Forgotten games of Might and Magic
Forgotten games of Might and Magic
In the last years of its life, 3DO tried to make a max of cash from the Might and Magic name by producing games entitled "Something of Might and Magic" but bearing little to no connection to the true series. Some of them were released, other cancelled. Let's remember those lost children.
Note : most of the pics on this post come from Mobygames, Gamekult and IGN.
Crusaders (1999, PC & Playstation)
First of them was Crusaders of Might and Magic. It was an action/adventure/hack'n'slash game, with a 3rd-person-view. You played as Drake, a young warrior fighting the evil Necros, lord of the Legion of the Fallen. I wonder if there may be the same Necros than the evil god from "The Sea of Mist" ?
Warriors (2000, Playstation 1 &2, Game Boy Advance)
Spiritual son of Crusaders, Warriors makes you play the role of Alleron. Wrongly framed for murder and disgraced, he must fight his way through truth and freedom. Damn, that sounds almost interesting.
Legends (2001, PC)
3DO marketing at its best, Legends is a cheap counter-strike clone based on a fantasy setting. It seems there is a story behind the game : you are Goldwyn (sic), the son of the king, and you must fulfill your destiny in the ways of Good or Evil. Anyone knows if there was a solo mode for this game ?
Heroes of Might and Magic: Quest for the DragonBone Staff (2001, Playstation 2)
Don't be fooled by it's title : HoMM : Dragonbone Staff is not an Heroes of Might and Magic game. Not really. It is, in fact, a remake of the original King's Bounty, with 3D graphics but exactly the same gameplay.
Dragon Wars (2001, Playstation 2, cancelled)
A cancelled project, Dragon Wars of MM was putting you in the skin of a dragon.
Shifters (2002, Playstation 2)
This game was originally called Shifters of Might and Magic (see the ad at the end of "The Sea of Mist") but was later cut to "Shifters". In fact, it has the weakest connection to M&M ever. It is sort of a sequel to Warriors of M&M, with Alleron and other characters throwed to a parralel univers where both magic and science-fiction exist. Or something like that.
Note : most of the pics on this post come from Mobygames, Gamekult and IGN.
Crusaders (1999, PC & Playstation)
First of them was Crusaders of Might and Magic. It was an action/adventure/hack'n'slash game, with a 3rd-person-view. You played as Drake, a young warrior fighting the evil Necros, lord of the Legion of the Fallen. I wonder if there may be the same Necros than the evil god from "The Sea of Mist" ?
Warriors (2000, Playstation 1 &2, Game Boy Advance)
Spiritual son of Crusaders, Warriors makes you play the role of Alleron. Wrongly framed for murder and disgraced, he must fight his way through truth and freedom. Damn, that sounds almost interesting.
Legends (2001, PC)
3DO marketing at its best, Legends is a cheap counter-strike clone based on a fantasy setting. It seems there is a story behind the game : you are Goldwyn (sic), the son of the king, and you must fulfill your destiny in the ways of Good or Evil. Anyone knows if there was a solo mode for this game ?
Heroes of Might and Magic: Quest for the DragonBone Staff (2001, Playstation 2)
Don't be fooled by it's title : HoMM : Dragonbone Staff is not an Heroes of Might and Magic game. Not really. It is, in fact, a remake of the original King's Bounty, with 3D graphics but exactly the same gameplay.
Dragon Wars (2001, Playstation 2, cancelled)
A cancelled project, Dragon Wars of MM was putting you in the skin of a dragon.
Shifters (2002, Playstation 2)
This game was originally called Shifters of Might and Magic (see the ad at the end of "The Sea of Mist") but was later cut to "Shifters". In fact, it has the weakest connection to M&M ever. It is sort of a sequel to Warriors of M&M, with Alleron and other characters throwed to a parralel univers where both magic and science-fiction exist. Or something like that.
I know HodgePodge has her colorful memories of Crusaders, and I am equally guilty of buying the poor 'Descent to Undermountain'. So even people like myself can make poor purchasing decisions. Oddly enough, I managed to finish DtU in spite of the glaring bugs, pixelated graphics, and design flaws.
I'd rather be part bull than a complete sheep.
- ThunderTitan
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And people wonder why 3DO went under?!
Crusaders was fun... for about 15 minutes.
Crusaders was fun... for about 15 minutes.
Disclaimer: May contain sarcasm!
I have never faked a sarcasm in my entire life. - ???
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I have never faked a sarcasm in my entire life. - ???
"With ABC deleting dynamite gags from cartoons, do you find that your children are using explosives less frequently?" — Mark LoPresti
Alt-0128: €
- HodgePodge
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Acchhhh!!
