Heroes of Might and Magic V

 PC
  • Publisher: Ubisoft
  • Release Date: May 23, 2006
User Score
8.0

Generally favorable reviews- based on 583 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 435 out of 583
  2. Mixed: 111 out of 583
  3. Negative: 37 out of 583
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  1. DawidK.
    Aug 3, 2007
    9
    One of the best sequels so far. Gain of good looking without loss in Heroes climate. Only Heroes III is still better than this one. To arms brothers! Theres a game that is worth playing! ( something unusuall these days).
  2. GolovA
    May 14, 2015
    7
    My finger itches to give this one a "6", but considering that i played many hours, and actually enjoyed the game - i am giving it a "7". So why am i being bad toward Heroes V if i played it and enjoyed it? Here is why:
    Heroes has now become a dead franchise which is not moving anywhere. With each reiteration, they either take something out, or return something old to the game, which    My finger itches to give this one a "6", but considering that i played many hours, and actually enjoyed the game - i am giving it a "7". So why am i being bad toward Heroes V if i played it and enjoyed it? Here is why:
    Heroes has now become a dead franchise which is not moving anywhere. With each reiteration, they either take something out, or return something old to the game, which they have taken out previously. The designers do not even try to improve the game, make it better, alter the story line, reinvent ancient approach to gaming.
    No innovation whatsoever. Instead, as fans of the series we are being fed the dying game in a new, visually altered package - same story, same leveling up mechanisms, same strategy, etc. Well, guess what, dev's, the old fans of the series are slowly turning away from this lack of commitment on your part to us - your target group, and the new fanship isn't flocking over to play a stagnated game.    … Expand
  3. BrentD.
    May 27, 2006
    9
    This is the Heroes of old school. The game looks prettier but it pays just like the older HoMM games, which is a very good thing. I was a bit dissapointed when number 4 changed too much for my liking, but the return to classic Heroes play makes this one a gem.
  4. KyleF.
    May 27, 2006
    10
    This is a supreme example of a hero game. Definately the best in the Heroes series so far. I've been playing pretty much nonstop since I got it and will spend many many looooooon ghours playing some more. And more! And more!
  5. Shaitan87
    Mar 2, 2013
    5
    There has been almost no innovation since 3, seems like 90% of the units are identical, even though this is 2 games farther on in the series. I don't think the developers actually understand their own game, it's extremely unbalanced and trivially easy. Stick to King's Bounty.
  6. Crowbarfetish
    Jan 26, 2012
    6
    The six is all sorts of hard SEXY points for gameplay. By "hard" and "sexy" I mean if you could not stop playing heroes 3, you will probably not stop playing this game. It is heroes 3 in 3d for the most part. The game play takes a step back from Heroes 4, gives you that good ol' heroes of might and magic army crawlin' resource gathering nonsense that we all love. The points it loses isThe six is all sorts of hard SEXY points for gameplay. By "hard" and "sexy" I mean if you could not stop playing heroes 3, you will probably not stop playing this game. It is heroes 3 in 3d for the most part. The game play takes a step back from Heroes 4, gives you that good ol' heroes of might and magic army crawlin' resource gathering nonsense that we all love. The points it loses is for style. Almost always I care more about game play but this time around everything heroes V has in substance it lacks in style. One of the things I loved about the earlier heroes games IV not excluded was the stupid little crap they threw in to flesh the world out. Remember collecting a campfire and having to click out of that annoying box that told the little story about you ransacking a bandit camp? Or how about going to the witches hut and hearing that she taught you a skill for her own inscrutable purpose? All of it gone. You collect an item, or walk across what is for all intents and purposes an in game event leaves you with a floating popup around your character telling you that you have +5 ore or +1 luck or -2 moral. No story, no reason, just a floaty fading number. I'm not eloquent or descriptive enough to give enough justice to how much this kills the atmosphere of a game. Watch a you tube video. The charm is gone, the art style looks like a turn based WoW. The music is still pretty and the game play is solid as hell. No heart though. I have no skills to make a game of any kind but I'll still bash ubisoft for sucking the life out of it. To be fare i have 106 hours logged on steam.… Expand
  7. Humanophage
    Jun 30, 2006
    8
    A step backwards from HoMMIV, but a step towards what is good for the series. After all, the charm of HoMM lies in its noble simplicity, while the realm of mildly sophisticated fantasy turn-based strategies nowadays is ruled by the brilliant Age of Wonders. The gameplay in HoMMV is not as captivating as that of HoMMII or HoMMIII, I personally find it somewhat unfinished and raw as opposed A step backwards from HoMMIV, but a step towards what is good for the series. After all, the charm of HoMM lies in its noble simplicity, while the realm of mildly sophisticated fantasy turn-based strategies nowadays is ruled by the brilliant Age of Wonders. The gameplay in HoMMV is not as captivating as that of HoMMII or HoMMIII, I personally find it somewhat unfinished and raw as opposed to wholesome completeness of the early titles, but it is still fairly fine. The new graphical style looks rather cheesy, almost as cheesy as in Warcraft. It makes me wonder if in the future people shall talk about a peculiar early '00-ies style in 3D strategic games. HoMM5 graphics might be flamboyant and colourful, but only the castle screens can truly be called beautiful (I particularly like Haven). HoMM3 seem to be the best in the series in this aspect: tastefully schematic on the map, realistic and majestic on castle screens, battle fields, etc. To my mind, the perfect style would be a mixture of an upgraded HoMM3: RoE and M&M6 (that uses altered photographs as illustrations). But I digress. And graphics don't really matter, after all. What bothers me the most about HoMM5 is that they decided to screw the universe. Of course, things started to get funny around M&M8, but I still truly hope that continuity shall be restored later, now that M&M is seemingly ressurected.… Expand
