I began Hero Online during open beta and played to level 70, then I left and played many other mmorpgs for about 1 year and  half .  I recently came back to hero and found a lot of changes that for the most part are a breath of fresh air . They have added a ton of content and features and have also implemented a few new maps .

This game has always been one of the worst grinders in the history of mankind however , they have made some changes that make it easier to get exp and have doubled the spawn rate of the mobs also .  There are faction wars several times a day that reward the winning faction with an increase in exp for about 3 and a half hours at a time  which also helps . I found leveling much easier over all since I came back .

This is an interesting game in that it is extremely Asian in theme as well as game play , I am a fan of Chinese themes and Hero is by far the best that I have seen in this department , 9 Dragons is good but nothing compared to the authentic environment that Hero is based on . There are a lot of hidden elements and many intricacies to the game that  become meaningful at high levels . They are planning for more content and maps etc that will primarily be geared toward players over level 100 which will be released in the near future .

When I left the first time , there were very few people that had Master skills ( lvl 60 )  and now there are many people with Divine skills (lvl 70 ) which have also been implemented in the game . These skill books are considered rare items with the sword skills being the most expensive based on supply and demand .

There are new items called Drakonian that are extremely rare and are limited to 200 per server channel . When someone gets a Drakonian item, Sword , Armor bow etc , from a monster drop ,  their name appears on all channels announcing their good fortune to the entire community . 

They have also increased the amount of rare item drops in general and have allowed for cash items to be sold in game for gold . Unfortunately , there is now a large influx of noobs who are selling cash items and using billions in gold to purchase the high end gear , things that at one time were owned by a few hard working players are now everywhere including Black Dragon weapons and armor and divine skills which run about 70 million per book . The real humor in the situation is that even after spending that much money to be awesome , they dont know how to pvp worth a crap lol .

Hero for me has a lot of sentimental aspects to it since I was one of the original players from the days of open beta , there were a lot of wild and dramatic things going on back then and a lot of good times . The game has progressed quite a bit and is still putting new things on the plate for people .  With the ability for anyone to buy anything including a leveled character though , I`m not sure that all of the changes are for the better , as always he who has the gold makes the rules .

Originally posted by zaltar

I began Hero Online during open beta and played to level 70, then I left and played many other mmorpgs for about 1 year and  half .  I recently came back to hero and found a lot of changes that for the most part are a breath of fresh air . They have added a ton of content and features and have also implemented a few new maps .

This game has always been one of the worst grinders in the history of mankind however , they have made some changes that make it easier to get exp and have doubled the spawn rate of the mobs also .  There are faction wars several times a day that reward the winning faction with an increase in exp for about 3 and a half hours at a time  which also helps . I found leveling much easier over all since I came back .

 

This is an interesting game in that it is extremely Asian in theme as well as game play , I am a fan of Chinese themes and Hero is by far the best that I have seen in this department , 9 Dragons is good but nothing compared to the authentic environment that Hero is based on . There are a lot of hidden elements and many intricacies to the game that  become meaningful at high levels . They are planning for more content and maps etc that will primarily be geared toward players over level 100 which will be released in the near future .

When I left the first time , there were very few people that had Master skills ( lvl 60 )  and now there are many people with Divine skills (lvl 70 ) which have also been implemented in the game . These skill books are considered rare items with the sword skills being the most expensive based on supply and demand .

 

There are new items called Drakonian that are extremely rare and are limited to 200 per server channel . When someone gets a Drakonian item, Sword , Armor bow etc , from a monster drop ,  their name appears on all channels announcing their good fortune to the entire community . 

They have also increased the amount of rare item drops in general and have allowed for cash items to be sold in game for gold . Unfortunately , there is now a large influx of noobs who are selling cash items and using billions in gold to purchase the high end gear , things that at one time were owned by a few hard working players are now everywhere including Black Dragon weapons and armor and divine skills which run about 70 million per book . The real humor in the situation is that even after spending that much money to be awesome , they dont know how to pvp worth a crap lol .

 

Hero for me has a lot of sentimental aspects to it since I was one of the original players from the days of open beta , there were a lot of wild and dramatic things going on back then and a lot of good times . The game has progressed quite a bit and is still putting new things on the plate for people .  With the ability for anyone to buy anything including a leveled character though , I`m not sure that all of the changes are for the better , as always he who has the gold makes the rules .

Anyways perhaps u ll find many worse games than this, good luck!!!

