The Heroes Madness

By Hardcore

I love the thrill of competition. I long to feel (and hear) the wrath of a flayed and defeated opponent as they search for excuses or fling wild accusations. Occasionally though, I must strip bare the single-player campaign in a superb game, even as a succulent online component lies waiting in the wings. Kingdom Under Fire: Heroes™ is one such game, and I tremble with glee at the thought of ravaging every last corner of its offline experience. I shall blaze through battles like a wild thresher, sowing death wherever my Hero shall go.

Heroic pose. Appropriate.

Of course, I can't go about ravaging and expect to reap some satisfaction upon completion unless I do it up right, and that means imposed limitations. The game must be beaten—not completed—so no easy exploits, no extended sessions of pre-planning, no digging around for cheats. Man up, now! Man up and get down with some skill and grit, and put a little elbow grease into your gaming. Man up and earn the subtitle of the spectacular real-time tactical masterpiece that is Kingdom Under Fire: Heroes.

Tactics on the Fly
You've got to get busy with a little spontaneity, so let's get to cutting out all that fancy waypoint action. You want to send your cavalry to and fro? Get cracking (maybe talk to Twitch abut developing your skill set) with some lightning reflexes, cause that's how the hardcore get it done. Learn to switch up units and send out commands in an instant. There's no time to think in the midst of battle; get yourself some tactical instincts.

Possessed armor. Not a good thing.

SP is for Bosses
I love me some special attacks, no matter what the game, and KUF: Heroes supplies them with gusto, but hey, they start lacking some luster with overuse. Know what I mean? Save that flambé weapon of death routine for those that deserve to go out with a bang. Use some of that hardcore skill you've mustered to take out the legions, and then focus your SP attacks on the leaders and bosses you encounter. Get it? Got it? Good. Time to move on.

All About the Troops
I'm not claiming (yet) that you can get to the latter stages of the game without upgrading the snot out of your Hero, but allow yourself to focus more on the supporting cast. Let your natural skill do the talking, not the less tangible stat improvement or hefty super-gear you purchase.

Resistances … Who Cares?
Taking advantage of enemy chinks in the armor is fine and dandy for the uninitiated, but let's try to lay waste to our enemies through brute strength and quick tactical strategy instead of spamming lightning attacks against heavily armored foes, shall we? Get the job done old-school and stop focusing on elemental (fire, ice, lightning) exploits.

All at my command. Heh.

Cheats
Have you used any? Stop reading this column and don't come back. I got no room for cheaters here. I'll offer you one caveat to that. Listening? If you've gotten the job done on the hardest difficulty and just want to lay out the most carnage possible, feel free to boot up a cheat or two. Otherwise, you're just a pathetic cautionary tale.

Once I've laid waste to the twisted souls of the dark legion, and then subsequently subjugated the noble humans with said dark legion (you can play both sides), and done so with every available hero (including unlockables), I will have earned the right to flick on over to Xbox Live®. I will have earned the right to savor the never-ending joy it brings, as each new battle offers new opportunities for conquest. I can't wait.

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