Heroes of Might and Magic (HOMM) is a video game series that was originally created and developed by New World Computing. Released in 1995, HOMM is a strategic, turn-based game in which players control armies of mythical creatures. Two months after the release of the initial game, it was reported to have sold over 100,000 copies. Shortly after this release, The 3DO Company would purchase New World Computing in July of 1996.
From there the series seemed to be growing and critical reception remained positive. HOMM II would be released in 1996 and 6 months later the game sold over 500,000 copies. The third installment was released in 1999, selling over 1.5 million copies. February of that same year, video game magazine, Next Generation, ranked the HOMM series as number 31 on their “Top 50 Games of All Time”, beating out Warcraft, Starcraft, Sonic, and Pong. HOMM IV was released in 2002 and was still generally favorable amongst critics.
With the seemingly overwhelming success of the franchise, how does this game not get mentioned anymore? Well in 2003, The 3DO Company filed for bankruptcy and sold off its intellectual property rights. From there, Ubisoft would buy the rights to HOMM.
The first release by another developer and publisher in 2006 would be criticized due to HOMM V
feeling unpolished and missing essential features of the game. Five years later, the game was developed by a different developer. HOMM VI did receive praise but not as much as the developers would have liked mostly because people were still comparing it to HOMM III and the game’s intrusive DRM system. Ubisoft’s biggest issue would be in 2015 with HOMM VII. While the game brought some improvements it still missed essential features and was criticized for being sold as DLC later on. HOMM VII could have been a worthy successor of the franchise if vital features were not sold as DLC or if they did not stop the game development and left the game in a buggy state.
So what is next for the franchise? At this point in time, the most information is job listings on Ubisoft’s site regarding the franchise. However, no news has officially been announced.