Might & Magic: Heroes VI - Shades of Darkness

 PC
  • Publisher: Ubisoft
  • Release Date: May 2, 2013
User Score
5.3

Mixed or average reviews- based on 84 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 34 out of 84
  2. Mixed: 16 out of 84
  3. Negative: 34 out of 84

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  1. Avadon
    May 11, 2013
    7
    Inexcusable authentication issues aside, which have been fixed at the time that I'm writing this, this is a solid expansion to H6. There is a lot of challenging content here, with huge, detailed maps and campaigns. The story and dialogues are also enjoyable, and finally we have the awesome town screens that we've always wanted. The expansion patch solved a ton of issues that were stillInexcusable authentication issues aside, which have been fixed at the time that I'm writing this, this is a solid expansion to H6. There is a lot of challenging content here, with huge, detailed maps and campaigns. The story and dialogues are also enjoyable, and finally we have the awesome town screens that we've always wanted. The expansion patch solved a ton of issues that were still there after so long, but it also introduced several new ones, worst of which is the occasional black screen freeze when entering a battle. They haven't clarified what's causing it and said they are working on a fix, so you can't really know if your PC will be affected by this, so until they fix it, it's hard to recommend taking a leap of faith on whether the game will work or not. Also, if you choose to play offline, every single unlock and account progression is unavailable. There is absolutely no reason for this requirement, you should be able to purchase your Altar unlocks and gain account XP even while offline, and only performing a synch to the cloud when and if you choose to. It just feels terrible going through unnecessary DRM and logging in services that offer nothing. There is no multiplayer element to the campaigns, so they shouldn't be making you jumping through hoops to play them with all their features on. The only thing it offers is "conflux bubbles" in every map, which you can click and see posts by other players, most of which complain about how terrible the DRM is. How ironic. Overall, solid expansion, has some bugs that may make it unplayable until they are fixed, shame about the unnecessary DRM. I suggest you are patient and buy it later during a sale if you're not in too much of a hurry.… Expand
  2. Woopya
    May 5, 2013
    6
    Many of the "0" ratings have people who have never reviewed any other game. Many of the Best reviews are from regular reviewers. That says something about who is trying to manipulate the score here. As to the game, if you liked M&M 6, this is pretty much more of the same. I did like it, so my review is somewhat positive. However, I would appreciate if after 2 years there were some newMany of the "0" ratings have people who have never reviewed any other game. Many of the Best reviews are from regular reviewers. That says something about who is trying to manipulate the score here. As to the game, if you liked M&M 6, this is pretty much more of the same. I did like it, so my review is somewhat positive. However, I would appreciate if after 2 years there were some new things too. Furthermore, Ubisoft does have some customer service issues(namely it doesn't exist) with regards to uplay.

    In fact, I would be inclined to give this game a 9 or 10 and recommend it to all my friends if Uplay didn't exist. I understand it is needed to help curb illegal distribution and all, but in their effort to keep the game out of the hands of illegal downloaders and freeloaders, they made the game less fun for their legit customers.

    Please Ubisoft, clean up Uplay and make it customer friendly. I will not buy anymore PC titles of yours until I see this happening. Do you realize I have had an open ticket in your tech forums for over 2 years now? Seriously...

    So while I can recommend the game, its fun enough, its score will suffer as it should for a company that is pushing product out the door then forgetting about their customers.    … Expand
  3. ektop
    May 3, 2013
    2
    A total waste of money. The game must be named Errors of Might and Magic: Install error, Uplay error, crush errors, deleted saved games errors, etc etc etc
  4. Elfwine
    May 6, 2013
    8
    Very good and long awaited addon. New Dungeon castle is very interesting, and new big multiplayer maps a also very welcomed.

    Bought the game a next day after release, so had no UPlay issues or any other bugs of crushes whatsoever.
  5. tarq
    May 8, 2013
    9
    Decent add on, if it wasn't for release connection problems it would be perfect score.I couldn't start anything on release date, but game started working after 2 days and had no problems since then.