There are A LOT more worse games then this and about the grind all games have it play some other games and youll find crap that your making of this. this game was pretty good compared to the crap some games do . also GMs work hard

Hero has an unique atmosphere, unmatched by any other asian MMO (I know, I've played most of them). Grinding might seem excessive, but after playing a lot of other MMOs, I came (surprisingly) to the conclusion that Hero has actually a pretty fair xp curve and grinding really sets on only from 65 - 70 lvls up (starting either from Bamboo Mountain or Silent Valley - depending on your build...or should I say: on how gimped your build is). Hero used to have a very active and tight community and some of the best GMs I've ever encountered in a MMO - these things made Hero stand out, not the game's features themselves. A lot of that old "flavour" faded away maybe for veteran players like you an me, but for the new ones, Hero might offer a very enjoyable gaming experience.

I would have still played it if it wasn't for the lousy work PayByCash did for the item mall; to me it seemed illogical not being able to spend my real money due to their tedious and unsecure way of activating & verifying accounts. Just so we'd be clear: it's (almost) impossible to level up as a solo player pass lvl 80 without a full Black Dragon suit (+ weapon) and maybe a Divine Skill book and a good item shop costume. These cost a lot of in game money - so in order to make that ammount of money you are forced to start spending real cash on the game, because item shop items are maybe the only things besides Black Dragon gear and other ultra rare things (such as Draconian) that can get you a serious ammount of gold; the market is literally flooded with what used to be considered "rare stuff" (Sky Cleaver / 5 Dragon / Violet & Toxic weps / Master Skill Books / crafting materials, etc) and these things don't sell as good as they used to. So if you want to be able to train with little to no pain in places such as Cimson Sky and Crystal Summit you need very good gear (not to mention Desert Temple ans stuff). You could of course risk training in PvP maps (since you'd get increased xp), but you'd be a sitting target - you really can't PvP with crappy gear, and in Hero PvP all too often means getting killed in just 1 hit (or 2).

All in all, I have no problem in recommending the game to other potential players: if you're into asian MMOs, look no further :) Hero is a very good & enjoyable game - if you have some friends to play along with.

No there are plenty of other free to play mmo's that are better

For example take Rappelz

The pet system is far better and pets have alot more skills and usefulness

They even added an achievement system where you can get a free non-tradable uncommon pet. So just by playing if your not lucky enough to get one or bought it you can still get it just by playing the game

The the classes

The classes have more skills and uniqueness and play style

The game is also soloable for all classes. You dont have to have the best of the best gear but doing so will make things alot easier both for you and for other players you party with.

The grind might be the feel the same

In the end the points you brought up about hero i feel only point to flaws

Their are plenty of games out their that you can play for free that are in the end better. I am sure if you looked up all the ones you played and the ones you didn't play you might well find a few that still have a leg up over hero. Also are you inculding Anarchy Online in that because the free verison i think is better then hero and rappelz.

Sorry to burst your bubble but I've played Rappelz and IMO it sucks big time. There is no comparison to Hero whatsoever.
Anyway, I've recently returned to the game to try the new character and I must say a lot of changes (for the better) were made: lots of new items, new war & duel system, they've almost tripled the mobs, some discreet graphic changes were made too, leveling is quicker, some old GMs are back, etc. Last, but not least, the new female character is astonishing to play! It levels extremely fast, it makes a hell of a dmg (more than the old male rod), and it's fun to toy with and get in PvP. It brought the joy of playing back to Hero and I'm glad that after more than a year I came back and discovered the game was alive and well. The simple fact that it feels in way like a new game ('cause of the many new things implemented) says a lot...but feel free to play whatever you like. It's called diversity...

PS: solo leveling firendly? LOL, I've NEVER felt like I need a party to lvl. EVER! You can get extra xp/stats points without being forced to party with a bunch of ppl.

@ Feldron: yup, you're right, that should be the way to go (constant new content, expansions, etc).

However, the problem with these asian MMOs is that the western publishers are not the devs themselves - they're just taking an already running game, translate it and release in USA or Europe. And these games were not tailored for the western market (inluding the item shops).

