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Dev-vlog #45 - Sim turns, game balancing and much more!

This is one of hell important updates.

Also I cannot resist idea, that we are looking at Heroes III future alternative. The map scenery is really well done. We will see if there will come anything like ERM, to script the impossible. :D



GOG summer sale logo

Good Old Games, as practicaly anyone else at these times, is having summer grand sale action. Which won't bring you happines for free but some game may be close. :D

Watch our thread or gog pages for free giweavays

Heroes III on sale! Back to our evergreen, there's nice image on twitter, what do you think about it?

h3 forever

Still the same game? I dare say no. Firstly my parents, duh, were not playing it, as the game wasn't even existing in that times. And when I started, we have been playing RoE for years, after that Armageddon - for which everyone sought because of improved Dragon Flies (with Dispel!) and now, you have so many choices, like HD Mod, HotA or ERA(3) or even Sucession Mod. Check our tags, to see the links.

So it's the same game?
No! Because of modding, it grows with us!


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map tiles explores draw the map 750x422

Read the full blog by Jakub Olekszyk here.

  • Every new tile is shrouded in a Fog of War. This means that you have no idea what's waiting for you until you decide to explore it. Once you travel from your current tile to an undiscovered one, you draw a tile from a stack. It might come with new mines to flag, outposts to control, or secret locations to explore. Whatever it is, get there as soon as possible, as your opponent is not sitting and waiting.
  • Whenever you discover a new tile, you decide how it's going to be placed. The map is built of tiles that can be rotated, and you choose how they will fit to already revealed terrain. You can turn a tile to ensure that the most valuable locations are closest to you. Flagging an important mine or acquiring an artifact sooner than later can have dire consequences later in the game!
  • But tiles are not only a Gift Festival. They can be used as a weapon as well! The majority of tiles come with mountains and other regions that cannot be traveled through. If you are into master strategy, you might build a "Great Wall" with sneaky tile play.
  • But as I said before – be faster than your opponents, as only the explorer gets the right to adjust a tile. Once the tile is placed, you cannot modify it. taurus

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Hello,
you can read both here.

Dev Diary #11
Beta Applications Form

Also let me to post first link to gameplay :)

There are some screenshots, to show you development progress and bugs fixing. This sentence is interesting:

And as part of a larger design progress of monster lairs, we now also show the more difficult lairs with the red light.

So, what difficulty they will be? Beasts only or any other nasty suprises? This leave us with questions only, for now :D



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
fst vulturian scavengerfst zombie gravedigger

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.



h3 on vinil

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 toff


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Songs of Conquest - Contest for Early Access Steam Keys

SoC - Contest

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 YouTubeSongs of Conquest YouTube

Celestial Heavens interview with Carl Toftfelt from Lavapotion (Lead Designer of Songs of Conquest): 

Good Luck everyone!

Add your comments here.


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Songs of Conquest Early Access

Songs of Conquest - Early Access starts tomorrow: 10th May 17:00 UTC. Wishlist now, try the next day and share the impressions with us! yummy

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.”


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Ubi logoWithout 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.



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? 

KhashModability 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?


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