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Hero Wars

Hero Wars: Alliance is a free-to-play fantasy action role-playing game (RPG) developed by Nexters and first released in 2016 for mobile platforms.^[1]^[2] Hero Wars encompasses two separate games: Hero Wars: Alliance for mobile devices and Hero Wars: Dominion Era for web browsers and PC, developed by different teams with distinct mechanics and heroes.^[3] Set in the magical world of Dominion, the game challenges players to assemble and upgrade teams of unique heroes to combat hordes of invading demons through strategic, team-based battles that emphasize tactics, timing, and resource management.^[1]^[4] The core gameplay revolves around collecting dozens of heroes, each belonging to one of several roles such as tanks, warriors, marksmen, mages, supports, or healers, and enhancing their abilities via skills, glyphs, artifacts, and ranks to form synergistic teams of up to five for combat.^[5]^[4] Players progress through a campaign of quests, confront hundreds of bosses in various modes including the Tower, Arena, and Guild Wars, and can join alliances for cooperative multiplayer experiences or compete in PvP events.^[1]^[6] Additional mechanics include summoning and upgrading Titans—giant mechs for alternate battle modes—and Pets that provide passive bonuses and aid in automated adventures.^[7] The game incorporates idle elements, allowing progress even when offline, and features regular events, seasonal content, and in-app purchases for resources like emeralds to accelerate advancement.^[1]^[6] Since its launch, Hero Wars: Alliance has amassed over 200 million downloads as of 2023 and maintains a strong player base through cross-platform play and community-driven updates, evolving into a massively multiplayer online RPG (MMORPG) with a focus on long-term progression and alliance-based strategy.^[1]^[8]^[4]

Overview

Development history

Nexters was founded in 2014 by Andrey Fadeev and Boris Gertsovskiy in Moscow, building on their earlier collaboration that began in 2010 when Fadeev led the social games studio Progrestar and Gertsovskiy headed Crazy Bit.^[9]^[10] The company initially focused on social games, releasing its first title, Island Experiment, a casual survival game for platforms like Facebook and VKontakte, which helped establish Nexters in the free-to-play social gaming space.^[9] Under Fadeev's leadership as CEO, Nexters emphasized accessible free-to-play models inspired by the growing mobile and social gaming trends, prioritizing engaging progression systems for broad audiences.^[9]^[11] In 2015, Nexters decided to expand into more strategic RPG experiences, leading to the development of Hero Wars as a browser-based game emphasizing hero collection and tactical team battles.^[12] A prototype was developed in early 2016, culminating in the full release of Hero Wars on Facebook in May 2016, where it quickly gained traction as an action RPG blending fantasy elements with competitive gameplay.^[13]^[8] Late that year, the team began adapting the game for mobile devices using the Unity engine to capitalize on the shift toward app-based play, with Android and iOS versions launching in 2017.^[14]^[1] By 2023, amid geopolitical tensions stemming from the Russia-Ukraine conflict, Nexters rebranded to GDEV Inc. in June, divesting its Russia-based subsidiaries in 2022 to eliminate exposure to the region and relocating operations primarily to Cyprus, Armenia, and Kazakhstan.^[10]^[15] This restructuring included integrating acquired studios like Cubic Games, which joined in 2022 to bolster GDEV's portfolio in mobile and web gaming.^[9] Following the 2023 changes, GDEV reported revenue growth, with Hero Wars contributing to sustained bookings increases.^[16]

Release and platforms

Hero Wars was initially released as a browser-based game on Facebook and other social media platforms in 2016 by developer Nexters Global.^[13] The mobile version, Hero Wars: Alliance, launched on iOS on December 23, 2016, and on Android on February 15, 2017.^[17]^[18] The game began with a soft launch targeted at CIS (Commonwealth of Independent States) regions before expanding globally, achieving full worldwide availability by mid-2017.^[8] It supports localization in over a dozen languages, including English, French, German, Russian, Japanese, Korean, Spanish, Portuguese, and Chinese variants, to accommodate its international player base.^[19] In July 2023, Nexters rebranded the browser and PC version as Hero Wars: Dominion Era, optimizing it for larger screens, mouse and keyboard controls, and dedicated PC play while maintaining cross-progression with the mobile edition.^[20] This version emphasizes strategic depth for desktop users and is accessible via web browsers on PC and laptops.^[3] Hero Wars follows a free-to-play business model with in-app purchases primarily for premium currency like gems and energy, hero shards to unlock and upgrade characters, and cosmetic skins.^[1] While the developers emphasize fair progression through daily activities and events, purchases accelerate advancement without enabling unavoidable pay-to-win dynamics.^[8] As of November 2025, the game remains actively available on multiple platforms: the mobile version on Google Play with a 4.6/5 rating from over 1.68 million reviews and on the App Store with a 4.5/5 rating from 204,000 reviews; the Dominion Era version via web browsers on PC; and legacy support on Facebook, though the Gameroom platform was discontinued in 2020.^[1]^[19]^[3]