Now regarding Hero, at first things were going in the wrong direction, because they were selling just a handful of items that were negligeable if you weren't that desperate to level up (instead of the xp statues you could have used a cryptic set and still level up faster than normal). So in order to force players into buying these they lowered the xp rates, crafting success rates, etc. But after a while they've released the HT robes and bingo, they were an instant hit. Now the item shop's offer is quite varied so they don't need to force you into buying stuff so much (ppl buy 'em like crazy anyway) and that really transformed Hero into quite an enjoyable game...again. There's a certain inner dynamic, the game feels after many months alive again. Hero lost a lot of high lvl players because there was nothing left to do , now many returned - and this confirmes you theory: keep ppl busy and they'll stick around :)

wow i only read the 1st page an from an arguement which could be strong all u did was fail

HERO IS A GOOD GAME HOWEVER THE MANAGEMENT IS SHIT

IF RUN PROPERLY THIS GAME COULD HAVE POTENTIAL EVEN THO COMPARED TO MOST OTHERS IT ISNT ANYTHING SPECIAL PEOPLE PLAY IT FOR ITS SIMPLICITY.

TO THE PERSON WHO STARTED THIS THREAD U OBVIOUSLY DONT KNOW SHIT ABOUT THE SKILLS LULZ

EACH CLASS HAS AN ADVANTAGE YES EVEN HUNTERS BUT NOOBS DUNNO THIS

OF COURSE ITS GOING TO BE A GRIND ALL GAMES HAVE A GRIND EVEN THE BEST ONES HOWEVER AFTER LVL 80 HERO ONLY NEEDS SOMMORE QUESTS FOR THE HIGHER UPS AS THEY KINDA DIE

my brother started installing this at home. at first i find it boring and the grinding is awful, but to the fact that the pvp rocks, i created my own character.

Excuse me ...
but I love this game and not change it for any other ...
but I only played in the Brazilian server (http://hero.ongame.com.br) and here is very good.

Skills Film!
On the plot have been created by famous writers, Hero Online has all the characteristics of a true movie of NASCAR is with handling, and setting up the flight of the characters.
1) Wind Flow
To learn the Skill Stream Wind, the character of move a lot faster. With that in handling the roofs, walls and other places that before were prevented disponibilizadas.Ao are now developing the flow of Wind he will become the Skill of Fly. Upon reaching the Skill Flight your character will fly in the scenarios and if travel incomparably faster than before.

2) Skill in Combat
The Skills can be put in QuickSlot thus creating a more diverse
and easy to use them. The Skills have fantastic moves and a great cause visual impact on its users. Mainly in the end of the gun, the great
impact on enemies can be tried, providing a fun without equal.

You know those movements that we only see in Chinese films? Yes! Those fantastic and beautiful movements of Kung-Fu! In Hero Online, your character makes all the right moves with the beautiful visual effects!

3) Improving the system of PETS!! (Guardian in Hero Online!)
The player can get through a Guardian Buying or Domination.
The Guardian must be fed and with that he also evolve, carrying its owner or assisting him in his fight.
And also to move to Level, the Guardian have changed his appearance in Golden levels -> Hero -> Sacred -> Celestial.

1) Gold
First level of Guardian, are all monsters that are common domados.
2) Hero
Stronger than the Golden Guardian, he has a great look and is much stronger.
3) Sacred
They have unique abilities and are considered sacred among Guadiões.
In achieving the maximum level, the Guardian will become supreme and changes to the Celestial level, thus allowing the use of their special skills.

4) Reward System! Tired of that guy that you always fill? Place the prize on his head and let the strongest in the world do the service for you!
The system allows Hunt to reward a player put on the List of Wanted another player and offer a reward for removing it.
How to hunt? Follow the instructions below!
1. To realize the game ask only the reward enough for the Administrator of Rewards which is located in the Town Clan.
2. To add a character in Wanted List, you must register the name and amount of Gold required and this character sought now, you can be hunted in all regions except in Honam region, Island and Central Valley of Gold.
3. Will be charged an extra fee of 25% of Gold to complete the Hunter of Award as commission for the service.
4. Once registered on the List of Wanted, you can not be withdrawn unless the demand should be eliminated and reward obtained by the hunter.
5. For characters in the game the same faction Reward is available only on the island and Mute Tranquil Vale.
6. The Rewards of Hunter receives no influence of Honor, Fame and Service.

5) System of PVP's Hero Online Exclusive!
Ahh, but not lacking in any game, the Hero Online also has the system of PVP, but much more complete and exclusive that brings you fame and power in the game!

Except for members of the Clan which forms part, all the others to be attacked, this is the Player vs Player system.
The Karma of character can vary between Malignant and Benign depending on your actions.
* In the system the RVR Honor is modified, but in PVP only the Karma is modified.
Information on the PVP
1) The figures below 20 Dan may not practice the PVP.
2) The PVP can be done only in places permitted.
3) All players of Hero Online begin with the Citizen of Karma.
4) If malignant perform an action, a punishment will be given.

