Heroes of Might and Magic: Collector's Edition

A few words about why this post ended up in the Heroes VI blog. The collector's edition is the last bastion before the sixth part, which will arrive very soon. The edition is a great reason to remind all of us why we love Heroes (and Buka :)), and furthermore, it contains plenty of information about the upcoming continuation. Lastly, if the box contains all parts of the series except the sixth, it makes the most sense to place it in the blog of the sixth part... In short, I hope we understand each other, Deputy! And now - for the reason we all gathered here today:

And I will start with a small lecture on history. The Western release of HoMM Complete Edition took place at the end of 2007, marking the end of the HoMM 5 story and closing this chapter of the series. The Russian version of the edition was not anticipated at the time, primarily because the series was split between 1C and Buka, making such a collector's edition simply impossible. Buka in December 2007 made a splash with the New Year Collection featuring parts 1-4, while 1C-Softclub released the Gold Edition of Heroes 5, and it seemed there was nothing more to publish before the sixth part. But happiness came unexpectedly.

In the summer of 2008, 1C acquired Buka. It’s quite possible the collector's edition would have released even without this alliance, but for completeness, I mention this fact. On November 18, 2008, a page for the “Complete Edition” appeared on the Buka website. It described the contents of the edition (including tarot cards and more) and announced the release date – February 12, 2009. Literally two days later, the page was removed, but for players, this leak was enough to believe and wait. February 12 passed without news, and the next mention is dated April 21, 2009. On that day, the publisher's website featured a grand announcement stating that all games in the “Heroes of Might and Magic” series would now be published under the Buka brand. “And at the end of the year, the company will present its customers with a grand gift!” And players already knew what it would be.

But the release in 2009 did not occur. The official reason was: “Our foreign partners promised us a surprise next year (which they unfortunately did not specify), but upon reflection, we realized that the gift edition would be incomplete without it and decided to wait for it.” As it turned out, we were waiting for the announcement of the sixth part of the saga. The recent history is well known to all of you: October 14, 2010, the edition appeared on Ozone, October 15 saw the official announcement, and November 3 marked the release within the Igromir.

The release was loud, befitting the edition. Whereas at previous exhibitions, the main star of the Buka store was the cheap Orange Box, and the audience around was appropriate, the Collector's Edition of Heroes instantaneously raised the average visitor's age by about five years. People came up, looked, and some dared to pick up the box… Many decided to buy it. Around thirty copies were sold during a business day, and by the end of the exhibition – over 120. Interestingly, it was originally planned to bring one hundred boxes to the exhibition, but demand exceeded supply. People were ready to buy the edition for 2500 rubles, myself included. Right away, on the first day of the exhibition. It’s funny that the stand's cash register was not prepared for such amounts, and ultimately, along with the game, I received three checks – two for a thousand and one for five hundred. As a gift, I got badges and magnets (there was a special pile of presents for buyers of this box), as well as a super bonus – a rabbit mask and a plunger! If this post gets gold, I’ll post photos of this combat kit)

But let's return to our Heroes. Thanks to MrOrionto for the story about the foreign version Complete Edition, the Russian one differs from it not much. The box:

As is customary with such editions, the back cover is removable, leaving a clean collectible chest without press trim. Note the individual number.

However, it didn’t come without trim – a sticker about the key for the Kingdoms beta test is stuck right on the cover. It’s not very tightly adhered, so it’s easy to peel it off, but it’s unclear why it’s there. Rarely would someone buy this edition just for a beta-test of a browser game, and definitely doesn’t do the cover any favors. If anyone needs this key – take it.

There is no special fastener inside; the contents are simply placed in the box. There isn’t anything particularly breakable or damaging, the T-shirt inside provides extra shock resistance, so online store customers need not fear – the Collector's Edition will arrive intact and safe. Manual and army list:

The manual is 55 pages long, black and white, with a strong focus on the fifth part. The army list is 22 pages but in color. It is also dedicated to the creatures of HoMM5. On the back of the manual are the keys for online play. So far, nothing particularly interesting. Next are the poster and the bestiary.

