Hero of Many

Hero of Many is an independent video game developed by Trickster Arts. It is an Action-adventure game for Android, iOS, Ouya and Windows.[1] The Windows version was released on Steam on 15 September 2014.[2] The game contains no dialogues and uses black silhouette graphics similar to Limbo. Hero of Many is inspired by the games Another World, Heart of Darkness and Abe's Oddysee.[3]

Hero of Many
Developer(s)Trickster Arts
Publisher(s)Trickster Arts
Designer(s)Matouš Ježek
Programmer(s)Ladislav Týč
Writer(s)Matouš Ježek
Composer(s)Matúš Široký
EngineUnity
Platform(s)Android
iOS
Ouya
GameStick
Microsoft Windows
OS X
Release24 June 2013 (iOS/Android)
7 October 2013 (Ouya)
30 January 2014 (GameStick)
15 September 2014 (Windows/OS X)
Genre(s)Action-adventure game
Mode(s)Single-player

Gameplay
A screenshot from the game. Player controls the ball as he is accompanied by white fishes. Black fishes are enemies. You can see the black silhouette graphics resembling Limbo.

Player takes role of a white-colored ball-shaped creature. The creature went to an underwater cave in which he can meet fishes. There are two groups of them. White ones are friends to the player and accompany him as he get near them. Black ones are enemies and attacks him and his companions. The player can send white fishes that follow him against the black ones. The glowing of player's character serves as the health indicator. It can be replenished by lights that can be found scattered across the level. There are also crystals that serve as checkpoints.[4][5]

The game contains 26 levels. The goal of the game is to reach the end of the level. There are 4 worlds – Grey, Red, Green and Blue. There are also multiple puzzles, mini games and boss fights. There are also present multiple traps that player should avoid.[6][7][8]

Story

The game contains no spoken dialogues but there are numerous cutscenes displaying events from game's world. The game takes place during a period of genocide on white fishes committed by the black ones. Hero narrowly escapes death when his escort is attacked by black fishes. He starts to organize defense and eventually kills a captain of black fishes but it turns out that he was just a minion and black fishes are truly led by the Black. Hero continues to fight enemies and gets to the Kingdom of Red where he meets Red Queen. They continue together but they soon come across Black who easily defeats Hero who is unconscious falling to the depth while Red Queen is trying to help him but Hero is eaten by a Whale.

Hero gets out of Whale's stomach and gets to the Green World. There he meets Green. They start to seek for green seeds that can revive the Tree of Life which is the center of Green World but is currently rotten. During the search Hero is attacked by the Earth Dragon and almost dies but is saved by Red Queen who shows up at the last moment. They together revive the Tree of Life but Black shows up and attacks it along with his army. Hero fights them off but Green dies. Energy from his body enters the Tree where it grows into a fruit. Via this fruit Hero gets Green's power. Hero starts his chase for Black. It leads him to the Blue World.

In the Blue World he liberates a temple from black fishes and meets Blue who puts him into the test. Hero has to get through a labyrinth and fight a labyrinth monster. He passes and Blue explains the start of the war. Black fishes were once white but they came across to black mass. It turned them to black and made them aggressive. It also turned Grey to Black. He then initiated the campaign to exterminate white fishes.

Hero returns to the Kingdom of Red where he meets Red Queen. They are attacked by Black and forced to overcome a "race" with him. In the end they escape. Together they get to the center of the kingdom where Red Queen gains new power so they launch attack which pushes black fishes from a local nest. There they help little fishes to born. Soon after that Black attacks and conquers it back. Hero has to escape but is able to gather enough forces to start attack against enemy positions in Grey World. It turns bad when he comes to contact with black mass while saving life of Red Queen for whom he sacrifices himself. He finds himself in a black-and-white world where meets Green and is "reborn".

Hero becomes stronger than ever and starts to gather strong swarm for final battle. Just before the attack he meets Red Queen for the last time. The strike is successful, as he destroys black armies and Black is chased to the lighthouse. There a duel between Hero and Black occurs. In the end Black is defeated and absorbed. Hero, now exhausted from the darkness he absorbed, leaves the lighthouse and lies himself to the ground. Player can see a text of words by Lao Tzu: "Bearing yet not possessing. Acting yet not expecting. Leading yet not dominating. This is the Primal Virtue." Hero then dissolves the darkness he absorbed and dies. Multiple lights of energy are coming from his body and Red Queen takes them. She puts these lights across the world while credits roll.

