What were your expectations for Heroes 4?

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By the way, it's really interesting: am I the only one who doesn't like Erathia, Blade, and Shadows?

:) At first, I didn't really like Heroes 3 (we were playing HotS 2 at the time). But, what can you do – a new version came out. We decided to play HotS in the third game. And gradually, we got into it. I don't want to discuss the graphics and the infamous balance of power, as well as the plot and who is related to whom, and also about which creatures should live in which castle. The game is made – you just need to play it :) In essence, the third game is not much different from the second. And therefore, it is playable. Moreover, 1 and 5 are the same as 2 and 3, only less playable, at least because in the first one there are no markets, and in the fifth one, they ignored the difference in turn speed between slow and fast units when the hero travels with them on the map. However, the fifth game wins everyone over with its graphics and still has a lot of interesting things with the battles. Well, the first game is the ancestor :) Therefore, in essence, all these versions are playable and interesting. The fourth game is also Heroes in essence, but it is made in such a way that it is very different from all the above-mentioned series. At the same time, it is no less playable. I got from it exactly what I expected. A clear difference from all the Heroes series, and at the same time, it is a game in the Heroes style :) The essence is the same - castles, heroes, magic, artifacts, units, turn-based strategy :)

Added 9 minutes ago

with the release of the fourth game, my attitude towards Heroes changed... :( I expected something completely different... - something new, better... but I got... no gameplay, an army running around (in caravans). P.S. IMHO!

:) Strange. I, on the contrary, didn't see anything new, no particular differences in 2, 3, 5 compared to the first Heroes :) In the fourth game, everything is new - the gameplay is different from all the series. Who is a hero in 1, 2, 3, 5 without an army? Nobody. In the fourth game, the hero is a god and a king, and the troops are given to him as help, without which, by the way, he can manage on his own in many cases. But in all other versions, the hero cannot even move on his own; he must have at least some cheap and weak unit in his pocket :) And what are these complexities and how are they related to the realities that you like to talk about?

Added 5 minutes ago

with the release of the fourth game, my attitude towards Heroes changed... :(

Personally, with the release of each new version of Heroes, I have a desire to play it. And that's what I do. And now I participate in offline tournaments for all versions of Heroes. I wouldn't say that I play very badly there, so it's easier for me to compare the versions of Heroes in terms of playability and in general :)