Hands-on preview of HoMM VI over at Gamespot.

[Radwar99]

http://www.gamespot.com/pc/rpg/mightmag ... e=previews

[MattII]

Most of it I've come across before, but the Town Portal thing and the lack of extra war machines are new to me.

[Metathron]

Well, this was weird:

(though Heroes VI doesn't seem to have the scrolling icon bar at the bottom of the screen to indicate which critter has the next turn available)

Also, the town portal idea sounds interesting, but the fact that you can build it early on worries me that it might be overpowered, just like the spell. Then again, all factions will have equal access to this portal, apparently...

Another new thing is that ghosts act as healers to the undead.

After fighting this tough battle, we took on an even bigger challenge in one of Heroes VI's "boss" missions. These missions will consist entirely of one epic battle (no exploration or mine-capturing involved) against a powerful and especially difficult opponent with multiple special abilities.

How can this even be called a mission? I assume the boss battle is (the last) part of a campaign map.

Overall, the preview sounds positive and promising.

[mr.hackcrag]

Another new thing is that ghosts act as healers to the undead.

It's always the female units, huh?

[OliverFA]

Town portal... only makes sense as an expensive, late game structure. Otherwise, it is strategy-killing.

Now (it seems that) you will be able to defend all your cities with just one hero. Less strategy.

It sounds funny how all the preview is spent telling us that this thing and this other thing works "like in the previous games". So much effort in trying to convince us makes me suspicious...

[Neidhaart]

Liked most of it except the town portal thing...

[jeff]

I was actually more intrigued by the comments than the review. The comments were very split with both positive and negative comment, which is really no surprise. Heroes VI appears to be on the expected path, one that I won’t be following as a gamer, but perhaps as a mapmaker depending on the editor. Overall I found it a depressing view of the game. It has a very I’ve already done that sound. They continue to try and improve on the H-III model, they should give that up H-III for its time is and will be better than their efforts. I had hoped for a more dramatic reinvention of the game. Yes I would like the heroes on the battlefield, and yes it can be balanced, but it does take time. It appears UBI is taking the easier viewpoint, keep them on the sideline and let them strike like a god. Oh well off of that. The portal idea is strange. Don’t they have caravans for that; I am assuming they are still present so except for speed why town portals; is it too make the AI more competitive? Forcing the taking of a town makes some strategic sense for establishing lines of supply; which is what was necessary to run the caravans. I am still opposed to taking a town before taking the resources and must admit I am not familiar how all of that is going to play out. Can a raider seize a mine and get a onetime harvest of the resource that might be expected to be on hand, similar to a treasure pile. Is the town denied the resource after the raider strikes until the town owner retakes the mine? It would be a step forward if the raider could sack the mine so the town owner would have to rebuild it before regaining any resources from the mine. I suspect that would be too difficult for the AI to handle in single player games. Overall I suspect this is a favorable look to the majority of you and I wish it well, but as it stands well I will still hold on to some hope though it has diminished further.

[Znork]

I was invited by ubi to go to budapest and test the press teaser version the last weekend of january.

What i got to play i would say was a pre beta version of the game and it was just to get a feel for what they where trying to do. So we have to rember that this was for tiered press people who are not hardcore fans who have beta tested a lott of games.


In my opnoin i fell the game has a lot of promis. I belive that some of the things they have changed are very good and makes the game bether. But there are also som issues that concerned my. But all this thins set aside i hade fun playing the game in the 3 houers i played it was gone just to fast. And initself i belive that sums what is most imporant in any game. So yeah i hade fun playing the game i truly enjoyed it. But there is aloong way to go before we have fhinished game. So there are still lots of things we can inpactSmile

The good stuff then

I liked the story outline they have made for this game.Its credibel and it keeps to all the other storys in ashan. I also liked the there were only 1 rear rescouce it woreked will playing the game. There are som realy awasome crature grahics in the game the attack the movment and so one. The maps are stunning you have seen the screen shots already but when playing the game you truly feel it. Other good news is that you can choose wiche races campain you would like to play, and you pay them fhinished.

There where a lot of things that conserned me to. The game play was to slow it maps must be alot faster it just takes to loong there is to muche to do and to littel movment speed. I belive that this has somthing to withe that the heros just sees to muche of the map. There is also a big isue withe levelup, i did got the feeling of my hero becoming stornger. This might have to do withe complicated skill system. There where just to many choicses and aspects to think about. This should be cleaned up and simplyfied. The userinterface also hade som problems withe em, they where not userfrindly enoughe. I think this will improve becuse it was in large part not fhinished.