  8. Omegamon
    Jan 4, 2011
    7
    The good: Good graphics, good music, good gameplay. The bad: combat is a bit flat, it's easy to tell which side will win just by looking at the armies on both sides.
  9. KlausB.
    May 25, 2006
    10
    The game is absolutely awesome. Of course no game is *perfect* at the time of release, but the lots patches being released until the first expansion comes out - and I think even afterwards - will not only fix the last bugs and balance glitches but also add new features to the game! It's a pity the game isn't rerated afterwards.
  10. vangomaextreme
    Jan 12, 2013
    1
    Really tedious game with very little strategy and ridiculously strong and unbalanced AI even on easy level. Pretty graphics is the only thing going for it. Exercise in frustration - stay away!
  11. JerryB.
    Jun 5, 2006
    8
    As a former Heros enthusiast, I expected to be disappointed in Heros V, like I was on Heros IV. I wasn't. While it doesn't break any new frontiers, Heros V is much improved over IV, sort of like Heros III (my favorite) on steriods. It requires heavy computing muscle to bring out the rich envirnoment, so be warned. I lowered the score because of the editor omisssion but hope a As a former Heros enthusiast, I expected to be disappointed in Heros V, like I was on Heros IV. I wasn't. While it doesn't break any new frontiers, Heros V is much improved over IV, sort of like Heros III (my favorite) on steriods. It requires heavy computing muscle to bring out the rich envirnoment, so be warned. I lowered the score because of the editor omisssion but hope a future patch brings it back, as I think the real value to this series in in playing the aftermarket produced maps other enthusiasts make. So bring on the editor UBbisoft/Nival, please! It's a buy at an 8 though.… Expand
  12. Casual_gamer
    May 22, 2012
    10
    I have played all the heroes of might and magic games since Heroes 2 and I ahve to say, this game truly is fun and feels like those games I used to love as a kid. I have had a lot of fun with this game, and its price is really good. I recomend it to anyone, including those hardcore Heroes 3 players :)! Have fun!
  13. Sirik_Matak
    Dec 31, 2015
    2
    The worst HoMM game up to date. Period. Yes, this statement includes Heroes 7.
    This game is fundamentally broken, it was doomed to be broken the day since Nival got the task to make new Heroes game. And Jesus Merciful, the team had no **** clue how to make a competent Heroes game. Even Black Hole did a better job at this, and they halfly butchered their game.
    So, what's to hate about    The worst HoMM game up to date. Period. Yes, this statement includes Heroes 7.
    This game is fundamentally broken, it was doomed to be broken the day since Nival got the task to make new Heroes game. And Jesus Merciful, the team had no **** clue how to make a competent Heroes game. Even Black Hole did a better job at this, and they halfly butchered their game.
    So, what's to hate about Heroes 5: The Awful Game? Almost everything, besides a good game's mechanics on paper. The game looked mediocre in 2005, it run like crap and is unplayable in skirmishes due to horrendous AI.
    The overall art direction is of course a subjective matter, but it's awfully executed and stands in the way of the gameplay. A simple example are the town screens. The original 3DO's Heroes game had town screens that were looking good AND were functional. It wasn't a nice picture, but an actual interface mechanic, where every single building was properly and intuitive placed (the 3 planes rule). Nival, in their retarded way of thinking, tried to cover their incompetence in terms of actual game design, and went full-sparkling, useless mess of town screens. Fully 3D town screens are nice looking, yes. But they're awfully disfunctional. No one will rotate the camera and bleed their eyes out to select a little tiny barracks to recruit units. I watched a camera flying around each town once, and used shortcuts on game-covering panel. The developer completely missed the point of why town screens were implemented in the first place.
    But it's just one example. The game suffers the most because of two major problems. The engine and the AI.
    The engine is a broken piece of a mess. Every single time I tried to play this game, I threw it away after two skirmishes. Why? Why, because of a massive waste of my time of course! This game should be called Snoozing Simulator of Waiting Until the Enemy's Turn Ends, not Heroes of Might & Magic 5. The actual turn usually takes about 30 seconds/1 minute, tops. 5 minutes max, if there's a major battle. But the AI turns, oh boy! 1 enemy or 5 enemies, doesn't matter! Between your 30 seconds of actively playing the game, you will wait pointlessly 2-5 minutes for the AI to end their turn. After a short while it's game breaking and everyone that is above the mental age of 5 will rightfully stop playing, because it's the waste of time. And the game pauses if minimalized and defocused.
    The second deal breaker is the AI, done few days before the release and never fixed. Yeah, the dev is **** but what they have done with HoMM5 is just distasteful and beats the "town portal kek" Heroes 6's AI. I can understand uncovered map for AI (HoMM2). I can stomach unfinished AI (HoMM4). But bottomless resources, 10k a day income or defeating the horde of Archdevils on day 7, week 1, month 1 - is inexcusable.

