- by Pol
Fanstratics Newsletters #21 & #22
To read them in full please check following links:
https://shoutout.wix.com/so/7cO1rxIcd/
https://shoutout.wix.com/so/3cO4Tam59
You can browse FST gallery here:
https://www.fanstratics.com/gallery
#21 Zombie Gravedigger
#22 Vulturian Scavenger
H3 Questions:
Do you know (or could surmise) what is the deal with the Basilisk on the Dungeon's puzzle map?
From the beginning, the Basilisk was seated with the Fortress, and it was never part of the Dungeon line-up. Puzzle Map graphics were rendered by our concept artist George Almond, and he simply screwed up the Basilisk’s affiliation. He had already finished the work before we caught the error. It would have taken time to correct, and we were running short on time, so we let it slide.
Whatever it is, it is not a minotaur.
Actually, it’s supposed to be a Minotaur, but I would agree... it’s not a well-drawn Minotaur.
Inferno's puzzle has either winged demon or what used to be Manticore.
I can’t decipher it either and I suspect George was simply ‘off the rails’ in this instance. Again, it would have taken time to correct, so we let it slide. It was good enough.
FST Questions:
I really want to contribute what little I have into making the Fanstratics project a reality. Is there a way I could donate funds for the cause or should I wait for the Kickstarter to emerge?
Like a good number of gamers, I have been burned by overly optimistic Kickstarter projects, where the game never surfaces, and my cash disappears. I don’t want Fanstratics to be one ‘those’ projects. Only when I am confident the game... if funded... will deliver a finished product, will I ignite a crowd funding campaign. Until then, I would suggest keeping your powder dry.
HoMM3 Recollection: Jon Van Caneghem Racer Car Driver.
Might and Magic 6 (MM6) was released in late April,1998. In late 1997, because MM6 was in active development, Paul Rattner and Peter Ryu had priority when it came to Jon Van Caneghem’s (JVC) time. As JVC was coming into work 2 or 3 days a week, typically Tuesday, Wednesday, or Thursday, I would angle to meet with Jon, at least once, for a couple hours.
As it was important for us to maximize our time together, I would typically propose we get together for an early sit-down lunch. While we ate, we’d socialize and catch up. When we got back to the office, I’d collect any necessary documents (typically spreadsheets), and rendezvous with Jon at this office. There, we’d close the door, and for the next 3 to 5 hours, we’d hash out what I’d been working on since our last meeting.
Regarding the design of HoMM3, Jon and I eventually got into a nice rhythm, but in late 1997, Jon and I were still laying the foundation of our working relationship. On this specific occasion, I took a seat in one of the office chairs, on the other side of Jon’s desk. I dropped several pages of HoMM3 design on Jon’s desk (his copy), and began thumbing through my own.
Read on: Fanstratics Newsletters #21 & #22
- by Pol
Heroes 3 OST - 2nd edition vinyl arrived here for pre-order. If you badly wanted it for the first time but was way too late. Now the second chance ,to add it to your collection, is back. Check the 'first time' link to see list of songs.
The beautiful art is courtesy of Magdalena Katańska, additionally vinyl can be ordered at several color variations, representing individual factions. White - Tower, Tan - Stronghold, Teal - Fortress, Purple - Dungeon and Orange - Conflux.
And it may not end here, they have also Collector's Bundle, featuring Dragon Tote Bag and Dragon Enamel Pin.
Mmm, don't forget that for playing you need gramofone, at least something like this one. Take a look 
| Comments (1) |
- by MadMax
Songs of Conquest - Contest for Early Access Steam Keys
That's right folks. The good people over at Lavapotion, creators of the very anticipated Songs of Conquest has been kind enough to give us two extra Steam keys to give away.
The rules to enter are simple. All you have to do is answer these two questions with a comment here:
"Why would you like to play Songs of Conquest?"
(No one liners, please expand a bit.)
"Which Songs of Conquest faction looks like it will end up as your favorite?"
The contest will go on until Sunday, May 22nd 2022, 23:59 (GMT +2, Stockholm time). One entry per person. 2 winners will be picked out and announced on Monday May 23rd.
While you're waiting for the contest to end or if you're just interested to know more about Songs of Conquest developers Lavapotion, or want to check out any of our Might and Magic-related interviews, go visit our YouTube: Celestial Heavens YouTube
(PS. I am working on the editing of the David Mullich interview, which should be ready soon now, if I just manage to overcome a little hurdle I've hit)
Songs of Conquest on YouTube: Songs of Conquest YouTube
Celestial Heavens interview with Carl Toftfelt from Lavapotion (Lead Designer of Songs of Conquest):
Good Luck everyone!
