It’s been a long while that I have played a computer game but after a Kickstarted project from 2012 finally was released this past year I figured I kickstarted it for a reason and should play it! The real challenge is finding the time to do so!
Hero-U is an adventure game with role playing game elements within it, much like the Quest for Glory series. Corey and Lori Cole were the creators of the beloved QFG series and have come back into the adventure game world for this new game which is in the same universe, but in a different area of the world where QFG inhabits.
If I had to describe the game, it would be like you are a character going to a Hogwarts type university as a rogue. A rogue is quite like a thief but one with a conscience.
The game is time based so you have 24 hour days and 50 days in total in your semester. It definitely was hard to figure out how to make the best of my time during a day as you have a limited supply. Practising lock picking eats up an hour of your day. Chatting with people also takes up time. I had to find some general strategy guides on the internet to figure out the best way to use my time. Sidenote: it’s definitely a different world with the Internet available. Gone are the days of spending literal weeks trying to open up a trapdoor in Mordack’s library…all I have to do is type in what puzzle I’m having trouble with and BAM, problem solved. Being a parent, my time is quite limited and I don’t have more than ten minutes to be stuck on an element of the game. I get enjoyment out of seeing the entire story unfold, not how long it took me to figure out a puzzle.
The story is quite a good one…you are a young lad named Sean O’Connor who wants to become a thief but is caught in the act and given a chance to redeem himself and join the Hero University. There he takes classes with other classmates who he befriends over his semester and also fights monsters in the basement and solves problems that arise over time.
Personally, I really enjoyed the connection to the Quest for Glory series…there are frequent mentions of other events from other games in the series which I remember fondly. But the game just makes little mentions of them and doesn’t dwell on them. It almost feels like Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find them based inside the Harry Potter universe that we’ve grown to love.
33 hours later, I finished the game on New Year’s Even with 30 minutes to spare before midnight. I have to say that I hope to see more games in this series and I am glad that I helped Kickstart this one.