Have you ever played Hero Academy?

[Anyr]

(08-06-2012 08:21 PM)Cookie Wrote:  I wouldn't say lacking, but I found the movement mechanics of HA rather frustrating, and the system where units have different strength depending on what type of unit it is facing makes the learning curve for the units a bit steeper. The puzzles give a pretty good idea of how this mechanic works, but to me it still didn't make a lot of sense.

Yes, Hero Academy definitely requires more double checking when it comes to calculations. In order to determine whether (for example) their Knight will be able to finish off an enemy Void Monk in one turn, players have to account for HP, resistances, weapon/armour effects, boost squares, temporary buffs, and more besides. This is why the undo feature is so essential to that game: Players need to be able to test out various possibilities without committing to them, because there are so many factors involved in each decision.

Quote:This does not mean that the game is not well designed or that it is not balanced; I consider it more to be a matter of taste.

Ditto.

Quote:And, I think the fog-of-war mechanic is a big bonus in Outwitters as well. Without that mechanic, Outwitters would not work, since a lot of advanced strategies rely on hiding snipers or specials, including setting up blocks that make it harder for the opponent to know what you are doing. HA might work anyway, but it requires more time to understand how the units move and attack.

For Hero Academy, the 'fog of war' comes from its deck system. While you will always know the status of everything your opponent has on the field, the same can't be said for their undeployed resources. The question thus changes from 'Does he have a sniper/soldier/bombshell/etc hiding over there?' to 'Does he have a scroll/healer/fireball/etc in his hand?' Likewise, both games differ in the methods used to counter this uncertainty. In Outwitters, players can send out scouts to let them see into 'dark' areas. In Hero Academy, they can keep track of each other's dwindling decks: "Ok, I know he's already used both his scrolls, so this move is safe."