Development

The game was in development since summer 2012 when Matouš Ježek left 2K Czech. At first he contacted some of his friends and former colleagues. With them he started to develop project "Hero" which turned into Hero of Many. The game was developed in Unity Engine. The development took 10 months. Trickster Arts was focusing on PC version after the release of IOS and Android version.[9]

On 7 October Ouya version was released. The game was also released for GameStick on 30 January 2014. Versions for other platforms are planned in 2014. Developers also started, in parallel, to work on another project.[10][11]

When the game was Greenlit, developers started to work on a port for Windows. The main focus was to adjust the controls so the game experience is as good as for touchscreen platforms. The game was released on Steam on 15 September.[12]

Steam Greenlight

On 10 September 2013 the game was applied to Steam Greenlight system.[13] It was scheduled for release in fourth quarter of 2013. On 8 January 2014 it was announced that the game has already received over 6600 votes and is 85% its way to TOP 100. On 4 April the game was number 59 on Steam Greenlight as Trickster Arts announced on Twitter. The game was Greenlit on 29 April 2014.[14][15][16]

Soundtrack

The Soundtrack was composed by a Slovak Composer Matúš Široký. The in-game Soundtrack contains 51 Tracks with approximately one Hour of Music. The Soundtrack has gained much praise and Fans of the Game were asking Trickster Arts to provide it for Download. The Soundtrack was released on Loudr in July 2013. The Released Album also included Bonus Tracks that were cut from the final Game. These Tracks include another 15 minutes of Music.[17][18][19]

Reception

Mobile Version

Hero of Many has received positive critical acclaim upon its release. Its review score is aggregated at 88/100 on Metacritic.[20] It was praised for its atmosphere, gameplay, soundtrack and graphics.[28]

The least positive review came from HardcoreDroid. The game scored there with 70%. The game was criticised for its severe slowdown but the whole review was positive.[29] Server Slide to Play on the other hand released one of the most positive reviews for the game. It criticised controls and lack of classical game elements but praised its minimalism, gameplay and atmosphere. In this review, game scored with 100%.

The game is often referred as one of the best Android games of 2013. Some servers included it in their lists of the best games of the year.

PC Version

The PC version was also met with positive feedback from critics. The review published by Games.cz praised how developers ported the game to PC. Also praised "nonviolent nature of the game, relaxing pace with which the game tells a heartbreaking story through simple video."[30]

Another review was published by Italian SpazioGames. This review praised storytelling, soundtrack and expolorativeness. On the other hand, it criticised the game for being too easy and lacking gameplay.[31]

212Fahrenheit review praised the game for its gameplay, atmosphere and impressive soundtrack. Another point of praise is a story that is open to interpretation. The review also noted that the gameplay is pretty limited.[32]

What's your Tag? review found gameplay a bit repetitive at times but noted that new concepts in game are introduced in good intervals which helps. The Combat, specifically when in tiny places, was criticised on the other Hand. Graphics, Soundtrack and Atmosphere gained much praise and the game was likened to Limbo. The review was overally very positive and gave the game 80%.[33]

Awards
  • 5th best Android game of the year by Trusted Reviews.[34]
  • 3rd best paid Android Game of the year and 4th best Adventure game for Android of the year by GameWoof.[35][36]
  • One of 10 best Android Games by servers PocketGamer and Setuix.[37][38]
  • 4th best adventure game for Ouya in 2013. By server Day of Ouya.[39]
  • 2nd best Ambient Android game by Android Headlines.[40]
  • One of the best mobile games of the year by server Games.cz.[41]
  • Fourth best mobile Game by readers of Games.cz[42]
  • Pocket Gamer Awards 2014 nominee in category Most Innovative Game.[43]
  • Czech video game of the year 2013 Award nomination for artistic contribution to Czech video game output.[44]
  • 3rd Best Czech Game of the year in BOOOM 2013.[45]
  • 3rd Best story in Android Game by Insider Monkey.[46]

