The MOBA blockbuster Heroes of Kingdoms co-developed by Gamania and Netease in China officially entered open beta (OB) on June 26. Netease Deputy CEO Wang Yi personally attended the OB press conference and joined Gamania Taiwan CEO Chuang Chengchi in announcing Heroes of Kingdoms’s bid to dominate the MOBA gaming scene! Heroes of Kingdoms had already built up massive public support during closed beta by releasing the 10 vs. 10 grand melee and 5 vs. 5 classic mode. For the OB launch, six anti-heroes including Lu Bu, who everyone has been waiting for, will join the list of 60 heroes that players can play in battle for free. 4 extremely difficult Challenge Instance levels were also released for PVE mode. For the first time in the game, players will have a chance to find star generals and top-level orange equipment while fighting monsters! Heroes of Kingdoms may be famed for its range of game modes but there is more to the game’s design. The OB will also include the 1 vs. 1 Ultimate Duel mode, creating a new arena for players who prefer fighting one to one!
▲Netease Deputy CEO Wang Yi and Gamania Taiwan CEO Chuang Chengchi jointly announces Heroes of Kingdoms will now move to dominate the MOBA gaming scene in Taiwan!
Different Multiplayer Modes + Breaking Free from the Hero Formula
Gamania Taiwan CEO Chuang Chengchi said: There are more than 3 million MOBA-type game players in Taiwan, demonstrating the strong enthusiasm and support among Taiwanese players for MOBA strategic multiplayer games. Despite the rapid development of this gaming type, we noticed many Taiwanese players talking about the flaws of current MOBA games such as low chance of encounters and formulaic settings. That’s why Gamania has now partnered with Netease to introduce Heroes of Kingdoms, an enhanced MOBA game. We expect the game to reach 30,000 players online simultaneously! Chuang added: Heroes of Kingdoms is based on the history of the Three Kingdoms that players are familiar with. A user-friendly interface shortens the learning curve of the new game for players and it incorporates many innovative design features which increase the frequency of encounters for more exciting gameplay! The varied multiplayer modes allow players to use their preferred mode to level up and equip their heroes. At the same time, the style and skill combinations of the heroes in the game all break with existing formulae to avoid the same old winning combinations. No matter what hero a player chooses, he or she will be able to run amok and enjoy the thrill of going on a killing spree!
▲The varied multiplayer modes in Heroes of Kingdoms means no matter what hero a player chooses, he or she will be able to run amok and enjoy the thrill of going on a killing spree!
Netease Deputy CEO Wang Yi also spoke about the importance of the Taiwan market: “There are many high-caliber MOBA gamers in Taiwan. Netease has been developing and operating online games for 10 years, and Heroes of Kingdoms is our first entry in the MOBA market. It was developed at great cost with Korea and Korean technology, and we hope that Chinese originality based around the history of Three Kingdoms as well as world-class visual effects and system interfaces will give players a whole new multiplayer experience within a familiar background story. Taiwan is the first market to host the Heroes of Kingdoms OB and we consider this a key milestone. In this first partnership between Netease and Gamania, I am certain that Gamania’s extensive operations experience and strong customer base will see us carve out a niche in the MOBA market and put Heroes of Kingdoms firmly on the map.”
Lu Bu the Anti-Hero Enters the Fray, All Heroes Free to Play
The recent Heroes of Kingdoms no-reset CB has now accumulated more than 10,000 player logins. To date, the hero Huang Zhong has achieved the highest exposure while Zhao Yun, Xiao Qiao and Diao Chan have all won players’ favor as well. Of the new heroes released for the OB, first is of course the melee hero Lu Bu along with Cao Zhi, Yan Liang, Wen Chou, Xun You and the ice mage Da Qiao. Lu Bu, wielding his signature weapon the Heavenly Halberd, is devastating in attack and can use rage to power his skills. Even normal attacks deal area damage to devastate enemy ranks, making him the choice of players who love pitched battles. Cao Zhi is unusual in that he is a dual-mode hero and is always accompanied by the ghost of his little brother Cao Chong. Cao Zhi had always been close to his little brother Cao Zhong who died quite young. A wizard however called Cao Chong’s spirit back from the beyond and sealed it inside Cao Zhi’s suword. In battle, Cao Zhi can release the seal and summon Cao Chong’s spirit to fight by his side, so he has effectively the attacks of two heroes!
▲Lu Bu, wielding his signature weapon the Heavenly Halberd, is devastating in attacks and even his normal attacks deal area damage to devastate enemy ranks, making him a great choice for players who love pitched battles.
▲Cao Zhi is unusual in that he is a dual-mode hero and is always accompanied by the ghost of his little brother Cao Chong.
Yan Liang and Wen Chou were fellow students. The former is a mage warrior while the latter is a melee fighter. Their character design is based on the armor of Viking pirates, giving them a bold and fearsome appearance. Xun You, a Wei strategist, wears a silver-colored half-mask that makes it hard for people to read his calculating. As a master of strategy, he is good at hobbling the enemy and supporting the attacks of his allies. as the wife of Sun Ce, Dao Qiao is an expert in ice magic. Her powerful magical spells can be used for long-range crowd control and to protect teammates.
