Heroes of Might and Magic: Olden Era Is Now in Early Access - the Series' 30th Anniversary Return Is Here
The wait is over. Heroes of Might and Magic: Olden Era is now available in Early Access on Steam and Xbox Game Pass, developed by Unfrozen and co-published by Hooded Horse and Ubisoft. The gates to Jadame are open - and the community showed up immediately: as of today, Olden Era is the #1 best-selling game on Steam Charts, earning a spot on the Steam front page. A 25% Early Access launch discount is also in effect for the first two weeks. The timing is deliberate: this launch coincides with the Heroes of Might and Magic franchise's 30th anniversary, making Olden Era both a homecoming and a statement of intent.
We previewed Olden Era back in October 2025 when the demo dropped, calling it a genuine attempt to reclaim what made the series iconic - the explore-build-recruit-battle loop of Heroes III - while adding enough modern structure to feel fresh. Olden Era hit 1.5 million wishlists on Steam ahead of today's launch, landing it in the top 10 most wishlisted games on the platform.
What's in Early Access on Day One
The launch build is substantial for an Early Access title. Six fully realized factions are in: Temple, Dungeon, Schism, Necropolis, Hive, and Grove (which has just been revealed) - each with distinct units, heroes, and playstyles. An in-game tutorial eases newcomers into the hex-based combat and resource management loop. The first act of the campaign is playable now, with additional acts coming as development continues. Beyond the campaign, premade scenarios with self-contained stories, Classic mode, Single Hero mode, and Arena mode are all available in both single-player and multiplayer, complete with matchmaking, ranked play, and leaderboards. Hotseat mode lets you play against friends on a single PC, and a pre-release version of the map editor is already available for players who want to start building their own adventures, a highly anticipated feature by long-time fans.
The Grove Faction Revealed Before Launch
Right before the Early Access launch, Unfrozen dropped the full Grove faction reveal - the last of the six factions to get its own dedicated showcase. Grove's identity is built around the Murmurwoods: Wardens and Druids protecting the forest from unwanted visitors, with Fauns raining arrows from range, Naiads splashing and freezing enemies, and a reworked Phoenix channeling sacred flames for regrowth. Unfrozen noted that Grove went through significant changes based on community feedback since its original reveal last year - what you're getting today reflects player input on what the faction needed to feel right.
A Franchise Built for the Long Game
Unfrozen has been transparent about the Early Access process from the start: hotfixes will roll out continuously over the first few weeks as initial bugs surface, and a full content roadmap will be published once the launch dust settles and the first feedback is in. The team conducted over 20 community interviews with pro players, streamers, modders, and map-makers during development to calibrate the game's direction - that kind of groundwork tends to show in how a studio responds to post-launch feedback.
Paul Romero, composer on multiple classic entries in the series, returns for Olden Era's soundtrack alongside Cris Velasco (God of War, Mass Effect, StarCraft II) and the Heroes Orchestra, who provide orchestral arrangements. The musical pedigree alone signals how seriously Unfrozen is treating this revival.
Heroes of Might and Magic: Olden Era is available now on Steam with a 25% Early Access discount for the first two weeks, and on Xbox Game Pass. An official community wiki is live at wiki.hoodedhorse.com for faction breakdowns, unit stats, and spell data.
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This story was originally published April 30, 2026 at 1:07 PM.