    Snoozing of AI Cheating: the game.    … Expand
  14. juricasaravanja
    Oct 30, 2013
    7
    I am a huge fun of HoMM series. From the first one to the six. This one is very good, but after 4. campaign I gut stuck on the lust one. This was a something new for me. Too difficult to go through.
    I did not restart the last mission, I guess I got tired of it, and it is getting boring after a few days.
    So I never finish the game. :( It does not happens to me never before. So I guess it    I am a huge fun of HoMM series. From the first one to the six. This one is very good, but after 4. campaign I gut stuck on the lust one. This was a something new for me. Too difficult to go through.
    I did not restart the last mission, I guess I got tired of it, and it is getting boring after a few days.
    So I never finish the game. :(
    It does not happens to me never before. So I guess it has something in it that makes the game repulsive to me. But I can not say it is disappointing to me. On the contrary.    … Expand
  15. GregRog
    Aug 8, 2014
    10
    Definitely the best in the series. First one to have actually decent graphics, good storyline and - oh my god, the soundtrack was just amazing! You have more options of leveling up than in previous games, but not as complicated as in HoMM 6. I just love the design of the creatures, and there's enough types in each faction, i think more than in any Heroes game before or after. The combatDefinitely the best in the series. First one to have actually decent graphics, good storyline and - oh my god, the soundtrack was just amazing! You have more options of leveling up than in previous games, but not as complicated as in HoMM 6. I just love the design of the creatures, and there's enough types in each faction, i think more than in any Heroes game before or after. The combat system is very comfortable, and different unique abilities of factions, heroes and creatures and obstacles located on the battlefield make the battle a very strategic experience. There are lots of maps for multiplayer, with different sizes and layouts, wich enable you to play with your friends or family for months or even years. I wish I could rate it 11/10, but for now I have to end at 10/10.… Expand
  16. Lich_Master
    Jan 8, 2016
    10
    Best game in the franchise.
    Period.

    They just took HooM3 and improvet on it a lot.
    Look at HooM6 or HooM7! And compare it to that gem! Good old times:(
  17. Colin_M
    Dec 19, 2011
    7
    A resounding "Meh". I started on hard difficulty and found everything to be pretty damn easy until the last mission of the first (Haven) campaign which was damn near impossible. The strategic elements end up being a little too repetitive, the combat doesn't have enough flexibility for any real strategy, it's just a "throw all my guys at your guys" war of attrition and there are perhaps tooA resounding "Meh". I started on hard difficulty and found everything to be pretty damn easy until the last mission of the first (Haven) campaign which was damn near impossible. The strategic elements end up being a little too repetitive, the combat doesn't have enough flexibility for any real strategy, it's just a "throw all my guys at your guys" war of attrition and there are perhaps too many little interactable elements on the map whose bonuses are not particularly helpful. I't worth the five bucks I paid for it on Impulse, but I don't know if I'm even going to finish the single-player campaigns.… Expand
  18. Meevious
    Oct 22, 2013
    0
    The rights were sold to Ubisoft, who dropped the ball completely.

    The game is full of bugs, the graphics are jarringly ugly, with a nonsensical camera and bad animations.

    Gameplay is dumbed down. Nothing about the game is interesting or engaging.