▲The character designs of Yan Liang (Left) and Wen Chou (Right) were based on the armor of Viking pirates, giving them a bold and fearsome appearance.
▲Xun You (Left) wears a silver-colored half-mask and is good at hobbling the enemy. Dao Qiao is an expert in ice magic with powerful magical spells that can be used for long-range crowd control and to protect teammates.
The heroes of Heroes of Kingdoms are easy to learn and quick to master. A total of 60 heroes are available for free to play during the OB. In the future, more unexpected characters will gradually be added to the game. The upcoming highlight will be the Taiwan-only female character Guan Yinping. She wields a long glaive and is the daughter of Guan Yu. As for her attributes and skills, players will just have to wait and see!
▲The Taiwan-only female character Guan Yinping will be released soon. As for her attributes and skills, players will just have to wait and see!
7 Multiplayer Modes to Cater for Different Tastes, Unique Mount System + Custom Weapons Makes GANK Fests a Certainty!
Heroes of Kingdoms took great pains with its system design to break into Taiwan’s demanding MOBA market. To cater for Taiwanese gamers’ varied tastes, all of the heroes in the game have their own signature weapons so players are ready to go on the offensive right away. The game is also designed with 7 multiplayer modes such as 10 vs. 10 Battle for China, 5 vs. 5 Shu-Wei Wars, 5 vs. 5 vs. 5 Three Kingdoms at War, 1 vs. 1 Ultimate Duel, PVE Story Instance, PVE Challenge Instance and Hero Exercise (AI opponent). Each mode has its own unique strengths and an easy-to-learn, user-friendly interface makes multiplayer games all the more fun:
1. 10 vs. 10 Battle for China: For a large map designed for 20 people to fight in, Heroes of Kingdoms developed the unique Mount System to get players from their base to the frontline as quickly as possible. There are now 22 mounts in the game including the wild legend Nine Tails, the prehistoric T-Rex Frostbolt, the armored wolf Icemaw and the cute white Jade Rabbit for players to choose from. There are also Way Stations placed throughout the map where players can grab a mount and rush to the upper or lower paths to reinforce teammates!
2. 5 vs. 5 Shu-Wei Wars: The Mount System can be used to rush to the frontline. There are also Ice Paths in the map that allow players to zip to the GANK fests and start hacking away with no lag!
3. 1 vs. 1 Ultimate Duel: The new mode unlocked in the OB offers player who prefer one-to-one battles the perfect arena. If you think you have mastered MOBA controls, then Ultimate Duel is for you!
4. PVE Challenge Instance: The new mode unlocked in the OB contains four levels: Warrior’s Trial, Swordsman’s Trial, Doombringer’s Trial and Trial Campaign. The levels are now significantly harder as players will be faced with overwhelming hordes of enemies and the Yellow Turban legions. Final bosses such as Su Mo and Zhang Chiao await them! What’s really special is that Challenge Mode offers players the chance to find Star General and top-level orange equipment; Star Generals can accompany the hero into combat and give the hero additional abilities. Each hero can take up to three Star Generals into combat.
5. PVE Story Instances: Historical campaigns that everyone are familiar with are used as background. Players can go to war against the Yellow Turban bandits and have a chance of finding high-level purple equipment during fights.
6. Hero Exercises (AI opponent): Matchmaking for MOBA games can often take a long time. Heroes of Kingdoms comes with an AI opponents mode for players who want to start the battle without having to wait.
7. 5 vs. 5 vs. 5 Three Kingdoms at War: Experience the cunning and strategy of Three Kingdoms. Players must not only kill their enemies but also work with their teammates to come up with a strategy. This mode is suitable for skilled players and will be unlocked in the future.
▲10 vs. 10 Battle for China offers a grand melee with 20 people where players can battle it out to their hearts’ content
▲The unique Mount System developed for the game allows players to rush to the frontline from their base or a way station in large 10 vs. 10 maps
▲There are also Ice Paths in the map that allows players to join the GANK fest and start hacking away
▲The wild legend Nine Tails, the pre-historic T-Rex Frostbolt, armored wolf Icemaw, as well as the cute white Jade Rabbit are all mounts that players can choose from
▲Diao Chan’s Destined Design – Cloud Dress has been released in-game. Change Diao Chan into the pink Cloud Dress then complement it with a stallion in Team color to provide players with a very different look for Diao Chan!
※ Heroes of Kingdoms website: http://tw.new.beanfun.com/HOK/
※ Heroes of Kingdoms Facebook Fan Group: https://www.facebook.com/HOKTW
※ Heroes of Kingdoms trailer: http://youtu.be/FpUjWm1e0DA
※ Sixwong & Niaws vs. TTShowGame Heroes of Kingdom in hilarious 10 vs. 10 PK match. The livecast channels are at:
Sixwong：http://www.twitch.tv/sixwong
Niaws：http://www.twitch.tv/scspple7545
TTShoGame：http://www.twitch.tv/ttshowgame