Might & Magic: Clash of Heroes (Nintendo DS) - Review by Chris

Introduction

Having been around for a considerably long period of time, the Might & Magic franchise has become renowned within the realms of PC gaming as offering some of the finest strategy filled gameplay of any title on the platform. Over the 2 decades, the franchise has seen multiple reiterations both on the PC and more recently on the home consoles, aiming to bring the deep gameplay there to a wider audience of gamers. Yet, with little innovation, the series has started to stagnate and as such, publisher Ubisoft has teamed up with independent developer Capybara Games to breathe some new life into a tired franchise. But does leaving what its brethren titles did behind bring the franchise into a new light?

Gameplay

A demon army is setting out to gain control of the Blade of Binding, a weapon of enormous power, and rule the world. Initially sending troops in to attack certain regions, the demon hordes decide to create friction instead between the races of Ashan and soon, the humans of the Griffin Empire are fighting with the Elves of Irollan about issues and troubles caused by the demons which are now being blamed on each other. Taking part of some youthful members of each of the races, you'll set out to quell the troubles between the races and ultimately regain control of the Blade of Binding so as to defeat the demon army once and for all. The main story itself offers plenty of depth to experience, as your travels will have you changing characters every so often with there being 5 in total for you to control. This multi-faceted plotline allows the player to see the circumstances and troubles that permeate the story from different sides though ultimately, they will all meet up to lead to the same conclusion.

Clash of Heroes is the biggest diversion in the series to date with the gameplay now taking on a much more RPG feel while still incorporating the elements of strategy. You'll travel through the lands of Ashan, where movement is restricted to nodes on a path through each location, taking on key battles against demons and other races to progress the story. With each battle, you'll gain experience and level up just like any other RPG. But the main characters themselves do not get directly involved in the battles, instead relying on an army of various troops, with special and hidden types becoming available throughout the game for completing certain primary and secondary quests, of which there are a large number to keep you occupied.

The battles almost feel like a puzzle game, with them spread out over both of the DS' screens. Your army will fill the touch screen while the enemy's army will fill the top screen. The object is to link together 3 units of the same colour before you can launch an attack at your enemy and deplete his or her health bar, with the amount of damage being done with attacks decreasing for every enemy unit you hit on the way to their leader. While initially seeming very simple to get to grips with, the inclusion of various techniques, such as linking and fusions, as well as the appearance of a multitude of different units makes for an incredibly deep experience where managing the units you take into battle as well as utilising the correct commands at the right time will ultimately decide whether you win or lose. There's also the added strategy of keeping your special units alive through the battle as, if they fall to your enemy, you'll have to purchase more with the in game currency to have them return to your army.

But not all battles are straight forward. While the majority simple ask you to deplete your opponent's health bar, secondary quests picked up along the way or certain main storyline quests will employ specific conditions to the battles which increase the tension and have you racking your brain to work out a manageable strategy to survive. Examples of this are having to defeat two specific units at the back of the enemy field who are sawing through a tree or having to position your attacks so as not to hit an ally character who has been captured by the enemy. The variety, along with the depth of battle, creates a truly unique experience that is, for all attempts and purposes, exceptional with there being little else on the console that can rival the depth and strategy that the game offers.

Like many of the other strategy titles on the DS, Might & Magic is not short on content with the game's single player campaign covering the 5 main races of the regions of Ashan and lasting for hours in the double digits, with that time covering the bare minimum of content. Further deviation from the main path into the plentiful numbers of bounty missions, side quests and other hidden options will seriously extend the length of your single player campaign to well over the 30 hour mark. If you then factor in the local wireless multiplayer, which unfortunately isn't online but supports 2 player battles, Might & Magic: Clash of Heroes really will have you gripped for potentially weeks and months to come.

Controls

While the option to control the game through taps of the touch screen is included, the more traditional based controls work far better and will be the port of call for many gamers. The d-pad is used to move your characters around the environments, sticking to a selection of nodes placed on a path, while the face buttons are used for interacting with people or objects and bringing up menus. It's a similar fare in battle, with controls kept simplistic and accessible which is a very nice touch given how in depth the battles can get. But moving your troops around the battlefield is restricting to say the least with the traditional button based setup and the touch screen can only be used to move your squad selecting cursor around. If the touch screen had been used for moving troops about, it would have made the battles that bit easier for managing.

Graphics

Taking a step away from the prior Might & Magic titles, Clash of Heroes takes on a much more anime style for the visuals, with character designs heavily influenced by that particular art style, something which is more apparent through the caricature images that appear through cutscenes. While not showing a whole lot of ingenuity when it comes to the designs for the non-demon characters, they still look great and are animated extremely well throughout. The sprite work for the characters is a perfect example of the amount detail having gone into the game, with subtle animations throughout the battles and maps that really gives the sense of living, breathing characters and the variety in what you'll see, not only for your own personal units but also in regards to the enemies, is superb.

Locations and environments are of an equally high standard, again keeping to a 2d art style but harking back to the days of the Super Nintendo and the wealth of high quality role playing games that made up that console's particular library. The attention to detail in the environments and making them look as lively as possible, through the ambience of the detail in the water and many otherwise insignificant items as well as the rich colour palette used to create the locations, makes the game a pleasure to view at times.

Sound

Music strictly follows a well trodden fantasy path, feeling very much like a Super Nintendo style game through the music, but fits the game extremely well. All pieces for traversing the locales and for fighting battles are well composed and fit the atmosphere of the game well, changing up in tempo and tone to reflect changes in the story. It provides some pleasant listening but you'll never be taken aback at its quality beyond the polite acceptance that it is good and nothing more.

Dual screen

Both screens are put to good use in game. For a change, when not in battle the top screen displays a map of the surrounding area and through the touch screen you can simply touch each step to move your character. Likewise, the good use of the screens extends to the battles where they stretch over the dual screens and allow for basic touch screen input for movement. It's certainly nothing new but the way in which the game makes use of the screens is commendable and extremely well done.

Final comments

To take such a risk with a reboot to such a large franchise and have it turn out so exceptionally well is a remarkable showing of the talent at Capybara Games. Where it could have gone so wrong, Might & Might: Clash of Heroes manages to couple fantastic and innovative gameplay with a great presentation so seamlessly to create one extensive package that keeps giving and giving. It's such a deep package that has been done to such a high standard that it easily stands as the best strategy RPG on the console and is a must buy for those looking for a game of great depth.

Pro: Extensive single player campaign, surprisingly deep gameplay, great presentation, wireless multiplayer option
Con: Can be difficult at times, lack of online multiplayer is a disappointment
Final score: 9.1

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