    It makes me sick to see the HoMM title on such a trashy product.
  19. SethH
    Dec 6, 2009
    3
    Even though it's not a horrible game, it's very boring, I was bored with it after the first day. And the game is just too hard if you play against the computer so stressful that the second the game starts you have nothing while the enemy has quadruple your tech and an entire army, they just come in and game over. Never did multiplayer, might be decent.
  20. BurtC
    Jul 26, 2008
    10
    Best artwork ever if you have a good video card. I think this game is awesome.
  21. TheInnocent
    Jun 2, 2011
    3
    I would have rated this game higher if I had given up on it earlier. It was far too long, too hard on easy to be a background or relaxing game, and not engaging or interesting enough to be something I really wanted to get into. The graphics are good, and the music would be nice, but the game goes on too long, so even the music gets repetitive. The cut-scenes were fine, but not worth theI would have rated this game higher if I had given up on it earlier. It was far too long, too hard on easy to be a background or relaxing game, and not engaging or interesting enough to be something I really wanted to get into. The graphics are good, and the music would be nice, but the game goes on too long, so even the music gets repetitive. The cut-scenes were fine, but not worth the time you had already put into the game. Don't bother with it.… Expand
  22. Overrwatcher
    Sep 10, 2011
    3
    An utter dissapointment to the Heroes of Might and Magic series. IV wasn't that great, but at least is was good enough to make you keep playing. This is slow, ugly, and boring. Do not buy.
  23. DonCanardo
    Feb 17, 2012
    5
    I tried to play this game but I can't. I don't know what's wrong really, but I just don't enjoy playing it. Maybe because Im a big fan of HOMM 2 & 3. I don't like the graphics. It's really messy, not harmonious, and broke the gameplay because it mess with your visibility. The game feels really "heavy". Even with a gaming computer, its not fluid. Musics aren't great. Races aren't have greatI tried to play this game but I can't. I don't know what's wrong really, but I just don't enjoy playing it. Maybe because Im a big fan of HOMM 2 & 3. I don't like the graphics. It's really messy, not harmonious, and broke the gameplay because it mess with your visibility. The game feels really "heavy". Even with a gaming computer, its not fluid. Musics aren't great. Races aren't have great identity. Castles are messy, there is too many useless buildings. 5 or 6 maps at the release and no editor, that was a pure joke!! (Thank god there is a map generator now). On the good side, there is a lot of content (skills, spells, artifacts, etc). The combat system is an improvement (initiative). Overall a big disappointment, the franchise just lost its magic and fantasy...… Expand
  24. SebastianC.
    Sep 17, 2006
    3
    PATHETIC! You gotta wait for the editor, SIX MAPS!, and extremely cheesy graphics, I think this is seriously the end of heroes, no one can stand up again after two KOs. Heroes 4+5 are the end, thank god for Heroes 3 though....
  25. HelenT.
    May 26, 2006
    8
    Almost perfect. Almost! If this game had shipped with the map editor and a few small other things, I may have givne it a 9 (it would take something truly astounding to merit a 10). I'm hard on games though, an 8 is something I reserve for the very cream of the crop. Once I have a chance to try that map editor, this may even merit a 9.
  26. FrancisB.
    May 23, 2006
    8
    Awesome! But not innovative.
  27. Andy
    May 31, 2006
    3
    This one is a true disappointment and a full step backward, to the times of Heroes 2 - only six towns, ONE (!!!) hero per town, a great bunch of skills and abilities are just stolen from H3/H4, multiplayer does not exist and the battles lasts for hours, because of enormously long and boring animations. Squares instead of hexes, no orcs, no editor, man this all makes it the worst Heroes This one is a true disappointment and a full step backward, to the times of Heroes 2 - only six towns, ONE (!!!) hero per town, a great bunch of skills and abilities are just stolen from H3/H4, multiplayer does not exist and the battles lasts for hours, because of enormously long and boring animations. Squares instead of hexes, no orcs, no editor, man this all makes it the worst Heroes installment ever.… Expand
  28. LukeM.
    May 31, 2006
    10
    Best Game Ever!!!!
  29. JeffreyP.
    Mar 21, 2007
    0
    This game sucks! Turns take TOOOO LOOONNNGGG! Even with coputer players! Stay away from this crap!
  30. lukep
    Aug 13, 2007
    10
    this game the best every:) heroes is back baby wooot lol go dungeon
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Awards & Rankings

63
#63 Best PC Game of 2006
17
#17 Most Discussed PC Game of 2006
19
#19 Most Shared PC Game of 2006

Critic Reviews

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Metascore
77

Generally favorable reviews - based on 41 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 29 out of 41
  2. Mixed: 12 out of 41
  3. Negative: 0 out of 41
  1. ActionTrip
    85
    You simply have to have the willingness to learn and give this game a chance. If you do this, you will be rewarded with an amazing strategy experience.
    Read full review
  2. Yahoo!
    70
    The biggest failing of Heroes V, which you can almost anticipate from its emphasis on looking so good, is that it's stingy with information.
    Read full review
  3. GameSpot
    82
    Skeptical Heroes fans, as well as anyone looking for a fun, long-lasting turn-based strategy game, will likely be pleasantly surprised by this one.
    Read full review
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