Great Fantasy or Space Opera

Might and Magic 9: "Writ of Fate"

Developed by: 3DO-New World Computing (now part of 3DO)
Released: in 2002
Engine: The engine was changed, but was it for the better? The graphics are quite ugly, and sometimes glitches are noticeable, such as texture blending. And frankly, this engine feels familiar; did 3DO really develop it? Who knows... In any case, we got something completely new, but not quite playable in the RPG/Action genre.
Interface: This is where things get really bad. The game starts with a completely audacious and incomprehensible short introductory cutscene of a ship crashing, and it doesn't even hint at the world of Might and Magic. Remember how beautifully the items and the entire inventory were drawn in parts 6 and 8? Well, now everything has been ruined and turned into some kind of slots with barely distinguishable swords. As a result, all items are now just a small cube, 64x64 in size. The hero is now just a static image of a person who vaguely resembles a hero – apparently, the last designer left 3DO. Moreover, all the graphics, even outside the inventory, look rather bland. The engine is, of course, truly 3D, but everything was much better before...
Plot: The story tells us that Enroth is gone; it was, so to speak, destroyed back in Heroes of Might and Magic 4, and the action has moved to Axeoth – the "New Planet," but now we are already on another continent of Axeoth. The plot is partly based on Scandinavian myths, and many gods appear who are not typical for a space universe. But who knows, maybe that's Kangheim's idea; maybe gods are specific to Axeoth. But the plot is in no way connected to our space universe – it is not even mentioned. It all begins with the main character's journey from Chedian to Mendous, with the goal of restocking supplies.
But the travelers' ship crashed near the island of Prah in the middle of the Verrophin Sea. You and the surviving companions wake up among the wreckage of the ship. As soon as you gather the remnants of your squad, you realize that fate has destined you to reunite the six clans of Chedian against the horde of invaders from the west. Well, what's the point of all this – it's obviously a new world, no longer Enroth, although this world was drawn much more beautifully in Heroes of Might and Magic – so it's just a different continent.