    I prefer HoMM 6 to HoMM 5 due to sheer amount maps and gameplay available, and the only nuisance would be AI that it doesn't look like they ever changed since HoMM 3.
  6. Muggs123
    May 2, 2013
    0
    Completely broken servers, cant access your save games due to uplay cloud. what a waste of money. get your freaking act together Ubisoft, another disappointment.
  7. Dinisan
    May 4, 2013
    10
    There was no music or voice when it first came out but they fixed that with a patch in less than 24 hours. I have only played the first 3 maps of the dark elf campaign and I thoroughly enjoyed them. The graphics are crisper than the original. Very nice graphics. Reading the forums people are experiencing many bugs but I am sure they will fix them as time goes by. The game froze 3 timesThere was no music or voice when it first came out but they fixed that with a patch in less than 24 hours. I have only played the first 3 maps of the dark elf campaign and I thoroughly enjoyed them. The graphics are crisper than the original. Very nice graphics. Reading the forums people are experiencing many bugs but I am sure they will fix them as time goes by. The game froze 3 times with me, all when starting battles. Not a big problem though I just loaded the autosave from the previous turn. It is a very complex and well polished game. I look forward to trying multi-player after I finish the campaigns. I would definitely recommend this game.… Expand
  8. OMGWTF
    May 2, 2013
    0
    Installing this standalone addon with the main game still installed deleted all savegames and achievement progress. Main game campaings are greyed out and can't be played anymore. Connecting to the Conflux often results in CTD. Dynasty weapons can't be unlocked, same thing happened after release of main game. Well done, Limbic and Ubisoft! *clap clap clap* Another release abusing theInstalling this standalone addon with the main game still installed deleted all savegames and achievement progress. Main game campaings are greyed out and can't be played anymore. Connecting to the Conflux often results in CTD. Dynasty weapons can't be unlocked, same thing happened after release of main game. Well done, Limbic and Ubisoft! *clap clap clap* Another release abusing the customers as beta testers. Do not buy until game is properly patched. Considering it's Ubisoft, that should happen... never.… Expand
  9. Brestfloda
    May 2, 2013
    0
    What a piece of I had the same results and the other reviewer, upon installing the game my progress in the main game was wiped. I remember having bought quite a bit of stuff from my dynasty points when i played the campaing when it came out, these are gone. My dynasty weapons are all back to level 1. Old save games are not there in their "cloud". My conclusion, before even playing theWhat a piece of I had the same results and the other reviewer, upon installing the game my progress in the main game was wiped. I remember having bought quite a bit of stuff from my dynasty points when i played the campaing when it came out, these are gone. My dynasty weapons are all back to level 1. Old save games are not there in their "cloud". My conclusion, before even playing the damned thing, is that it's a piece of do not buy. If they can't even get things as bloody obvious as that right...… Expand
  10. omi
    May 6, 2013
    10
    MM6 evolved in time, it has now much better AI and free from bugs from the starting days. Alot of balancing done and I consider it is a true successor to homm series. I like the new expansion story and how it connects with homm5. There is a familiarity both gameplay and accompanying music score which brings some of old days fun from homm games. I recommend it to anyone especially to peopleMM6 evolved in time, it has now much better AI and free from bugs from the starting days. Alot of balancing done and I consider it is a true successor to homm series. I like the new expansion story and how it connects with homm5. There is a familiarity both gameplay and accompanying music score which brings some of old days fun from homm games. I recommend it to anyone especially to people who were discouraged 2 years ago with release of the game, now it is much more fun and challenging.… Expand
  11. MoreOrLess
    May 4, 2013
    0
    Heroes 6 base game was infested by bugs, uplay problems (thank you uplay for randomly delete my saves, sync not working, etc...). Limbic patches fixed some bugs but at the same time created more and more bugs. Guess what happened with this expansion? new bugs are discovered each day, even old bugs reappear! The game was officially to be released on 2 of MAy, but the whole day the serversHeroes 6 base game was infested by bugs, uplay problems (thank you uplay for randomly delete my saves, sync not working, etc...). Limbic patches fixed some bugs but at the same time created more and more bugs. Guess what happened with this expansion? new bugs are discovered each day, even old bugs reappear! The game was officially to be released on 2 of MAy, but the whole day the servers were down and no chance playing. Damn you Ubisoft! You only ruin franchises and milk money from them, while punishing legal players … Expand
  12. Dragonwizard
    May 7, 2013
    0
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. Today again conflux go down. Cant play first days, cant play today, bugs with dynasty weapon that reduce cost of spells (its grow with each loading). at the end of first mission of necropolis mass agony cost 280 manna (must 40), than i have maximum 240. How people check storyline and other if this game broken so often? Cant play, bugs, nice start for this nice game… Expand
  13. Jenne
    May 4, 2013
    8
    It's exactly what I expected more of the same fun gameplay, interesting story (by Homam standards), witty writing and subpar voice work. The new faction (Dungeon) is neither the best, nor the worst, it could've been a bit more innovative, instead of traditional minotaurs, beholders, black dragons and manticores, but hey, I'm not complaining. All in all it's a very solid, very steady andIt's exactly what I expected more of the same fun gameplay, interesting story (by Homam standards), witty writing and subpar voice work. The new faction (Dungeon) is neither the best, nor the worst, it could've been a bit more innovative, instead of traditional minotaurs, beholders, black dragons and manticores, but hey, I'm not complaining. All in all it's a very solid, very steady and reliable expansion with ample gameplay time I've clocked in about 15 hours and I'm still in the third campaign map. (As for the negative reviews, most of them are, and probably will be, aimed at bugs and technical issues; there were substantial problems on launch with uPlay again but it's slowly being fixed; everything else about this game is very good).… Expand
  14. abraxes
    May 7, 2013
    0
    STEAM forums have been DISABLED for this product since it launched (which is my main reason for writing this review) That tells me something. The developers do not want people reading real time reviews... I wonder why? Also,If you look closely (check the reviewer's number of games reviewed) nearly every positive review is from someone who has reviewed only one game, this one. Then we haveSTEAM forums have been DISABLED for this product since it launched (which is my main reason for writing this review) That tells me something. The developers do not want people reading real time reviews... I wonder why? Also,If you look closely (check the reviewer's number of games reviewed) nearly every positive review is from someone who has reviewed only one game, this one. Then we have a mid level review (whoopya) pointing out how the negative reviews are all from people who just created accounts... my guess is that the people who made the game are hyping it because it's a pos just like the last pos they put out, and one shouldn't spend one's hard earned money on garbage that needs lies to bolster it's sales. Just a thought.… Expand
  15. rodier
    May 17, 2013
    10
    Its really good expansion, worth the money. Homam 6 is returns to roots. Best Legacy ever.
    It have really nice graphic, zoomed it looks like wow or lol :)
    It have many languages inside, it detect your language automatically nothing to set.
  16. Rugz
    May 5, 2013
    0
    I don't even own this game, but i feel i ought to write a review of it anyway, and here is why. When this game released on steam (not that it's even on steam, as you just download the files and then you get stuck with uplay crap), the heroes of might and magic 6 pack was on sale, i saw it and it looked interesting so i purchased. However due to the incredibly poor release of this game, iI don't even own this game, but i feel i ought to write a review of it anyway, and here is why. When this game released on steam (not that it's even on steam, as you just download the files and then you get stuck with uplay crap), the heroes of might and magic 6 pack was on sale, i saw it and it looked interesting so i purchased. However due to the incredibly poor release of this game, i am unable to play my game. The release was so bad, it has effected me and i don't even own this. Ubisofts poor DRM and server/game issues are SOO bad, this games release has denied me access to the original game, as their server claims i don't have the game. Not just me, but a huge amount of people have this problem. Literally unbelievable, ubisoft should be ashamed.… Expand
  17. Hermes_tri
    May 4, 2013
    10
    All I can say is wow ;D

