The workforce over at Capy Video games has an actual knack for ingenious takes on seemingly easy puzzle video games. I first realized this when taking part in the colorful Critter Crunch approach again in 2009, and these days, I’m reminded of it at any time when I squeeze in a few rounds of Grindstone on my phone. Tucked away in between these two releases was Would possibly & Magic: Conflict of Heroes — which initially debuted on the Nintendo DS — an typically missed sport which may simply be essentially the most engrossing puzzle RPG I’ve ever performed. Now it has a brand new lease on life with a rerelease for contemporary platforms.
Conflict of Heroes is a match-three sport, however in observe, it’s fairly totally different from one thing like Sweet Crush and even Puzzle Quest. Mainly, the issues you’re matching are troopers and different fight models, and matching them is the way you do battle. The display screen is split into two halves — you on the underside, your opponent on high — and also you’re offered with a grid full of various sorts of models that you may transfer round. Match three of the identical kind vertically, they usually’ll get able to assault; match them up horizontally, they usually’ll create a defensive wall. The objective (often) is to deplete your enemy’s well being by pushing your assaults by the soldiers in entrance of them.
The sport is turn-based, so that you’ll make a number of strikes earlier than switching over to your opponent, like in a basic Closing Fantasy-style RPG. The complexity ramps up fairly shortly. There are various kinds of models, all with distinctive types of assaults, a few of which take a number of turns earlier than they’re unleashed. Success turns into a mix of creating sensible, environment friendly strikes, and paying shut consideration to the timing of your (and your opponent’s) assaults. There are many video games which have tried to wed role-playing with puzzle-solving, however few have executed in order seamlessly as Conflict of Heroes.
It’s additionally a sport that continually surprises you. There are all types of distinctive battles with tough win circumstances; within the first few hours, you’ll have to stop an historic elven tree from being chopped down and defeat a military whereas not harming a selected unit. It retains issues recent and difficult. There are additionally quests the place the objective is to kill all the enemy models in a single flip. It’s like a sudoku puzzle, solely in fantasy warfare type.
The brand new “definitive version” was put collectively by Dotemu, the workforce behind another current retro revivals like Streets of Rage 4 and TMNT: Shredder’s Revenge, and is basically based mostly on the attractive console model that got here out in 2012. The gameplay feels nearly as good as I bear in mind it, however there are some improved visuals and different quality-of-life tweaks, together with a revamped on-line mode that I haven’t examined but.
All that stated, whereas I like this sport, there are some issues try to be conscious of earlier than leaping in. For starters, the fantasy story is painfully boring. There are some enjoyable bits of dialogue, however I all the time discover myself racing by the cutscenes to get to the great things. I’ve performed this sport a number of occasions on a number of platforms, however I may barely let you know the story. Additionally: Conflict of Heroes is tough. A number of the battles are very demanding, and it’s straightforward to get in over your head, which frequently necessitates grinding by a number of the “non-obligatory” missions. In fact, for the reason that battles are the enjoyable half, this isn’t too annoying, however you need to undoubtedly pay attention to the problem forward.
I’ll admit that I miss how completely the sport match on the DS’s twin screens (what a surprise), however that apart, this is a perfect port. There are a number of causes that Conflict of Heroes was missed within the first place, not least of which is the generic identify and story. However these are straightforward to look previous right here: the brand new model appears to be like unimaginable and, extra importantly, provides the identical satisfying mixture of swords, sorcery, and puzzle-solving.
Would possibly and Magic: Conflict of Heroes is out now on the Change, Steam, and PS4.