Add your comments here.
| Comments (12) |
- by Pol
Songs of Conquest - Early Access starts tomorrow: 10th May 17:00 UTC. Wishlist now, try the next day and share the impressions with us! 
It's up! You can enter the Early Access for 29.99€, and also order soundtrack for 9.99€ and supporter pack for 19.99€. Price and currency vary on your location.
FAQ
Why Early Access?
“Songs of Conquest is nearly finished. All the key features are in place and the core game loop has been evaluated by Alpha testers since the summer of 2021. But there are still a lot of things we want to improve and we want to cooperate with the community when doing so. We, as developers, see a huge benefit of involving the players in the development as we go forward. There are always tough decisions to make in game development. Having an active user base, who play the game on a regular basis, allows us to make better decisions. But, anyone buying the game during Early Access should be able to enjoy it as it is, even without committing to a community aspect or closely following development updates.”
Approximately how long will this game be in Early Access?
“We anticipate the game being in Early Access for about one year. But this might change depending on player feedback.”
How is the full version planned to differ from the Early Access version?
“First and foremost we want to figure out, together with the community, what features we should prioritize. We have lots of ideas for the finished game, but since we have already been in development for over five years, we need a reality check. It comes down to what you, the player asks us for and what you enjoy in the game. We see no point in painting a grand roadmap of features that might change as soon as people get access to the game. Instead we intend to be humble and open to the requests of the community. But of course, we anticipate a lot of general quality of life improvements.”
What is the current state of the Early Access version?
“All major gameplay features are implemented. Two campaigns are finished and four factions are fully playable. Online and local multiplayer is working as intended. The level editor needs more polish, but is fully functional. There might be UI-elements, translations and overall user experience details that needs improvements.”
Read on: Songs of Conquest - Early Access Starts Tomorrow
| Comments (16) |
- by Pol
Without notice and any further ado, Ubisoft shut down online servers for around 90 older games, to date 27.4.2022. There check full list.
The list is long and includes Heroes of Might & Magic V, as well as Might & Magic: Clash of Heroes.
All online bonuses will remain permanently off:
For games that used Ubisoft Connect services, Units and Challenges will be disabled, meaning you will no longer be able to earn Units by completing Challenges for the game.
Unlockable content (ULC) such as maps and skins will also be disabled, meaning that you will no longer be able to unlock them.
On PC, ULC will no longer be available even if it has been redeemed previously. On console, the ULC will continue to be available unless you reset your saved game files.
Oh, geez, guess I shouldn't be surprised. After all, even if they ressurected M&M: Legacy X as offline, you need to buy it over Steam as Ubisoft e-shop has a black hole instead it.
- by Pol
Repost from:
muhagames.com/dev-diary-10-april-2022/
We’ve had a pleasantly surprising response to the beta announcement, and also just to us working on the remake. As such, we have seen a lot of new ‘faces’ on our community sites. With that in mind, I decided that this month’s dev diary will take a look at the team and try to give you an insight on how we’ve been doing thus far.
So, for those of you who are new here, our team is made up of six people:
A’vee – CEO’s Boss, UI master, creative director, sound designer.
Khash – ‘The Programmer’ aka grandmaster of all MuHa code!, CEO
SirPi – Lead Game Designer
Yuuki – Writer/Quest designer/Community manager
Obi – Programmer
Shell – Lead QA and everything else we might need of him…
In addition to the fantastic six, we work with freelance artists and composers and the wonderful Andy, a programmer who worked with us on the UI code.
Team Q&A
We will start with a few questions I actually asked the team myself:
What is so far, your favourite part of working on Master of Magic?
Khash: Modability is by far the most interesting part for me, as this opens the possibility for players to make the game truly their own, something that a team of any size won’t be able to achieve.
A’vee: I had a lot of fun creating those tiny animations for the 2d town map – things like little characters debating in front of the university building or a tiny wizard atop the Wizards’ Guild. I feel these have really added life into that map, I wish I could spend some more time on this task.
