Mastering My Destiny: A Heroes & Generals Review

One of the hardest things about being an ADD gamer is finding new games without spending a ton of money. The best thing to happen for gamers like myself, in quite some time, is the development of the free to play (F2P) model. Now, there are some problems with that, but its hard to beat a free game. With that, the first review will be of a F2P game, Heroes and Generals.

I'll start off with the caveat that H&G is still in beta, however its been in development for a while and you can get a real feel for the direction they are wanting to take it. Its an interesting little title, with something for everyone. These are my initial impressions. Its a first person shooter (fps) as well as a strategy game. The FPS side of things is fairly standard WWII fare, however its a bit more realistic feeling than most. Health packs arent laying all over the place, ammo can be limited, and one shot can kill you. There is an interesting role-playing type element as well. Instead of just ranking up (though you do earn rank) you earn credits. Those credits can purchase new troops, weapons, extra supplies, and the like. There are also different types of troops. You start off with a basic rifleman but you can buy machine gunners, scouts (ie snipers), tank crew, aircrew, and ect. Basically any type of play you like you can find. The down side of the FPS game right now is that its somewhat limited. There is only one map you'll see with any frequency (though they are working on more) and the variation of firearms is limited to the basics for each class (again, its a beta and they are working on it). Overall, though, its a fun little shooter, especially for free.

That is another point that is worth mentioning. There are a great many F2P games that are really pay to win (P2W). World of tanks is an example of this in my opinion. While you do earn credits in the game in World of Tanks you really need to buy gold to compete. Here you earn all forms of credit in the game. There are three; gold, credits, and warfunds. Gold can be bought and is used for a variety of purposes. Credits are used mostly for the FPS side of things (buying troops, weapons, ect). Warfunds are used for the strategic game.

You can purchase Assault Teams with the war funds and command them on the campaign map. You will see teams you own, your allies, and those of the opposition. When assault teams are sent to cities on the front they supply the battles for the FPS game. War funds are slow in coming (at least for me) so I haven't delved into the strategic game yet, but it looks like it would be fun.

Overall Id recommend Heroes and Generals. Its a beta so there are still warts, but they update it fairly frequently. The game-play is fast paced and an enjoyable balance between realism and more arcade type shooters. The strategic game is an intriguing concept that seems to be working and Ill report back when I have more first hand experience with it.

PS
This review is also available at a new blog magazine, Man Cave Mum-- come check it out!