Gameplay

Heroes and team building

Hero Wars features an extensive roster of heroes, approximately 85 unique characters as of November 2025, each designed with distinct abilities that contribute to strategic depth in team composition.^[21] These heroes draw from a fantasy universe, embodying archetypes that players collect and upgrade to form balanced squads capable of tackling various challenges. The game's hero system emphasizes diversity, allowing for creative builds while rewarding knowledge of individual strengths and interactions. Heroes are categorized into seven primary classes following a 2024 update that expanded from the original five: Tank, Fighter (formerly Warrior), Marksman, Mage, Healer, Support, and Control.^[22] Tanks, such as Astaroth, specialize in frontline durability and team protection, exemplified by Astaroth's resurrection ability that revives fallen allies to sustain prolonged engagements. Fighters and Mages focus on melee or magical damage output, Marksmen deliver ranged physical attacks, Healers provide restoration and sustain, Supports enhance ally performance through buffs, and Controls disrupt enemies with stuns or debuffs. This classification system influences rune upgrades and class-specific skills, enabling players to tailor heroes to specific roles within a team. Players acquire heroes primarily through summoning mechanics using shards, which are obtained via in-game events, the arena shop, guild wars, and special quests.^[23] Summoning occurs in portals like the Emerald Summon or Tower of Magic, where players spend emeralds or tickets to draw heroes of varying rarity tiers: Common, Rare, Epic, and Legendary, with Legendary heroes requiring the most shards to fully unlock.^[24] Events such as the Spring Festival or Champion Season often provide targeted shard rewards, allowing focused collection of meta-relevant characters.^[23] Team building revolves around assembling squads of five heroes for most game modes, prioritizing synergies that amplify collective strengths over individual power.^[25] Effective compositions balance damage dealers, sustain units, and utility providers; for instance, pairing the tank Cleaver with the Control hero Faceless creates strong crowd control, as Faceless's possession debuff synergizes with Cleaver's hook to isolate and eliminate threats.^[26] Other popular synergies include high-damage Marksman teams like Keira supported by Sebastian's critical hit buffs, or magic-focused groups with Jorgen's energy denial to hinder enemy casters.^[27] The pet system integrates into team building by assigning companions to heroes at Blue promotion rank or higher, granting passive buffs such as increased armor penetration or health regeneration that enhance synergies without occupying team slots.^[28] Pets like Axel provide bonus magic attack to patron heroes, further optimizing elemental or damage-type focused teams.^[29] Customization options allow players to refine heroes beyond base abilities, primarily through artifact equipping and skin unlocks. Artifacts are hero-specific gear that boost core stats like health or attack when upgraded with resources from campaigns and events, enabling fine-tuned builds for different modes.^[30] Skins offer cosmetic alterations with minor stat enhancements; the 2024 Lara Croft crossover skin, for example, integrates Tomb Raider aesthetics while providing agility bonuses to improve her Marksman mobility and penetration.^[31] To maintain balance, developers release periodic reworks and adjustments, often targeting underutilized heroes to refresh the meta. In 2024, Orion received buffs to his energy gain and area-of-effect damage, elevating him from niche to viable Mage option in competitive play.^[32] Similar updates in 2025, including glyph refinements and skill tweaks, ensure no single composition dominates indefinitely, encouraging adaptive team building.^[33]

