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Heroes of Might and Magic IV Q&A

We spoke with the game's assistant designer, and uncovered new info on Heroes IV's many notable features.

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Heroes of Might and Magic IV will be the next in New World Computing's highly acclaimed fantasy-themed turn-based strategy series. Like its predecessors, the game will combine richly detailed graphics and audio with deep yet easy-to-learn gameplay elements. Yet despite its similarities to previous Heroes installments, this fourth episode will feature numerous changes to the successful formula. Perhaps the most notable of these will be the new isometric combat system, which appears much different from the side-view combat that all Heroes fans can instantly recognize. Hero characters will also be able to engage in battle directly, unlike in previous games in the series, where they directed the battle from the sidelines. Such changes are indicative of a bold new direction for Heroes of Might and Magic. GameSpot recently spoke with Jennifer Bullard, associate designer of Heroes of Might and Magic IV, about many of the game's new features, its story, and much more. We've also got several brand-new screenshots of the work in progress. Read on to find out what to expect from Heroes IV when it's released this fall.

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GameSpot: Heroes of Might and Magic IV will follow in the footsteps of its successful predecessors, but it looks to be significantly different in several key areas. What do you think is the biggest difference between Heroes IV and the previous installments?

Jennifer Bullard: Heroes now actively fight on the battlefield. Previously, heroes lent their support from the sidelines and weren't all that different from each other, but now they are part of the army. You can also have more than one hero in an army, so you could very well have several heroes on a battlefield, working in unison. With this change, players are going to have the opportunity to see if their knights can really kill a black dragon or if their necromancer can take down an angel.

GS: What's the premise of the game? How many single-player campaigns and scenarios will be included?

JB: There are going to be seven campaigns and about two dozen single-scenario maps. Heroes IV will begin with the destruction of the old world and follow the exploration and construction of new kingdoms in the new world, Axeoth. Our main campaign follows Emilia Nighthaven as she rises from peasant to queen of the new nation Great Arcan and struggles against the immortal King Gavin Magnus as he tries to usurp her throne.

GS: How will the new isometric perspective of the combat affect the game?

JB: This will enhance the visual appearance of the combat screen, and it has allowed us to provide even more animations and detailed graphics. We have also added more combat features like line of sight, elevation effects on the siege screen, and the addition of creatures to better protect archers and spellcasters.

GS: Earlier Heroes games had a whimsical theme, but the graphics in Heroes IV look more traditional. Are you going for a more serious tone for the game?

JB: We aren't going for a more serious tone, but a more realistic look with the structures and creatures. However, some of the animations are more whimsical. Wait until you see the female magician in action!

GS: Heroes IV will be the first game in the series to let hero characters directly engage in battle. How will these lone heroes be able to deal with throngs of enemy creatures? What will happen if hero units are defeated in battle?

JB: Even first-level heroes will have a massive amount of hit points. As a hero increases in level, he or she will become even more powerful and thus will be able to battle with more and stronger creatures. Of course one hero will not be able to defeat a hundred dragons, but a high-level hero should be able to stand toe-to-claw with one black dragon. If a hero is felled on the battlefield before the rest of the army is defeated, he or she will go into a state of unconsciousness. If you win, your hero will recover hit points slowly over time. Of course there are other means of healing them: drinking potions, casting spells, visiting a sanctuary, or spending a night in a town garrison. If you lose the battle, your opponent has the choice to imprison your hero or leave the hero dead on the adventure map. Rescuing heroes is all part of the fun.

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GS: Previous Heroes games have featured very impressive musical scores and memorable sound effects. Is similar attention to quality and detail being paid to the audio in the fourth chapter?

JB: Of course!

GS: One of the new types of towns is the asylum. What's it all about? What kind of creatures can we expect from it?

JB: The asylum is a den of thieves, cutthroats, and scum of the earth. They are masters of thievery and chaos magic.

GS: Can you describe some of the new types of heroes?

JB: There are 11 starting hero classes and 37 advanced hero classes. Starting classes are very basic, and the ones you have available are dependent on what town type you start with. In order to get an advanced class, you need to become fairly proficient in two of the primary skills. For example, a combination of proficiency in death and order magic will turn your hero into a necromancer. If you start mixing life magic and combat, you have yourself a paladin. If you are good at both death magic and combat, your hero becomes an assassin. The only character class that requires more than two skills is the archmage, for which you need proficiency in three schools of magic.

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GS: Heroes IV promises a new magic system. Can you describe some of the new features?

JB: The largest change is the interdependency between skills and spells. If you don't have death magic, you can't cast death spells. Without grandmastery in death magic, you won't be able to cast fifth-level death spells, which reserves the really powerful spells for heroes who have earned the right to cast them. The other major change is to the philosophy behind the schools of magic. We veered away from the elemental system to one based on the forces that affect the universe: life, death, order, chaos, and nature.

GS: Will Heroes IV include a full scenario editor?

JB: Yes, we will be including a campaign editor to create scenarios and campaigns, either single- or multiplayer. Some of the new editor features include an elevation tool to give terrain a 3D appearance, automated wall construction, a scripting system, and customizable object palettes.

GS: What do you think fans will like most about Heroes IV?

JB: The heroes. They're much more distinctly individual, and now they're on the battlefield risking it all rather than standing on the sidelines casting a few spells. Generals don't want to hover in the wings; they want to be in the thick of it.

GS: What's been the greatest challenge in designing the game?

JB: Making all the changes while keeping what people loved about the previous Heroes games, especially when it came to having a hero on the battlefield.

GS: Do you think turn-based strategy games are dying off? Would you ever make a real-time Heroes game?

JB: Chess, the ultimate in turn-based strategy games, has survived millennia, so I don't think they're ever going to go the way of the dinosaurs. If we decided to create a real-time game it would no longer be Heroes, therefore we would have to call it something else. Heroes will always remain the ultimate turn-based fantasy strategy game.

GS: Is there anything else you'd like to add?

JB: Wait until you read the stories. Using a brand-new scripting system, we were really able to bring the player into the story.

GS: Thank you very much for your time.

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