Why hasn't HOMM series won many more fans?

[zero cool]

I think a steep learning curve fends of new comers like myself. I have played HOMM3 and I'm playing HOMMV now. I quite playing HOMM3 because I seem to utterly suck at it. Now with HOMMV I'm stuck early in the campaigns, again.

I joined this forum specifically to try and get better. By the way if anyone feels like giving me advise, check out my other posts.

[Deadguy118]

Heroes hasn't won over a ton of fans because it's a TBS, which is a perfect example of a niche genre because it requires intelligence in order to play well.
While I have to say that Call of Duty 4 is the best First Person Shooter ever made, it doesn't require much thinking, only fast reflexes and lots of play time in order to get good at it. That is why it sold roughly 80 bjillion copies.

[discostu]

When it comes to Heroes, since the first game I've had a blast playing hot-seat matches with my friends.

I've never spent more than a few hours playing any S.P Heroes (any of them, 1-V plus expansions.) I never found it that challenging -- the AI is such that when I start any SP I just think to myself: well I'll be able to beat the computer once I build up xxxx troops, and the game becomes tedious, unchallenging and fun.

I've never played online, but I don't imagine it would be incredibly thrilling either, just because turns can take a long time.

For me, thanks to hot-seat multiplayer (which is the only way to play, IMHO), Heroes V is a blast. But at the same time I can see why other people and general gamers and reviewers are not that excited by the game.

[7h30n]

It's probably a lot more popular than you think. Most people don't post on message boards such as this. Heck, the game sold enough units that Ubisoft is confident in continuing the franchise.

Now, as to why the game doesn't feel as popular as you think it should, the reasons are twofold. First, a lot of die-hard TBS gamers are busy playing Galactic Civilizations 2, myself included. TBS games require a lot of attention so the "masses" tend to focus on one at a time. The other reason is that H5 has failed to attract the base of the HOMM fans, i.e., those that have been around for a decade or more. I helped beta test H5; it just wasn't a fun game. I can't really describe what's wrong with it, but I didn't get the same feeling I did with Heroes 2 (my first HOMM game) or Heroes 3. The devs have some big shoes to fill. The bar is set so high with H2 and H3 that a lot of people will never be happy no matter what they do.

You got that right Especially part on Galactic Civilization (I'm running it in windowed mode all the time, surfing on forums and playing)

What I wanted to add is that today a lot of games are being simplifyed (mainly RPGs which were in the past a pillar of complexity) to appeal a larger audience, and HoMM being a TBS can't and mustn't allow itself to drop to that level. It needs to maintain complexity and thus the game is sold only to specific TBS audience.

[Macros the Black]

So in conclusion, the mainstream population are impatient idiots.

LOL!

[ThunderTitan]

>>but when 4 came out they upgraded on graphics and downplayed the game play.<<

The funny thing is that what i heard from most ppl is that H4 had crappy graphics (it didn't, it was mostly the creature design and the stupid obsesion with 3D).

And don't get me started on why the gameplay was fine... (granted, it was still light years away from any sort of constant balance between heroes and units)