    Got home to my freshly installed H6+SoD on Steam(I had uninstalled the game yearsterday due to some sudden slowdown, worked it out today it was the Antivirus) just ran the game, unlocked Shades of Darkness and everything just worked. Cant fault anything at all. I LOVE the expansion. Totally. So far in the middle of a second map of the Elven campaign, and its    All I can say is wow ;D

    Got home to my freshly installed H6+SoD on Steam(I had uninstalled the game yearsterday due to some sudden slowdown, worked it out today it was the Antivirus) just ran the game, unlocked Shades of Darkness and everything just worked. Cant fault anything at all. I LOVE the expansion. Totally. So far in the middle of a second map of the Elven campaign, and its very immersive and fun. I find the story and dialogues much much better now. And funnier Dungeon is becoming my favorite faction, well may be together with my all time H6 favorite Haven

    I think Virtious has done a tremendous job, content-wise. Just have a look at reputation abilities and new dynasty weapons! They have brought back many familiar spells/techniques and added some new.

    Ok, after playing extensively(still in the middle of elven map 2) I have to say that devs did a right choice introducing Dungeon instead of Sylvan/Academy. It establishes presence of the elves as we know them, arrogant and proud. Lots and lots of tactical abilities, have to think really hard on how to approach battles on different heroes.

    1. Storyline

    IS awesome. They have learned a lot, it is mature, developed and quests are actually forcing ypu to say split your army, or rush as fast as possible, or explore everything. They mixed all these perfectly. I love the interactions between Raelag and minotaurs, and between brothers

    2. Lineup

    Awesome, love it. My favourite are chakram dancers, and manticores(they seem to have more animations by the way)
    Assasins are powerful but easily killed, its worth it sometimes to attack with them and then use racial on them atraight away and move away. on general creatures are powerful but expensive. Only exception, black dragons are a bit weak on defence.
    Love the trickster class as well, and this mageblade dynasty weapon is fun. New abilities are hard to use but effective.