SirPi: For me, the joy and tribulations come together in the complexity of the original game’s rules. There are just so many little exceptions and quirks. And then you try to capture them, and recreate them, but also keeping in mind we want new players to discover this magic too. If we had more than six people and our resources, I think there could easily be a whole team with me working on how to approach this. So yes, I love doing it, but it is also tough.
Obi: It’s probably been said before by someone, but the spells and working on them. The key role spells play in the game and their versatility are the true selling point and the thing that makes Master of Magic stand out. And so working on recreating and implementing those spells, so that they continue to give the player that sense of magic and power has been really interesting and inspiring.
Shell: Working on an existing and classic IP, or more specifically, attempting to recreate the old magic while bringing it into the current game market. I spent a lot of time playing and researching classic MoM in preparation for this, so seeing our version and how the two work together is what I enjoy.
Me (Yuuki): Delving into a wonderful, magical world that has meant so much for the history of gaming. Interacting with the awesome fanbase, even when they are critical, I just like the fact that we’re talking and resolving stuff. I also really liked adding some background story/lore to wizards and heroes and races, although I will say that also goes into the ‘stressful category’. I loved doing it, but I didn’t always get it right, and I hate it when my recreation causes disappointment for the core fans. Still, MoM is such a rich game, it is a blast to work with its many, magical possibilities.
What has been the most challenging aspect of working on Master of Magic so far?
Read on: MuHa's Dev Diary #10 - Personal log: How are we doing so far?
- by Pol
According informations from Bloomberg and later the article from MMORPG, Ubisoft is being eyed for acquisition, possibly by a private equity firm.
Ubisoft is not playing any negotations, so it's unclear how it would be seen by Guillemot's family.
Guillemot: "The company, was neither confirming nor denying “if” potential buyers had approached it."
As is seen, there's price drop within end of April, let see the stocks history here.
According to another report from Kotaku, Ubisoft has been auditing and assessing various aspects of the company, which could be done in advance of a possible sale. With delays in the release schedule for major IPs, like Assassin's Creed or Far Cry, the speculation is running rampant. Ubisoft has also embraced blockchain technology and the play to earn philosophy. The company has also seen some major fallout from workplace sexual misconduct accusations, as well as senior talent leaving the company.
So, now we have a wild, wild speculations in the air. With Ubisoft itself seeking to sold out some of its franchise, we may got later confirmation, that there's aquisition in process.
Later, let me to add, that "blockchain games" are currently being forbidden on Steam.
And that JVC recently become executive director of Digital Insight company and it's promising M&M blockchain game, already backed that with pile of money.
We have a info about it here, from Marzhin.
Thanks to Marzhin and LordGraa for the alerts!
- by Pol
We created a small collection of David's Mullich YouTube interviews, over past two years. If you settle your mind back, to wonderful times of Heroes III., you can enjoy these sweet times again.
Let sip some cofee, it might be a longer while. Thanks cuc, for pointing the video to us.
Channel: YRS TRULY
What's the deal with Heroes of Might and Magic III?
David Mullich and Paul Anthony Romero
Channel: iLogos Game Studios
iLogos Podcast #1: David Mullich
iLogos Podcast with David Mullich
Read on: David's Mullich Interviews over YouTube
| Comments (1) |
- by Pol
There are some concepts, which were selected and some which weren't. One of these less lucky were Undead Trees.
For Michalivan it's best bet to check them over DeviantArt, albeit he's having profile at ArtStation too.
Inferno Juggernaut, Inferno Maniac, Inferno Breeder, Centaur, Sanctuary Hero, Haven Hero,
Undead Trees, Inferno Town, Demon :D
Sarah, Lamasu, Scorpicore, Watcher
Just browse for more, there are here.
And there were move to tasting Heroes VII, famous Warden concept by m0zch0ps. That's for next time though.
- by Pol
Sancturay Faction in Action, courtesy of Heroes 7.5 Team 
Now, that's something what may take me back. Once it will be ready and if they will succeed to fix that damn AI. At least a bit. More about Heroes 7.5 here, including Discord channel. (Heroes 7.5 = Hades Mod)
And when we are talking about AI, Quantomas continue in his "light" introduction of creating AI for masses. Which is always useful, to read, if you are AI programmer. The latest article is about "Advanced C++ Skills"
This is meant for Heroes V and it's already part of Legends of the Ancients. So you can play it within a blink of eye.
Enjoy! If Ubisoft would start with Heroes VII, where they are modded by now, it would be completely different story. Sanctuary, was my favourite faction in Heroes VI.
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