Thank you for bringing up such awful memories of games which have been forgotten and should stay that way.
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i am guilty of buying Quest for the Dragonbone staff while on vacation in Israel. luckily, it didnt work on my american PS2 and was returned. later i looked up some info about it, and was glad for not having bought it. unluckily, i decided that instead i should but Might and Magic IX, which i played for about 15 minutes and then shelved. o well, i deserve it for buying unheardof games while on vacation...
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You mean the title should be:ThunderTitan wrote:Oh, and Marzhin, I belive you forgot a "Best" in the thread title.
"Forgotten, best games of Might and Magic"?
Be careful with ambiguous comments
On the topic, however, I think that if I can find QftDBS for under $10 in a discount rack, I might pick it up. I knew it was a KB clone from when it first came out, and since I already have KB, I wasn't going to pay $40+ for it. For pocket change prices, maybe...
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Oh, i'm always careful...Qurqirish Dragon wrote:Be careful with ambiguous comments
Disclaimer: May contain sarcasm!
I have never faked a sarcasm in my entire life. - ???
"With ABC deleting dynamite gags from cartoons, do you find that your children are using explosives less frequently?" — Mark LoPresti
Alt-0128: €
I have never faked a sarcasm in my entire life. - ???
"With ABC deleting dynamite gags from cartoons, do you find that your children are using explosives less frequently?" — Mark LoPresti
Alt-0128: €
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Actually, the sad thing was, Legends of Might and Magic was a "real" Might and Magic game; that is, it was made a New World with the involvement of JVC, not by some disconnected group up at 3DO headquarters.
Apparently, it started life a very ambitious and, frankly, cool-sounding game, a bit like Neverwinter Nights meets MM9 meets good story. There was a big, complex time-travelling campaign/story planned, and you were going to go through it in this first-person perspective. Moreover, you could go through the whole campaign with friends; it would be a Micro Multiplayer Online RPG, if you will, much like Neverwinter Nights. I know I was excited when I heard the first descriptions of it. (I was still working at 3DO headquarters back then, on the late, not-very-lamented Portal Runner.)
Unfortunately, after they had sunk some large amount of time into the game, they discovered that the 3D engine they were using (I think it was the Unreal engine??) just wasn't going to support what they wanted to do. I think it had something to do with different players getting onto different maps at the same time or something. Anyway, at that point they punted. The NWC group was playing a lot of office games of Counterstrike & UT in those days (there were some big Counterstrike fans), so they just went in that direction. They took much of the art and maps which they had done for the aborted campaign and turned them into maps and art for the game the engine most easily supported -- a simple FPS . (Especially the maps -- you can get a decent sense of where the campaign was going just by looking at the Legends maps.) And so you got this weak counterstrike clone.
Or so I've heard. I only got to NWC a month or less before the game shipped, so I only saw the final result. Ah, so unfortunate...
-Ian
"Last of the Heroes IV programmers"
Apparently, it started life a very ambitious and, frankly, cool-sounding game, a bit like Neverwinter Nights meets MM9 meets good story. There was a big, complex time-travelling campaign/story planned, and you were going to go through it in this first-person perspective. Moreover, you could go through the whole campaign with friends; it would be a Micro Multiplayer Online RPG, if you will, much like Neverwinter Nights. I know I was excited when I heard the first descriptions of it. (I was still working at 3DO headquarters back then, on the late, not-very-lamented Portal Runner.)
Unfortunately, after they had sunk some large amount of time into the game, they discovered that the 3D engine they were using (I think it was the Unreal engine??) just wasn't going to support what they wanted to do. I think it had something to do with different players getting onto different maps at the same time or something. Anyway, at that point they punted. The NWC group was playing a lot of office games of Counterstrike & UT in those days (there were some big Counterstrike fans), so they just went in that direction. They took much of the art and maps which they had done for the aborted campaign and turned them into maps and art for the game the engine most easily supported -- a simple FPS . (Especially the maps -- you can get a decent sense of where the campaign was going just by looking at the Legends maps.) And so you got this weak counterstrike clone.
Or so I've heard. I only got to NWC a month or less before the game shipped, so I only saw the final result. Ah, so unfortunate...
-Ian
"Last of the Heroes IV programmers"
- HodgePodge
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Well, if it makes you feel any better, I LOVE Heroes IV. I still play it almost every day. In fact, I have put aside Heroes 5 for now, and have picked up Heroes IV once again. It's really a great game, what with the player-made mods & maps. I love Heroes IV.Sermil wrote:...
-Ian
"Last of the Heroes IV programmers"
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