    My Favorite races always were haven and academy, but now I am not sure:)

    All these trolls giving a zero, that just isnt funny. Only negative about the game its crazily addicting!    … Expand
  18. faceless-1
    May 3, 2013
    8
    Very good exp. I had no problems with uplay, or loosing mine acc. data. Dungeon story line is good, i think better than original HOMAM 6 sotry lines. Black dragons are awesome. After rushed start HOMAM 6 is finally getting on par with older Heroes games.
  19. Vasot
    May 5, 2013
    3
    What a scum not only this game does not bring nothing new to the genre except from a new mostly boring campaign with the same disappointing gameplay elements as its predecessor it is also full with bugs and glitches. M&M6 and this expansion are just little shadows of what Might and Magic was as a series in the past. What a shame Ubisoft ruined the series...
  20. Miskin
    May 14, 2013
    0
    With rating the product as 0, I am deliberately overrating the product.
    Strictly speaking it deserves 8.5 for the game development and concept and -12 for the U-play system implementation.
    I am located in Shanghai, China. The game needs at least 20-30min to synchronize with Ubisoft servers, and most often fails much earlier prompting a U-play error. This is utterly ridiculous and defies    With rating the product as 0, I am deliberately overrating the product.
    Strictly speaking it deserves 8.5 for the game development and concept and -12 for the U-play system implementation.
    I am located in Shanghai, China. The game needs at least 20-30min to synchronize with Ubisoft servers, and most often fails much earlier prompting a U-play error. This is utterly ridiculous and defies any description.
    So, let's sum up: -12+8.5=-3.5. Since, I am not allowed to score -3.5, it get's a 0. Fair and square.    … Expand
  21. saxelfur
    May 3, 2013
    10
    I pre-purchased the steam version, and after they got the uplay servers up running (that this takes a while is almost to be expected nowadays), everything runs smoothly. I did not lose any data, campaign progess, save games or dynasty content. I suppose the user reporting this will get it all back once they connect to uplay again. The content is great, up until now (halfway in the firstI pre-purchased the steam version, and after they got the uplay servers up running (that this takes a while is almost to be expected nowadays), everything runs smoothly. I did not lose any data, campaign progess, save games or dynasty content. I suppose the user reporting this will get it all back once they connect to uplay again. The content is great, up until now (halfway in the first map). The new faction adds a new, tactically interesting play style. Everything I hoped for.… Expand
  22. Leneira
    May 3, 2013
    8
    And again the users review section is filled with haters with new accounts (or this may even be one person on multiple account),maybe start banning these Anyway, i haven't finished the game yet but so far i didn't experience any problems and the game it self is fun.Gameplay wise it's pretty much the same as it was with new storyline (so far it's better then the original) new units etc. IAnd again the users review section is filled with haters with new accounts (or this may even be one person on multiple account),maybe start banning these Anyway, i haven't finished the game yet but so far i didn't experience any problems and the game it self is fun.Gameplay wise it's pretty much the same as it was with new storyline (so far it's better then the original) new units etc. I gave it 8 but keep in mind this is just an expansion not a brand new game.… Expand
  23. Daron
    May 7, 2013
    10
    Update: I just completed the Dungeon campaign today (managed to get into the game on the 2nd of May). Some people who have not played Heroes of Might and Magic V may probably not understand some parts of the story line, but that isn't critical to the game. I did have some occasional glitches in the battle maps (map items like rocks, braziers etc appearing very large, absence of gridlines),Update: I just completed the Dungeon campaign today (managed to get into the game on the 2nd of May). Some people who have not played Heroes of Might and Magic V may probably not understand some parts of the story line, but that isn't critical to the game. I did have some occasional glitches in the battle maps (map items like rocks, braziers etc appearing very large, absence of gridlines), but nothing really that significant that a reload couldn't solve. The only glitch that I couldnt not find a solution for, was the mana required to cast some of Sorshan's spells. Mass regeneration takes up like 40 mana, but Mass Drain Life 217 mana, especially frm a Magic Hero? Seems like a bug? But that said, it wasn't a biggie since the main hero i.e Raelag, wasn't affected by the bug.

    I hope those who had problems with the game will give the game a chance...assuming you guys can get into the game i.e Sure, Ubisoft sucked in the DRM and Conflux, but once you get over that, and play the game proper, it is pretty good.

