Hero Mages - A hidden gem of a game developed by D20Studios

D20Studios developed a little game you have probably never heard of or even seen. Called Hero Mages, it just won at the indiePUB awards for Technical Excellence. Table-top RPG fans will probably enjoy this the most although anyone who likes turn-based strategy games or RPGs could also appreciate this neat little title.

You've probably never seen nor heard of this game as it doesn't appear to be in any Android Market we have searched, yet it should be. It's like Dungeons&Dragons with PvP for your Android phone. Using turn-based gameplay, up to 8 players including yourself can do some head-to-head combat with your units.

Interestingly enough, it also combines the card game genre like Magic the Gathering but in a less boring way. At the beginning of the game, each player is dealt 7 cards and commands a set of units, 1 Mage and 2 Guardians. Players take turns moving their units, attacking other players until only one person is left standing. You Mages will be able to cast spells and create more units, called creatures, to help you defeat your enemies.

Combat is done by rolling a bunch of D20s (dice with 20 faces on them, numbered 1-20) just like in table-top gaming. Also, to attack a target, you must be able to see them so line of sight actually plays a role in this game. Your cards are your spells and mana. At the beginning of your turn you get 3 cards which count as mana and any unused mana at the end of your turn goes to your hand at which point those cards are now spell cards.

You can unlock abilities in-game as well by earning Valor in combat. Valor points are rewarded to players who are aggressive and active in the game. This helps eliminate the possibility of people just holding up in defensive position. As you gain more Valor points, you'll be able to unlock abilities to help you win.

Graphically, the game won't blow your mind with staggering eye candy but sometimes it isn't about the eye candy, it is about the gameplay and enjoying the game. Did I mention you can also play this in your browser on your PC?

Can you see where this game is shining in the technical gameplay area? This is a pretty unique game and surprisingly not on the Android Market yet but it is available and free! There is a lot more to the game but for a quick start you can just follow the in-game tutorial. For detailed game instructions, the official site has plenty to read up on! You can download Hero Mages using the links below, have fun!

In case you were wondering, the Grand Prize ($25,000) winner for the indeaPUB awards was Steambirds for Android. Congrats to Spryfox and Radial Games!

Developer Website: D20Studios

Official Game Website: Hero Mages

Download: Hero Mages | Mirror 1 (MediaFire)