Lord of Heroes Review

Formulaic but Good

Mobile games have a tendency to be a bit formulaic. It’s not necessarily a bad thing; it’s just the nature of the beast. When a quality game is developed, other developers are bound to copy it to some degree. While I enjoyed CloverGames’ Lord of Heroes for its beautiful graphics, endearing characters, and quality RPG gameplay, I felt like I had already played the game many times before.

Become the Savior of a Nation

In Lord of Heroes, players take control of a monarch who is trying to reform a nation for the better. There are a few customization options when starting out, but they’re pretty limited, which is disappointing. Players can choose their own name and pick through a limited variety of hair and eye choices for their monarch character. After creating their monarch, players then get to meet their court of knights. Seeing as the monarch is the main character, these knights are the ones who take part in combat for their ruler. Players start off with three knights but unlock more as the game progresses.

The knights are probably the best part of the game. There are dozens of knights that players can unlock and customize. Each one has a unique design and look great, thanks largely to Lord of Heroes’ incredible 3D graphics. Each hero comes with an elemental type and a certain ability, so players can try out different lineups and create their ideal team. There are also unlockable items, like clothing and weapons, that players can equip for a stat boost.

Characters Carry the Show

The knights were my favorite part of Lord of Heroes, but almost every character in the game is worth highlighting. The graphics are terrific, but it’s the characters that give the game color. Every character looks interesting and features some type of endearing quality. There were times when I was playing Lord of Heroes that felt like I was just watching an anime. The game features some great Japanese voice acting that adds a nice extra dimension to the game’s presentation. Unfortunately, there isn’t an English voice option, so I would end up skipping through some longer sections of dialogue. Because it was a lot to read and the story can be a little cliché.

Gameplay works by having players visit different countries across the land and fight their way through waves of enemies until they’ve completely overthrown the country. As you beat them back, enemies will realize the goal you’re trying to accomplish and will help convince other characters to trust you. With each passing country, you get attached to a new group of citizens who need your help. Every major character you meet usually ends up becoming a resource in some way. They will either become a party member, an ally that advances the story, or a store owner that sells items.

Same Game Different Name

While a lot of the characters in Lord of Heroes look different and unique, I can’t say the same thing about the game overall. I’m a big fan of the game Marvel Strike Force, and Lord of Heroes just feels like an attempt at cloning it. From the combat to the leveling system to the storyline, almost everything about the game feels like any other RPG a person might be able to find in the Google Play store. This isn’t to say the game is not enjoyable to play, but it’s far from something most RPG fans haven’t seen before.

Combat is turn-based and pretty basic. Each character has a simple attack and multiple special attacks: one that hits a single enemy; one that hits multiple enemies; and a cinematic ultimate move. Each special attack costs stamina and each battle costs energy that you accumulate daily. Victory in combat rewards players with items and resources that can then be used to level up characters and upgrade attacks. It’s all typical mobile game RPG combat. It’s fun if you enjoy turn-based combat, but it doesn’t feature anything to make itself stand out aside from its beautiful graphics and fight cinematics. On the plus side though, Lord of Heroes doesn’t constantly hound you for money like so many other games do.

With its gorgeous graphics and fun and endearing characters, Lord of Heroes is an enjoyable RPG that most fans of the genre should enjoy. But if you’re looking for an RPG that’s bold and inventive, this isn’t it.