References
  1. "Action Adventure Game". Hero of Many. 18 June 2013. Retrieved 23 February 2014.
  2. "Steam Greenlight :: Hero of Many". Steamcommunity.com. Retrieved 23 February 2014.
  3. "Interview s československými vývojáři připravované pecky Hero of Many". AndroidPortal.sk. 24 January 2013. Retrieved 23 February 2014.
  4. "Hero of Many – Context and Mechanics | Rydyn Ni'n Hoffi Coffi Software". Ninhofficoffi.wordpress.com. 3 February 2014. Retrieved 23 February 2014.
  5. "Hero of Many – A leader in the darkness". App freak. Retrieved 6 April 2014.
  6. "Hero of Many je působivý titul od českých vývojářů – iDNES.cz". Mobilnihry.idnes.cz. 25 December 2013. Retrieved 23 February 2014.
  7. "Hero of Many Review – An abstract, beautiful and captivating underwater atmospheric adventure game". Droidgamers.com. 18 June 2013. Archived from the original on 23 June 2013. Retrieved 23 February 2014.
  8. "Hero of Many (Game)". Giant Bomb. 5 February 2014. Retrieved 23 February 2014.
  9. "Pracovali na Mafii 2, nyní zabodovali s vlastní hrou. Rozhovor – iDNES.cz". Bonusweb.idnes.cz. 2 January 2003. Retrieved 23 February 2014.
  10. "Home". Zone.gamestick.tv. 4 April 2013. Retrieved 23 February 2014.
  11. Bach, Martin. "Vývoj her v Česku v roce 2013 – část 4". Retrieved 26 April 2014.
  12. "Tea Club #7: Matouš Ježek o vyprávění příběhů". Games.cz. Retrieved 5 July 2014.
  13. Široký, Matouš. "Hero of Many on Steam Greenlight!". Steam. Retrieved 5 April 2014.
  14. "April 29th Batch of Greenlight Titles". Steam Greenlight. 29 April 2014. Retrieved 29 April 2014.
  15. Ježek, Matouš. "6600+ Votes and still counting!". Steam. Retrieved 5 April 2014.
  16. Twitter. Trickster Arts https://twitter.com/TricksterArts/status/452141117228597248. Retrieved 5 April 2014. Missing or empty |title= (help)
  17. Dolejš, Jan. "Soundtrack ze hry Hero of Many: Hudební pecka konečně ke stažení". Svět Androida.cz. Retrieved 25 May 2015.
  18. Vašátko, Ondřej (15 July 2013). "Fanoušci vyslyšeni – Skvělý soundtrack k Hero of Many je ke stažení". Android Portal.sk. Retrieved 25 May 2015.
  19. "Hero of Many - Soundtrack is out!". ModDB. Retrieved 25 May 2015.
  20. "Hero of Many for iPhone/iPad Reviews". Metacritic. CBS Interactive. Retrieved 19 January 2014.
  21. "Hero of Many review – Android reviews". Pocket Gamer. Retrieved 23 February 2014.
  22. Goorhuis, Kris (28 June 2013). "'Hero of Many' for iPad Review – A Hero Indeed". TouchArcade. Retrieved 23 February 2014.
  23. "Hero of Many Review". Slide To Play. 17 July 2013. Retrieved 23 February 2014.
  24. "Hero of Many Review". Arcadesushi.com. 6 August 2013. Retrieved 23 February 2014.
  25. "Hero of Many Review " 148Apps " iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch App Reviews and News". 148Apps. 26 June 2013. Retrieved 23 February 2014.
  26. https://web.archive.org/web/20131231021135/http://gamewoof.com/game-reviews/hero-of-many-a-great-big-little-adventure/. Archived from the original on 31 December 2013. Retrieved 18 January 2014. Missing or empty |title= (help)
  27. "Hero of Many Review – Fertilization is a Battlefield". AndroidShock. 29 June 2013. Retrieved 23 February 2014.
  28. "Hero of Many – skvělá atmosférická hra z českých dílen | Svět Androida". Svetandroida.cz. 19 June 2013. Retrieved 23 February 2014.
  29. Matar, Joe (6 July 2013). "Hero of Many Review: "Surprise Narrative" | Android Indie". Hardcore Droid. Retrieved 23 February 2014.
  30. Jiříková, Lucie. "Hero of Many - Recenze". Games.cz. Retrieved 30 September 2014.
  31. Musicó, Domenico. "Recensione di Hero of Many". SpazioGames. Retrieved 30 September 2014.
  32. Montag, Guy. "A simple hero with great ethics". 212 Fahrenheit. Retrieved 30 September 2014.
  33. "HERO OF MANY REVIEW". What's your Tag?. Retrieved 10 February 2015.
  34. "Best Android games 2013: Download essentials for Christmas – Hero of Many". Trusted Reviews. Archived from the original on 3 January 2014. Retrieved 23 February 2014.
  35. "5 Best Paid Android Games of 2013". 2 January 2014. Archived from the original on 4 January 2014. Retrieved 21 September 2016.CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
  36. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 30 December 2013. Retrieved 29 December 2013.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  37. "Pocket Gamer's top 10 best Android games of 2013... so far | Android". Pocket Gamer. Retrieved 23 February 2014.
  38. "Top 10 Android Games of 2013". Setuix.Com. 1 January 2014. Retrieved 23 February 2014.
  39. Reisser, Thomas (31 December 2013). "TOP5 Adventure Games". Day of the OUYA. Retrieved 23 February 2014.
  40. "Featured: Top 10 Best Android Ambient Games". Androidheadlines.com. 4 October 2013. Retrieved 23 February 2014.
  41. "Best of 2013: Nejlepší mobilní hra – GAMES.cz". Games.tiscali.cz. 15 January 2014. Retrieved 23 February 2014.
  42. "Best of 2013: Výsledky čtenářského hlasování o hru roku – GAMES.cz". Games.tiscali.cz. 6 February 2014. Retrieved 23 February 2014.
  43. "Pocket Gamer Awards 2014". Pocketgamer.co.uk. 19 February 2008. Retrieved 23 February 2014.
  44. "ČESKÁ HRA ROKU 2013". České hry. Retrieved 5 April 2014.
  45. "Anketa Boom 2013 vyhodnotená, aká je najlepšia slovenská a česká hra?". Sector.sk. Retrieved 31 May 2014.
  46. Durankiev, George. "7 Android Games with Best Story Lines". Insider Monkey. Retrieved 4 October 2015.
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