Special size (54 by 46 cm), I tried to photograph it as best as possible. Tarot cards:

First and foremost, I counted the cards – there are 80 pieces. A full deck consists of 78, which means there must be two more Easter eggs. The first is a reference card with a link to http://mightandmagic.com (I found nothing about the deck there due to the age), the second is blank but with a back. Apparently, a spare card in case one of the main ones is lost. They could have included more of those in Russia :) I didn’t photograph the whole deck, just a few examples (to the right is an example of the back):

For those interested, there is a separate post dedicated to this deck. I couldn’t get a nicer photo of the T-shirt than Buka, so I’ll borrow the images from their post. Sizes are available in L and XL.

This is the main difference between our collector's edition and the Western one. They have a demon, we have a griffon. Which is better? The griffon looks recognizable and majestic, while the demon is bright and, how to say… casual. If the T-shirt had a demon, I would wear it often, but I will save the griffon for special occasions. However, both T-shirts are made well and stylishly, so I won't choose the better one – that's subjective. Next up is the artbook.

As it should be, the artbook is the centerpiece of the edition. It is entirely dedicated to the fifth part, and rather than quantity, it emphasizes depth. All the details of development that can be shown through illustrations are demonstrated. City designs, creatures, characters, and video creation – it’s all here. I remind you that the artbook is the localized version of the Western one, despite the Russian roots of the fifth Heroes. There are many scans in this post, I'll provide only a few spreads:

And finally, eight disks, five DVDs and three Audio-CDs. Before we move on to them, here are pictures of the stylish and neat “sandwich” they come in:

In the West, the disks were in a completely monstrous box, so thanks to Buka for keeping it simple for us. The only thing missing is a cardboard sleeve to securely store this digipak.

And finally, the disk contents. The music disks are described on the packaging, let’s take a look at the game disks. One DVD is dedicated to parts 1-3, one to the fourth, and two to the fifth. The auto-start for the first DVD is new, specially for this edition.

The second auto-start is also new, but clicking one of the options takes us to the familiar menu.

The disks for the fifth part are the same as in the Gold Edition from 1C three years ago. Compare:

So all the bonuses that were there (the Dark Messiah map and others) are here too. And finally, the bonus disk.

It seems that it was made for some other edition—how else to explain the presence of the Dark Messiah soundtracks and other mp3 tracks on the disk? This music is also on the audio disks. However, in the same folder, you can find the soundtrack for Dark Messiah of M&M, which is not on the disks. It’s a pity that music from parts 3-4 was not found there. Here’s what we have on the disk for the fifth and sixth parts:

There are no developer diaries or other valuable exclusives found there. However, the art, wallpapers for the desktop, fan manuals, teasers, and videos from the fifth part are quite sufficient to immerse the player in memories for half an hour. Yes, enough time has passed since the fifth part for nostalgia. If in the West this edition in 2007 was indeed the closing one, with a nod to the future, for players to remember how it was in five or ten years… Although the characters and action of the sixth part do not intersect with the fifth (it’s a deep narrative prequel), refreshing memories is the main purpose of this edition. But I must state that the earlier parts here feel like a checkbox. It is clear that materials for the artbook on the first parts cannot be gathered anymore; developers and publishers have long scattered, so in my view, it would be better to focus on the depth of coverage for the fifth part than skimming through all five. Although the soundtracks of HoMM 3-4 should have definitely been included.

But all these critiques, as you understand, are quite trivial. Before us lies a splendid edition, one of the best in the history of the Russian industry. And what’s most pleasant is that the collector's edition contains many things with practical applications: after all, the tarot deck is clearly more useful for the average Russian gamer than the TCG from WoW, and the T-shirt deserves to become part of a wardrobe.

Is it worth 2500? For me – definitely yes. If you’re looking for a gift for a gamer for the New Year – you couldn't find anything better, especially if the gamer experienced the series' peak. The edition’s print run is ten thousand copies. Generally speaking, for this price, it’s a huge number. Yes, Heroes are loved in our country, the collector's edition looks fantastic, but still, it’s a bold experiment. If sales are high - my respect goes to you, Russian gamers, we will prove that we are ready for real expensive collector's editions. I will also add to this post a list of stores where the edition can be obtained: above all, it’s Ozon and 1C-Interest, and a complete list of retail stores can be found here. It will be possible to get the edition without problems in the coming month, but after that... I wouldn’t be so sure.