We also got to see the cut sceens for the first map and they where not fhinihsed. What we saw had a bether quelty then in h5 but its not blizzard qulety either.

New things that the ubi was very proued over that im realy not shure how important will be is the introducktion of two diffrant moral ways. The way of the the blood and they way of the tear. if you follow the way of the blood you are more aggresive. You will use force to solve problems and youll atack fleeing cratures and so one. If you follow the way of the tear you like to heal you like to buff the creature and so one. This coices will lead to youre hero chaning and getting difrant skill setts. And will also lead to a diffrant map that ends the whole campaing.

There will be castels and there will be forts. Forts will controll the erea around the the fort. You can take the mine but whe you yore hero leave it will go back to the owner of the fort. So you need to controll the fort to the mines and the other buildings.

So will this game be bether then heros of might and magic 3? That it will not. Becuse now its figting agains a memmory of what that game was. Its like a good childhood memmory. And h6 will not be abel to compeet withe the icon wiche is heros 3. I always said h5 should be judeged on its own merrits and so should heros 6. Heros 6 will be diffrant becuse there is alot of new stuff in it. My hope is that withe the feedback we have given black hole and withe ubis deep pokets we might be on to somthing. So to end this post this might be good people.

[Infiltrator]

Thanks for the write up znork.

[Kalah]

Nice - I think with a short polishing of language, this could be put up on the main page.

[ThunderTitan]

So will this game be bether then heros of might and magic 3? That it will not. Becuse now its figting agains a memmory of what that game was. Its like a good childhood memmory.

It's not really a childhood memory when you're still playing the game and have been for 12 years now...

Plus, the one they have to live up to for me is H4. Except that it has to also fix the stuff that didn't work so well (balance by immortality potions) and not have such awful bugs at release.

[OliverFA]

So will this game be bether then heros of might and magic 3? That it will not. Becuse now its figting agains a memmory of what that game was. Its like a good childhood memmory.

It's not really a childhood memory when you're still playing the game and have been for 12 years now...

Plus, the one they have to live up to for me is H4. Except that it has to also fix the stuff that didn't work so well (balance by immortality potions) and not have such awful bugs at release.

I still believe that H4 was destinated to be a great game if only 3DO's economic problems had not prevented it.

[King Imp]

But there is aloong way to go before we have fhinished game.

That certainly isn't promising.

Whoever at Ubi who said this game would be out in March obviously had no clue about how far behind schedule they actually were if this is the case like Znork said.

[Darkström]

But there is aloong way to go before we have fhinished game.

That certainly isn't promising.

Whoever at Ubi who said this game would be out in March obviously had no clue about how far behind schedule they actually were if this is the case like Znork said.

Wasn't it postponed?

[Corlagon]

What's not promising about postponement? Do you actually want bugged or unpolished stuff in your game like that bloody massacre that was H5 version 1.0? If there is a delay, I'm just delighted it's happening without us having to start up SaveHeroes 2.0.

[Kalah]

The preview is up here.

[Znork]

What's not promising about postponement? Do you actually want bugged or unpolished stuff in your game like that bloody massacre that was H5 version 1.0? If there is a delay, I'm just delighted it's happening without us having to start up SaveHeroes 2.0.

If needed we have that weapon and they know it. But we corupeded people in the know will get back to the fans if we feel its needed.

[jeff]

What's not promising about postponement? Do you actually want bugged or unpolished stuff in your game like that bloody massacre that was H5 version 1.0? If there is a delay, I'm just delighted it's happening without us having to start up SaveHeroes 2.0.

If it is to polish, correct and fix by all means take the time.

[King Imp]

What's not promising about postponement? Do you actually want bugged or unpolished stuff in your game like that bloody massacre that was H5 version 1.0? If there is a delay, I'm just delighted it's happening without us having to start up SaveHeroes 2.0.

No, what I was actually implying is that it's not promising that they were so clueless about their development schedule that they actually thought they could get it out by March.

By all means take your time and make it right, but for God's sake, if the game has a lot of work to be done as Znork said, then how could they even think it was near ready to go ahead and give that initial release date.

[Corlagon]

I think you are being very idealistic there when you use the pronouns "their" and "they". I would be surprised to hear that the actual developers (who are very aware of their schedule) are in charge of dictating the release date, initial or otherwise. Otherwise SaveHeroes wouldn't have been necessary.