When you play as many MMOs as I do, you begin to notice something of a pattern. This pattern changes from day-to-day, week to week, and from game-to-game. Sometimes, it’s the ‘kill this, collect that’ pattern; other times, it’s pressing 1 on your keyboard, followed by 2, then 3, then 1 again; for fifteen hours in a row. In reality, it’s monotony, disguised as video gaming, and after a while it starts to get a little boring.

For me, that’s where games like the new Heroes of Gaia come in, offering a more relaxed, time-conscious approach to online gaming; and also, a veritable feast-sized platter of both real-time and turn-based strategy and tactics; or in other words, it offers something different.

Heroes of Gaia has achieved this goal by combining core elements from several different genres together to create a unique gaming experience. You begin playing by selecting a race from one of four available factions—Elves, Orcs, Humans and Undead—a feature not unlike that found in most fantasy MMOs; and then, by building and managing your own castle, much like you would in an RTS game. Next, with the help of the in-game tutorial, you add new buildings to your castle (such as a Tavern and Barracks), recruit a Hero and a few soldiers, and venture forth into the flash-based world in search of riches and glory. Of course, such riches are often guarded by monsters, and so you battle, in a turn-based arena (similar to older fantasy games like the Final Fantasy series), taking turns with your opponents, and forming strategies to best them.

And that’s just the beginning. Progress further into the world and you’ll start earning fame, allowing you to speak with other players, join guilds, recruit new heroes and soldiers, and level them up to make them stronger. Starting to sound familiar? Of course it is. It’s the same basic layout for almost every MMO on the market today, but by adding an RTS element, and too, by throwing in turn-based battles, it changes the feel of the game entirely; and from the short time I’ve spent playing... it feels good.

Of course, there are limitations to take into account. Being a flash-based browser game, it’s not as beautiful as it otherwise may have been, and to keep the loading speeds short, there’s limited sound, too. As such, it may not be the game to keep you busy for hours at a time—but with no cost to play, and almost instant loading on even the slowest Internet connection; it’s one that can be played almost anywhere, and at any time. Bored in computer class? Not anymore.

If you haven’t played a browser game before and are looking to be converted, Heroes of Gaia isn’t likely to be the one to turn your head; however, those of you familiar with the style should find it to be new and refreshing, and thanks to the truly amazing genre-mixing, one that will more than surely keep you coming back for a long time to come.

Review Cody Hargreaves
November 5, 2009