ironfist and the spin-off titles involve the war of his sons and the eventual demise of the world of Enroth. The survivors escape to portal-like passages for the later takes on the series.
In Olden Era, Unfrozen Studios will return players to Enroth and the mysterious contested continent of Jadame. This part of Enroth has been mentioned, but never visited, in previous iterations of the the Heroes of Might and Magic saga.
“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,” Eric Damian-Vernet, Ubisoft brand director for Might & Magic, said in a statement.
Unfrozen Studios brings previous RTS experience to Might & Magic
Unfrozen Studios is familiar to fans of Iratus: Lord of the Dead, a tactical role-playing game whose protagonist is a necromancer seeking bloody vengeance against those who imprisoned him. Iratus was also a turn-based game similar to the Heroes of Might & Magic mold.
Olden Era will feature a single-player and online multiplayer mode. Unfrozen said procedurally generated maps will help keep lobbies for online one-on-one duels and eight-player multiplayer matches fresh.
The studio has also introduced an Arena mode, where “two players draft heroes, artifacts, skills, and creatures before jumping straight into a tactical battle.”
Heroes of Might and Magic: Olden Era will launch on Steam Early Access sometime between April 1 and June 30. Players can be wishlist the game to be notified of updates on its launch plans
Featured image via Unfrozen Studios
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