Heroes Olden Era – the new Heroes 3? Everything you need to know

Heroes of Might and Magic: Olden Era is the game that fans of the series have been waiting more than 20 years for: a new Heroes, made in the spirit of the legendary Heroes 3. After the first months of Early Access, we can safely say that Heroes Olden Era is not just nostalgia in nice packaging, but a serious turn-based strategy game with new factions, fresh mechanics and a huge community behind it.

Below you’ll find everything you need to know: what it is, who makes it, what factions it has, how much it costs, what the system requirements are and what’s coming until the final release.

What is Heroes Olden Era?

Olden Era is developed by the studio Unfrozen (known for Iratus: Lord of the Dead) and published by Hooded Horse together with Ubisoft, the owner of the series. The game entered Early Access on 30 April 2026, on Steam and in PC Game Pass.

The story is an official prequel: it takes place in the world of Enroth, the same as in the first three games, on the continent of Jadame, before the events of the first Heroes of Might and Magic. The campaign follows the minotaur Gunnar, who discovers the threat of the Hive faction and its leader, the Dragonfly King, against whom former rivals must unite.

One detail that delighted veterans: Jon Van Caneghem, the creator of the Might and Magic series, joined the project in 2026 as a creative consultant, and the music is by Paul Romero, the composer of Heroes 3, together with Cris Velasco.

Why is it called “the new Heroes 3”?

The specialist press describes Olden Era as strongly inspired by Heroes of Might and Magic III, and you feel it from the first hour of play: an adventure map with resources and mines, towns you build up building by building, heroes who lead armies and turn-based tactical battles on a hexagonal grid. Anyone who lost whole nights to Heroes 3 feels right at home.

The difference is that Olden Era doesn’t simply copy the formula, it modernizes it: a new interface, current graphics, online multiplayer with a leaderboard and mechanics that change the way you build your strategy.

The 6 factions in Early Access

At the Early Access launch, the game has six playable factions, each with its own units, heroes and playstyle:

• Temple
• Dungeon
• Necropolis
• Grove
• Schism – the “secret” faction, revealed only in August 2025
• Hive – the insect swarm that is also the campaign’s antagonist

Besides the factions, the game has over 100 unique heroes and four schools of magic.

New mechanics compared to Heroes 3

• Faction Laws – a new mechanic for the series: each faction has a special currency that you invest in permanent bonuses, like a development tree for your kingdom.
• Focus – units build up Focus when they deal and take damage, and the points are spent on creatures’ special abilities. This makes battles more dynamic than in Heroes 3.
• Deeper secondary skills – at each level you choose from three secondary skills, and each has four sub-skills, so two builds of the same hero can look completely different.
• Classic heroes – the attributes stay the familiar ones: attack, defense, spell power and knowledge.

Game modes: campaign, Arena and multiplayer

• Campaign – in Early Access, Act 1 is available, plus a full tutorial and advanced challenges. Acts 2 and 3 arrive with the final version.
• Skirmish Classic – a randomly generated map, multiple heroes, just like the long games of Heroes 3.
• Single Hero – you play with a single hero, for shorter and more tactical games.
• Arena – a quick battle between two heroes, ideal for a short session or for testing builds.
• Scenarios – handmade maps with their own story.
• Multiplayer – online in the Classic, Single Hero and Arena modes, with a leaderboard, plus local hotseat on the same PC.
• Map editor – an initial beta version, with lobbies for community-made maps.

Price, platforms and Game Pass

Heroes Olden Era costs €39.99 on Steam. The game is available only on PC (Windows), on Steam and through the Microsoft Store, and is included in PC Game Pass as a Game Preview. Note: the developers have said the price may go up during Early Access, so anyone who buys it now gets it at the lowest price.

System requirements

	Minimum	Recommended
Operating system	Windows 10 (64-bit)	Windows 10 (64-bit)
Processor	Intel Core i3-10300 / AMD Ryzen 3 3100	Intel Core i5-12400T / AMD Ryzen 5 5500
Memory	8 GB RAM	16 GB RAM
Graphics card	GTX 1650 / RX 5500 XT (4 GB) / Arc A580	GTX 1660 / RX 5600 (6 GB) / Arc A750
DirectX	11	12
Storage	8 GB, SSD required	8 GB, SSD required

In short, you don’t need a top-end PC: any gaming computer from the last few years runs the game without problems.

How it was received

The launch was a success: according to Wikipedia, the game sold 250,000 copies in the first 24 hours and over 500,000 in the first 72 hours, with a peak of about 50,000 concurrent players. On Steam, reviews are “Very Positive”, around 85% positive at the time of writing.

What’s next: the Early Access roadmap

Early Access is expected to last about a year. According to the roadmap published by Unfrozen in June 2026, updates are split into stages:

• Stage 1 (Q3 2026) – Teamplay mode (co-op against the AI or team versus team), advanced options for the random map generator, rebalancing of hero skills.
• Stage 2 (Q4 2026) – Observer mode and replays, reworked matchmaking, a rework of the elite classes (subclasses).
• Stage 3 – the underground level of the map, Thieves’ Guild, level 8 neutral creatures, Ironman mode for the campaign, level 5 spells.
• Version 1.0 – Acts 2 and 3 of the campaign, a roguelike PvE mode, map sharing and more achievements.

Is Heroes Olden Era worth it?

If you grew up with Heroes 3 or love turn-based strategy, the short answer is yes. Even in Early Access, Olden Era has enough content for dozens of hours: campaign, skirmish, Arena and multiplayer. If you prefer a complete game, with all the campaign acts and the underground level, you can wait for version 1.0, but you risk paying more.

At Marsupy Gaming Club we love classic strategy games. If you’d like to see a Heroes Olden Era tournament or a hotseat evening with friends, write to us on Discord or on the contact page. And if you want to know how the venue works, you’ll find everything on the frequently asked questions page.

Sources: official Steam page; Wikipedia; launch press release; GameDaily – Early Access roadmap.

Image: Hooded Horse / Unfrozen.