6) System Wars Hero's Online!
But it is clear that in Hero Online also has a war! It is not just one! But St. 4 (or 5 as I have devoted much of the heroes!) And there is some points!
- Battle Hero
This is the biggest battle of all battles in the system of Hero Online, you can buy her the title Supreme before the entire server.
In Battle Hero, the winning faction enjoy many benefits throughout the region to a server that are connected.
- Battle faction
Dispute held weekly where we must defeat the NPC that protects a quarter of opponent to gain points
- Battle Flag
Dispute held weekly where we must destroy the statues to buy the flag. With the flag in hand, we must take it to the barracks and each flag captured for points. It is a dispute of capture the flag.
- Heroic battle
It is a war of conquest of land between Zhuang Shao and where in each area (Rift Valley Gold and the Dragon in SeoJang) there is a barracks and there is a statue, and the Statue of attacking the enemy declares the start of a war.
The beginning of the battle is advised to all, and all those wishing to participate in the Battle of resources can participate.
There is no set time for the Battle of Resources and victory is given to the faction that can steal 4 of 7 flags that are positioned within the opponent and take up to the base.
The winning faction will get discount on purchase of items with NPCs throughout the territory, to gain extra experience in hunting and various other benefits.
The losing faction will receive penalties as a tax rate levied on each purchase of items in NPCs and others.
The area of dispute in each continent will be released to hunt until the beginning of a new Battle of resources.

Videos:

http://br.youtube.com/watch?v=47QMVQPRSmc&feature=related - HERO ONLINE VIDEO JOGADOR
http://br.youtube.com/watch?v=2SIJLWUpLWY - HERO ONLINE VIDEO JOGADOR
http://br.youtube.com/watch?v=FCVwjsIgGY0 - HERO ONLINE VIDEO FACTION WAR
http://br.youtube.com/watch?v=IFod-aYeHqk&feature=related - HERO ONLINE VIDEO AXE PLAY
http://br.youtube.com/watch?v=1XO1uWfOEIg&feature=related - HERO ONLINE VIDEO
http://br.youtube.com/watch?v=aFgwAPjaJyE&feature=related - HERO ONLINE VIDEO LVL20 TO LVL70
http://br.youtube.com/watch?v=5zozRo9livs&feature=related - HERO ONLINE VIDEO TREINANDO VOO
http://br.youtube.com/watch?v=R3hpNSjC_Ec&feature=related - HERO ONLINE VIDEO USER VIDEO
 

errr yea there's some who love it, some who hate it, some who just dont know what to do with it, Me on the other hand i used to love the game, the only game i stayed the longest was Hero Online, and put alot of real money in that game too, but after getting higher and higher lvl(when its supose to make you wanna play more, it made me wanna play less), it got boring, it was all about grinding, maps are kinda small so you have to fight real hard with the "bots" for a grinding spot even then they'll ks you anyways. and when i say small maps i mean maps for ur current level are small, like BM top for example, too small and packed with bots. But anyways, got to lvl 65, was trying hard to get to lvl 70 before quiting, but just couldnt do it..lol..even tho i had everything a person would want in that game, HT pets, HT rare items and devine pets, it still wasnt enough to make me wanna continue playing it. It just got boring, hero used to be fun, but its just not that fun anymore, me and my group of friends were all lvl 60+, actually i was the lowest lvl of the gang..lol..But we all quit, went searching for some better games, and let me tell you there's better f2p games out there for sure!! Never went back to hero again.

Hero is a fairly good game, but its nothing "special", its not the type of f2p you can go and say.."oh yea this is the one". So thats my experience with the game, got tired, got bored...went looking for some better and never went back!

* Altho i gtg say there was a time where i just logged in hero to chat...lol..the community was that good^^. Found some good friends through hero.

I some what agree with the OP but Not quite. I only played the game up to level 30 and I can say I was not having fun. Its to much of a grind to few quests and yes a bit to far in between for my taste. The graphics imo are beyond terrible as well. The game play is simply very outdated graphics are outdated everything about this game is very outdated. If this was the year 2003 I would probably be enjoying this game but its the year 2009, Right now this game is not even good enough to be a secondary mmorpg. Simply put its not fun to go back THIS much when you have experienced some new mmorpg features.

I would only recommend this game to people who would enjoy an upgrade from a game like Runescape or Gaia online.

Hmmm playing a  bit more level 32 now...not to fun still.

I did not read the OP but the OP is not correct..The worst game everis Darkfail. This is undisputable.

this tread start before darkfall was released