    (PS :when conflux was down today for server maintenance, I replayed the 1st HoMM campaign again offline, just to check if there my game had any problems that some people complained about. I played Duke Slava's 1st mission without any problems as well. I had also forgotten how funny Kraal and the orcs can be! (from my first play thru when HoMM 6 was first released).    … Expand
  24. Kluge
    Jun 8, 2013
    4
    I really shouldn't be posting this as a review (this is my true score, but I don't want to detract from my point with a review of the actual game), but I figured it had to be said, and it is very relevant to the content of this particular game.

    Always-on DRM for single-player games is always cracked. Go to whatever tracker, and you can find this game running perfectly by people    I really shouldn't be posting this as a review (this is my true score, but I don't want to detract from my point with a review of the actual game), but I figured it had to be said, and it is very relevant to the content of this particular game.

    Always-on DRM for single-player games is always cracked. Go to whatever tracker, and you can find this game running perfectly by people carefully bypassing the DRM. It functions better than the "real" game, and has shown Ubi's always-on DRM as both ineffective and extremely detrimental for players. Diablo 3 is cracked, Far Cry 3 is cracked, SC2 is cracked and multiplayer-capable through LAN (probably publicly online I don't keep up with piracy *that* much), even MMORPGs like WoW have private servers facilitating piracy (as well as legitimate modded and/or free-online play). WINDOWS is cracked iOS is cracked, everything is cracked, so devs need to quit thinking they can reinforce a dam when the water just flows over, anyway. Always-on DRM does NOT deter piracy. Once it's cracked, it's cracked, and no pirate cares what fancy ways the devs came up with to try curbing it, it's still easier to install and play pirated than legitimate. If the devs/pubs really cared, keep the DRM active and bugging people off until a cracked version is widely distributed in public, then de-activate the DRM, because it's no longer doing its job any better than CD keys. I wonder, sometimes, if devs purposefully go with publishers on outrageous DRM schemes just to show the publishers what a ridiculously pointless and horrible idea it is, and which will be criticized to no end by the people who PAID for (not pirated) the game.    … Expand
  25. Grazgul
    May 29, 2013
    5
    On of the worst releases I've seen.

    The launch was as botched as botched gets. It took me two days after buying to be able to play (due to registration errors) and the game frequently crashes.

    It's only a 5 because it follows the might and magic formula, which is enjoyable on a new shiny update and the hero's are interesting.

    I would wait until fixes occur before bothering to purchase.
  26. Type4101
    Sep 8, 2013
    1
    A mostly-fun (but unoriginal) rehash of the Heroes formula. The game would be solid (an 8.0 or so), but the U-play DRM completely ruins the game. It crashes frequently, even four months after release. The cloud save system fails to save properly almost half the time. Overall, the DRM makes the game not worth playing. Sadly, paying customers suffer once again, in what is becoming anA mostly-fun (but unoriginal) rehash of the Heroes formula. The game would be solid (an 8.0 or so), but the U-play DRM completely ruins the game. It crashes frequently, even four months after release. The cloud save system fails to save properly almost half the time. Overall, the DRM makes the game not worth playing. Sadly, paying customers suffer once again, in what is becoming an unbearable trait of the gaming industry as a whole. Don't buy this game.… Expand
  27. Taciturntable
    Jan 31, 2014
    5
    It is incredibly annoying to have to be connected to UPlay. I am constantly having problems with it. I am updating my review though because the game itself is actually pretty fun. Pain to run, though...
  28. Sooperking88
    Mar 19, 2014
    10
    Love this game and the series of Might and Magic. Very addictive and fun. Perhaps it can be considered too addictive.. :) Love it. Very creative game! Takes some skill and thought to win and defeat your enemies.
  29. Genek13
    Nov 15, 2019
    9
    Same game as the original one + new city (Dungeon)
    Great and worth of your money and time :)

Critic Reviews

All reviews »
Metascore
66

Mixed or average reviews - based on 15 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 3 out of 15
  2. Mixed: 11 out of 15
  3. Negative: 1 out of 15
  1. CD-Action
    Jul 2, 2013
    75
    I did complain in this review but as a whole Shades of Darkness is the best thing Heroes VI has to offer. [CD-Action 08/2013, p.84]
  2. Games.cz
    Jun 25, 2013
    60
    If you are fans of Might and Magic: Heroes VI and you crave for some new content, the standalone expansion Shades of Darkness is a must-have. If you've never played the sixth installment, beware of a loads of unpleasant surprises originating in the game's strongly unbalanced AI.
    Read full review
  3. XGN
    Jun 19, 2013
    75
    The latest installment in the Might & Magic Heroes franchise might not be the best game ever in the series, but the complete edition filled with extra content will guaranteed keep you busy for hours. Whether you're new to the game or veteran.
    Read full review
See all critic reviews »