Core mechanics and progression

Heroes level up through experience gained primarily from completing campaign missions, where each point of energy spent yields one experience point, alongside contributions from daily quests and other activities. The maximum hero level is 120, aligned with the team's overall level cap of 120, enabling access to advanced gear and stat improvements.^[34] Ascension occurs via evolution using soul stones and gold to increase a hero's star rating from 1 to 6 stars, with requirements escalating from 10 soul stones for the first star to 300 for the sixth, unlocking higher potential tiers such as from violet to orange ranks.^[5] Resource management centers on energy, which powers campaign runs and regenerates at a rate of one point every six minutes up to a team-level-dependent cap, supplemented by bottled energy items and three daily quests granting 60 free energy each. Gold, essential for upgrades, is obtained from campaign rewards, tower completions, and daily quests, while potions like EXP potions provide temporary boosts for leveling and other enhancements. Steady progression is supported through daily quests offering gold and energy, as well as login rewards that deliver emeralds, energy, and resources, claimable even for missed days.^[35] Each hero possesses four upgradable skills, including an ultimate ability that requires a full mana bar to activate manually, with maximum levels of 120 for the first two skills, 100 for the third, and 80 for the fourth. Skills are enhanced using skill points, which regenerate one every five minutes (up to a maximum of 20, expandable via purchases), combined with gold expenditures.^[36] Farming occurs through automated or repeatable battles in modes like Outland, unlocked at team level 18 for highwaymen encounters yielding chests with gold, coins, and items via five daily attempts, and level 25 for masters providing skin stones and unique rewards. The Tower, accessible from level 15, features 50 daily-resetting floors where relic battles grant gold and team-boosting relics, while treasure floors offer chests with coins and equipment fragments for resource accumulation. The Hydra boss, available from level 35, facilitates team-wide progression by challenging its six elemental heads with daily horn summons, rewarding fairy dust and spheres upon defeat, with guild raids enabled at VIP level 10.^[37]^[38]^[39] Account progression advances via VIP levels from 1 to 15, earned through VIP points accumulated from purchases of bundles, skins, or server transfers (emeralds alone do not contribute), with escalating requirements such as 10,000 points for level 10. Higher VIP tiers provide benefits like additional daily attempts in various modes and increased rewards, including enhanced energy regeneration rates—for instance, up to 50% faster at VIP 10—to accelerate overall advancement.^[40]

Battle system

The battle system in Hero Wars features semi-automated real-time combat, where players assemble teams of five heroes that automatically target and engage enemies based on AI-driven behaviors, while allowing manual intervention to activate special skills for tactical advantage.^[41] Battles unfold in a side-view arena, with heroes executing basic attacks and passive abilities autonomously, but players can time the deployment of active skills to disrupt enemy formations or amplify team output.^[42] This blend of automation and player input emphasizes strategic preparation, as outcomes hinge on hero synergies briefly referenced in team composition.^[43] Positioning plays a crucial role in combat dynamics, with teams arranged in five slots divided into a front line (positions 1-3) and back line (positions 4-5), where frontline heroes, typically tanks, absorb the majority of incoming damage to shield vulnerable damage dealers and supports in the rear.^[43] Heroes are auto-positioned according to their attack range upon battle start, though player-set order influences initial placement, and certain modes incorporate environmental hazards that alter positioning effects, such as area denial or buffs.^[42] Damage intake is further modulated by hero stats, with frontline units designed to mitigate hits through high health and defensive abilities, preventing backline heroes from being quickly eliminated.^[41] Combat revolves around two primary damage types—physical and magic—alongside pure damage, with physical attacks (often from basic hero strikes) reduced by armor stats and magic attacks mitigated by magic defense stats, while pure damage bypasses all reductions.^[44] Critical hits and dodges are probabilistic outcomes calculated from hero attributes like physical or magic attack, agility, and luck, adding layers of unpredictability to exchanges; for instance, high agility enhances dodge chances against physical threats.^[44] Penetration stats (armor or magic) further refine these interactions by ignoring portions of enemy defenses, enabling specialized counters in team matchups.^[44] Heroes generate energy—a mana equivalent—to fuel skills, accumulating 10% from each basic attack or skill use, 30% upon delivering the killing blow to an enemy hero, and 1% for every 1% of maximum health lost, requiring a full 1000 energy points to unlock the first skill activation.^[45] Subsequent skills follow individual cooldowns, typically ranging from 10 to 30 seconds for non-ultimate abilities, during which they recharge independently of energy, ensuring paced tactical decisions rather than spamming.^[46] Ultimate skills, often the fourth ability, demand similar energy buildup but carry longer cooldowns, rewarding precise timing to turn the tide.^[36] Victory in battles is achieved by defeating all enemy heroes, with alternative conditions like surviving timed waves in specific encounters; ties are resolved by total damage dealt as a tiebreaker.^[41] This core win mechanic applies universally across fights, prioritizing complete enemy elimination over partial attrition.^[41]

