Hero Academy 1.4.2

The iOS strategy game now on Mac

Hero Academy has been a big success on iOS and now fans can enjoy the strategy game on their Mac too. Hero Academy combines strategy with fantasy to produce an intriguing and challenging board game.

It's all about the Action Points

Hero Academy is like chess - but chess with lasers, guns, spells and other weapons. It's therefore a bit trickier to get to grips with than traditional chess and it's recommended that non-iOS players follow the Hero Academy tutorial at the beginning. From here you'll learn how to place units, attack and cast spells. Like chess, your aim is to protect certain pieces, in this case various crystals that are scattered around the board.\nHero Academy is based on Action Points. The smarter the moves you make, the more Action Points you win and the more special tricks and weapons you can accumulate in order to destroy your opponent and collect the crystals. To make your team even stronger, there's the usual option of in-app purchases ranging from Dwarfs to Elves.

Fun but tedious if you play just one game

Hero Academy is fairly easy to play as long as you follow the tutorial. The most frustrating aspect however is the waiting. If you're playing online, it can take quite a while for your opponent to make a move as there doesn't seem to be a set time limit. However, you can start more than one game meaning you can switch between games while waiting for your opponents to make their next move.

Addictive gameplay

Hero Academy isn't a visually impressive game but the tactics involved make it quite addictive. Anyone who has played chess will understand and enjoy the strategies needed to beat an opponent and the sudden twists in balance of power that can be the result of just one smart move. The overall graphics could be better - they don't display particularly well on Retina Macs for example.

For fans of chess, or those that like Dungeons and Dragons, Hero Academy is an original game with addictive gameplay.