Heroes of Might and Magic Olden Era could be Ubisoft's redemption

I've said it before, and I'll say it again: I don't get on with games that simulate real life. Being a crime lord doesn't interest me (my mom will be pleased to hear that), and whiling away the hours working in virtual dockyards or transporting fragile goods around the world simply doesn't pique my interest. When I think of the strategy genre, then, it's largely with a sigh. While I've dabbled in games such as Paradox's Age of Wonders and Lionhead Studios' classic Black and White, the vast majority of strategy releases deal in hard facts, careful management, and high school grade math that my 28-year-old self has long forgotten. In short: I prefer traversing fantasy worlds in the first or third-person, sword in hand, instead of machinating away in the sky like some sort of mysterious, mathematically-challenged god.

Heroes of Might and Magic, however, is a strategy game that's simply passed me by. I've seen all of the videos and heard many people wax lyrical about the series' third and fifth installments, but have never quite taken the leap myself. Its high fantasy feel and turn-based combat have always felt up my sparkle-lined alley, it's simply been a case of never finding the time.

Enter Heroes of Might and Magic: Olden Era, the series' first new game in over a decade. Its vibrant cartoon style and promise of infinite customization certainly caught my eye, and new faction, The Schism, calls to me like Cthulhu might. At Gamescom 2025, I sat down with Unfrozen's game designer Dmitrii Tripolskii to see what all of the fuss is about - a ten year wait, an iconic franchise… the stakes are certainly high. But, if what I saw is anything to go by, Olden Era looks like the return to form that the strategy series sorely needs - and a much-needed win for Ubisoft, too.

Tripolskii introduces me to the game's six factions, some of which are familiar, while one is completely new. We have the traditional Dungeon faction which borrows from various mythologies (Greek being the most obvious); the insectoid Hive; creepy and kooky Necropolis (my personal favorite, shocker); the nature-focused Sylvan; classical high fantasy, human-driven Temple; and, of course, newcomers the Schism. The latter are the star of the show, and Tripolskii tells me they were inspired by a mixture of good ol' sci-fi and Lovecraftian fiction. Characterized by their ice magic mastery and eerie rituals, their citadel is built in a frozen wasteland, its primary refuge a giant icicle formed around the skull of an ancient, tentacled horror. While we don't play as them this time around, they're a marked departure from the traditional mind-bending, psychic damage-dealing Lovecraftian monsters we see in other media, and I'm absolutely obsessed with them.

Instead, we lock in Dungeon and I'm introduced to Devir, my minotaur-inspired overlord. Specializing in rallying his troops and granting them extra turns, we charge into battle against a series of Hive beasties that have decided (rather unwisely) to encroach upon our sacred lands. While Olden Era's combat stays pretty true to the series' tried-and-tested turn-based formula, the individual character animations bring everything to life. I watch as my dancers execute some unfortunate bugs, imagining them bringing down a booted foot and crushing them with a flourish. My Troglodites use their spears to swarm and hack away at enemies, but also have the option of spitting at them for a greater cost. Each unit has its own, unique variants (the aforementioned poison-yeeting toads can fire off balls of lava-encrusted goo, for example), letting you really refine your playstyle.

While AI behavior has always been a bit hit and miss in the Might and Magic games (although it's always great to see your enemies casually vacate their base mid-siege), Olden Era's computer is smart enough to make the right decisions. An angry hulk cleaved through a whole slew of my Trogolodites with ease, and my opponents' movements were aggressive and reactive. I only played out the very early stages of a classic match, but it looks like the AI will actually fight back this time around.

Beasties well and truly vanquished, we return to the world map with our spoils. I'd be remiss not to mention how beautiful it is, each landscape changing depending on the faction you're playing. The Sylvan, for example, reside in a beautiful, autumnal world, while the Dungeon's landscapes are reminiscent of the sprawling green hills and magic-infused cities of World of Warcraft. Each one feels hand crafted, the fog of war that obscures encroaching enemies stylized like parchment with rolling, scribbly clouds that remind me of traditional Japanese artwork. If that isn't to your taste, you can swap it out with something a little more celestial, surrounding your city with shimmering stars and the darkness of night. It's a small detail, but a feast for the eyes.

Similarly, as you level up your home base and add various buildings (Mage Guilds specifically), you're granted access to new, game-changing spells that you can use mid-battle. These are assigned randomly (there will be an option to buy specific spells for a chunk of in-game currency), and can be found on a beautifully animated star map. Each spell belongs to a specific magical pathway (Arcane, Daylight, Nightshade, and Primal), which are represented by various mythological symbols. Sure, it's just a spell tree, but the animation style really makes it feel uniquely Might and Magic; truly, it's absolutely gorgeous.

And you can customize all of this to your liking. Tripolskii tells me that modification tools are very much in the works, recognizing that modding is at the heart of the Might and Magic experience. Olden Era has its own map building systems, however, allowing you to customize terrain, size, and so much more. While these computer-generated maps won't have the same level of detail as the developer-crafted ones, at first glance they look pretty damn good.

Similarly, if you're done with the management side of the classic game mode, you can try out One-Hero mode, which kicks your castle to the curb and focuses purely on combat, or Arena, which Tripolskii tells me was inspired by Hearthstone Battlegrounds. Offering you a variety of options, you can customize your hero, choose their army (units can come from other factions, too), upgrade everything, then dive straight into the fray. As a Battlegrounds fanatic, the speed of Arena certainly appeals to me - while Classic requires time, effort, and care, Arena feels like an easy lunchtime 'log in, play match, log out, cry about going back to work' mode that streamlines combat in all the right ways.

What ties Olden Era together, however, is its sound design. Music has been at the heart of Might and Magic for decades. When you traverse your fantasy landscape there's a shimmer to the soundtrack, while combat feels heroic and triumphant. Your hits feel weighty, magic feels powerful, and in those moments of downtime, that familiar sparkle returns and temporary peace ensues. You can certainly tell that longtime series composer Paul Anthony Romero is back, but the addition of the Heroes Orchestra ensemble really helps capture the spirit of all things Might and Magic, distilling it into a soundtrack that Hooded Horse and Ubisoft better release on vinyl - I need it, and I need it now.

For too many years, then, Heroes of Might and Magic hasn't been part of my life. Olden Era's been on my mind since I got back from Gamescom, taunting me and luring me back in. I've since picked up Heroes of Might and Magic 5, and 6 will soon follow. Having finally finished Baldur's Gate 3, and with Dragon Age: The Veilguard failing to hit the spot, Olden Era looks like the high fantasy fix that I've been chasing for the past few months - a jonesing amplified by my current Dungeons and Dragons obsession. Of all the games I played in Cologne this year, I can't stop thinking about a damn turn-based strategy adventure. The winds of change are blowing; maybe I'm more open to that role of floating commander than I thought. Only time will tell.