Gamescom 2024 | Heroes of Might and Magic: Olden Era coming in 2025

After nearly three decades since it surfaced for the first time as a spin-off from Might and Magic, Heroes of Might and Magic is now returning. According to Ubisoft's announcement, Heroes of Might and Magic: Olden Era will hit PC gamers in the first half of 2025, when the game will launch as a Steam Early Access title. 

Story-wise, the upcoming game can be considered a prequel to Heroes of Might and Magic: A Strategic Quest, the first such game, which was developed and published by New World Computing and released in 1995. Back then, it was only available for DOS. In Heroes of Might and Magic: Olden Era, the world of Enroth will return, but the player will also get the chance to explore the continent of Jadame. This was referenced in the series, but wasn't available for the players to explore. Here, one can discover new factions, biomes, and creatures.

The new game provides a turn-based gameplay experience similar to the past games in the family, but promises to offer more control over leveling up heroes and factions, as well as new systems for learning skills and spells. Now, artifacts impart bonuses when putting on more than one piece. Battles gain more depth thanks to the secondary abilities of troops. As an example, Graverobbers can now summon Skeletons.

Those who are still playing the iconic Heroes of Might and Magic III will be pleased to find out that the upcoming title is dropping the rectangular grids of more recent titles while bringing back the hexagonal spaces. In addition to the story mode, Heroes of Might and Magic: Olden Era will offer single solo maps, classic multiplayer matches, Arena battles, a map editor, and the ability to randomly generate new maps. 

While waiting for next year's arrival, fans of the series can grab the HD remastered version of Heroes of Might and Magic III, which was released in 2015, off Amazon for $14.99.