Heroes of Might and Magic 3: The Shadow of Death

by 3DO

Product Details

• Shipping: This item is also available for shipping to select countries outside the U.S.
• ASIN: B00004R8JO
• Product Dimensions: 9.5 x 8 x 1.8 inches ; 11.8 ounces
• Media: CD-ROM
• Release Date: March 29, 2000
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (10 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #28,765 in Video Games (See Top 100 in Video Games)
• Discontinued by manufacturer: Yes

Product Description

Amazon.com Review

One of the top fantasy strategy games is back and better than ever. Heroes of Might and Magic 3: The Shadow of Death fills in the back-story of the original campaign, Heroes of Might and Magic 3: The Restoration of Erathia. This prequel includes the full Erathia game and story line; it's essentially the same game as Heroes 3 but with new scenarios to test your strategy skills.

New features will tantalize any devoted fan of the Might and Magic games: there are magic items that can be combined to create more powerful artifacts, and new creatures and terrain types. The map editor has been overhauled, and a new campaign editor makes it easy to design your own scenarios.

A map depicting the land of Erathia dominates the game screen. Cities under your control fly your flag, and temples, treasures, and tombs lie in wait for your hardy adventurers. Players control one or more heroes and send them forth to gain experience, spread influence, and conquer enemies. You can order a rider to the nearest ore mine, adding its production into your kingdom's wealth, or send a force straight for the nearest monster and duke it out for its treasure.

Combat takes you to a new screen where your hero oversees his or her minions--monsters and soldiers they have recruited to the cause--as they fight it out in turn-based battle against the assembled enemy. Each hero can recruit several groups of fantastic warriors--everything from angels to zombies--and each creature has its own particular strengths. Add in the effects of the various hero classes (Knight, Wizard, Necromancer, and more), the ability to cast spells, and the influence of magical artifacts, and the battles can offer up a serious strategic challenge. --Alyx Dellamonica

Pros:

• Loads of new scenarios for endless strategic challenges
• Compelling and interesting story lines
• Campaign editor lets you create your own adventures

Cons:

• Compatibility with other players in multiplayer mode depends on everyone running the same game version

Product Description

Now you can get the complete Heroes of Might and Magic III experience in one value package. This monster bundle will keep players building towns, raising armies, casting spells, and conquering foes for months. Look at all that awaits: 86 standalone missions, 14 campaigns, 38 single-scenario maps, quests for 138 magical artifacts (including 12 powerful combination artifacts), 8 town types to build and conquer, 16 hero classes, 145 combat units, and hundreds of adventure structures.

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

17 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars In Defense..., April 13, 2000

By 

Firefox (USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Heroes of Might and Magic 3: The Shadow of Death (CD-ROM)

Falsadoom, The Shadow of Death DOES work with Armagedon'sBlade. Run a defrag program or format your drive, because this is agreat add on and the $10 rebate accounts for the high price tage with repect to previous owners of Heroes 3. This is one of the most fantastic fantasy/stratagy games ever produced and it is a shame that one might post such an impulse review without first considering other possible causes for their concerns.

12 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Not earth-shattering, but definitely engaging, May 26, 2000

By 

Adam Weiner "rhythmyk" (San Jose, CA USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Heroes of Might and Magic 3: The Shadow of Death (CD-ROM)

With HoMM3:AB, I found that I enjoyed that expansion pack but it didn't really keep me interested as much as this one does. On HoMM3:SOD, there was not only a more sinister plot throughout the campaigns, but you are able to pick the difficulty level of the campaign - a sorely missing feature, previously. True, the Elemental Conflux town type is absent from this (which was stupid to remove), and there really are no new creatures. That hampers the game. However, the ability to combine several artifacts to make a super-powerful one adds a nice touch. I found that picking up a bunch of random artifacts in previous games became tedious, but now it's worthwhile finding some of the less-powerful ones just to assemble something that makes your hero supercharged. Is it worth the money, even with the rebate? I can't say it is unless you really enjoy the HoMM3 series. If you are a fan, then the new campaigns and features should keep you rather entertained.

15 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Outstanding Strategy and Extremely Replayable, July 18, 2000

By 

Andres R. Guevara (Aurora, CO United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Heroes of Might and Magic 3: The Shadow of Death (CD-ROM)

HOMM 3 is an addictive turn-based strategy game for die-hard fantasy addicts and non-addicts alike. The Shadow of Death game is a no-brainer pickup if you haven't yet picked up HOMM 3: Restoration of Erathia. HOMM: Shadows of Death includes the original HOMM3 and enough extras to make it all worthwhile. You will still need to get Armagedon's Blade to take advantage of the extra characters, town and maps in that expansion.

For the non-HOMM folks, the game starts as a resource gathering game, playable in both single and multiplayer modes. In order to afford troops and upgrades, you need certain resources, such as ore, wood, money. etc. Your troops are led by heroes, each of which begin with certain powers and skills. As the heroes increase in level, you choose which skills to highlight, improve, or learn. The graphics won't blow you away although the images are clear and pretty. (sprites are smaller that HOMM2, for example).

In multiplayer games (where this game truly shines), you choose the type of town you want as the basis for your kingdom. Each town has its own unique creatures and heroes. Although there are some balance issues (i.e. some towns don't allow the recruitment of particularly strong long-distance creatures, like archers), these problems are minor and require you to come up with different attack and/or defense strategy.

Overall, an outstanding and totally addictive game.