Earlier this week I hosted a live stream interview and walkthrough of Villagers and Heroes by Mad Otter Games. Joining me on the stream was Damon Slye. Damon is the President, Creative Director, Producer, Designer, and intern at Mad Otter. While it really isn’t a one man show it is a small dedicated team that Damon is a part of and ends up wearing a number of different hats.
Villagers and Heroes had two large welcome additions recently. In the last few months it had a successful Greenlight campaign on Steam. It launched on Steam April 17th. You can find the base game there for free (supported by microtransactions). You can also find two DLC packs that range in price from $10 to $20 USD. Accompanying the game for its Steam debut was the adventure pack: Fury of the Stone Lord.
Part 1 and 2 of our video interview
Villagers and Heroes has been around for roughly three years now. One of the features that they aggressively updated for the Steam launch was the games graphics. The game has a whimsical comic style to it. While Villagers and Heroes will not be winning any awards in the foreseeable future for their artwork, you won’t be that put off by it either.
)
One of the highlights surrounding Villagers and Heroes is the community the game has built. Everyone is very positive and welcoming. Like Sheriff Callie’s Wild West home you could refer to this place as Nice and Friendly Corner. One of the driving goals behind the game is to work together and create a better village. This also ties in with the game's PvE adventures. You can go out into the wild and find things that will allow you to create better crafting stations which in turn will help you do better out in the wild. Players can treat these facets of the game as mutually exclusive though and spend the majority of their time working on their home farm or out in the wilds fighting the forces of evil.
)
Another feature that helps Villagers and Heroes stand on its own is Gnomish Augmentation. Gnogmenting allows players to customize their gear to fit their playstyle. You will be able to mix, match, and swap abilities attached to your gear. You can take different pieces of “elder gear” and mash them with items you get as world drops until you make the weapon or armor you want. If you are savvy enough you could also end up crafting them. The team behind Villagers and Heroes sees Gnogmenting as their first steps into the realm of the sandbox MMO and hopes to continue to implementing features like this in the future.
)
I’ve made it no secret that I believe small focused MMORPGs are an important part of the overall MMO landscape. I also believe going forward boutique games such as this could be what really help players find their true MMO “home.” While Villagers and Heroes may not be for everyone it does have its devoted following and if free form crafting and community city building are features you look for in a game, Villagers and Heroes just might be for you.
Robert Lashley / Robert Lashley is a Staff Writer and Online host for MMORPG.com. Rob's bald and when he isn't blinding people from the glare on his head talking in front of a camera you can find him spending his free time checking out the latest games and technology. Feel free to hunt him down on twitter @Grakulen
Read more MMORPG.com coverage:
- Shadowrun Dragonfall: What Shadowrun Should Feel Like
- Albion Online: Alpha Impressions
- The End of My MMO Monogamy