Game modes

PvE content

The PvE content in Hero Wars provides players with single-player and cooperative challenges centered on story progression and resource gathering, distinct from competitive modes. These activities emphasize team building and strategic battles against AI-controlled enemies, allowing players to advance the game's fantasy narrative while acquiring hero shards, equipment, and other essentials for progression. The Campaign serves as the core storyline mode, consisting of 15 chapters and 218 missions in the browser version, where players guide heroes through narrative-driven quests depicting the Dominion's struggle against invading chaos forces. Missions unfold across diverse landscapes, culminating in boss encounters that test team composition and tactics, with rewards including experience, gold, and soul stones upon completion.^[47] In the mobile version, the Campaign features 13 chapters with similar thematic elements, such as battles in the Chaos Realm, focusing on advancing the plot through sequential path-based fights.^[48] The Tower of Trials offers a daily climbing challenge that unlocks at team level 15, comprising 50 floors in the browser edition with escalating enemy strength and varied battle types, including relic and treasure rooms for bonus rewards like rare hero shards. Players must optimize their team to reach the top floor boss each day, resetting progress to encourage consistent engagement and gradual power scaling.^[49] Complementing this, the Dungeon mode provides an endless progression system with unlimited floors, each containing five rooms of titan battles that grow progressively harder, yielding infinite resources such as titanite and soul stones for long-term hero enhancement.^[50] Additional PvE modes include Outland, unlocking at team level 25, where players explore a vast map, complete quests, and battle enemies for rare resources and hero experience; Airship, available from level 20, involves upgrading an airship to raid locations for hero artifact fragments and other upgrades; Gate, a cooperative mode for teams to defeat elemental bosses with scaling difficulties; and Elemental Cradle, focusing on elemental-themed challenges and boss fights to earn affinity-based rewards.^[51]^[52] Events such as Adventures introduce temporary PvE quests with unique objectives, like boss defeats and point-based challenges, offering exclusive rewards; for instance, the 2025 "Carnival of Shadows" event featured special missions to summon and upgrade the new hero Electra von Grave through narrative-tied battles.^[53] PvE modes incorporate difficulty scaling to match player advancement, with options like Normal, Hard, and Nightmare unlocking at higher team levels to provide replayability and better rewards. Heroic variants in the Campaign and elevated Hydra tiers exemplify this, ensuring challenges adapt to upgraded heroes while referencing core battle mechanics for positioning and ability synergies.^[48]

PvP features

Hero Wars features several competitive multiplayer modes that emphasize strategic team composition and rivalry among players. These PvP elements include ranked battles, alliance conflicts, and seasonal tournaments, all designed to reward skill and progression through matchmaking systems based on player rankings or trophies. Central to these modes is the automatic battle system, where outcomes depend on hero synergies and positioning, with defenses often mirroring attacks for fairness.^[54] The Arena mode serves as the primary entry-level PvP experience, unlocking at team level 10 and pitting players in 1v1 team battles. Matchmaking occurs globally based on trophy rankings, with battles lasting up to two minutes in an automatic format; if both teams survive, the defending side wins. Players receive five free attack attempts daily, resetting at 5:00 AM server time, and can purchase additional tickets using emeralds, limited by VIP level. Daily quests encourage consistent participation by rewarding wins with arena coins and emeralds, which accumulate based on league performance. Trophies gained or lost per battle determine league promotions, with seasonal resets to maintain competitive balance.^[54] Grand Arena introduces higher-stakes 3v3 battles, available from team level 50, where players deploy three squads against an opponent's lineup. A key mechanic is the ban system, which hides squads from view—starting with the third squad at rank 100 and beyond, progressing to all squads at rank 1—to add strategic depth and prevent perfect counters. Like Arena, it uses global matchmaking by ranking, with five free daily attacks and hourly coin accumulation based on position, plus a daily reward chest at 8:00 PM server time for active participants. Rewards include Grand Arena coins, redeemable in the dedicated shop for hero skins, artifacts, and other upgrades, emphasizing long-term progression over daily grinds. Successful defenses yield up to 50 coins each, limited to five per day.^[55] Legends Draft is a real-time PvP mode unlocking at team level 10, where players use draft coins to assemble teams from limited hero pools for automatic battles, requiring wins in both offense and defense phases to progress and earn rewards like exclusive skins and resources.^[56] Guild Wars foster alliance-based PvP through cross-guild competitions, where member guilds deploy hero and titan teams to assault fortifications on a shared map. Events run daily from Monday to Friday, starting at 7:00 AM UTC and ending at 8:00 PM UTC, with a transition phase on Saturday; only designated champions (minimum five per guild) participate using two attack attempts each in manual or auto battles. Scoring derives from destroying fortification slots—20 points per full destruction, multiplied by opponent team levels in qualification leagues—capping at 1,200 points in higher tiers like Gold. Rewards scale with league placement, including guild war coins for shop purchases, and encourage coordinated event completions such as boss defeats to maximize points. A newer variant, Guild Clash, extends this to a 7-day cross-server format with phases for registration, preparation, and battles, enhancing global rivalry.^[57]^[58] The tournament system, exemplified by the League Arena introduced in 2025, operates on a seasonal basis with cross-server matchmaking to create global rankings. Unlocking at team level 10, it features tiered leagues where players climb through PvP matches, earning points toward epic rewards like exclusive hero skins and avatar frames for top performers. Seasons culminate in leaderboards with prizes distributed based on final standings, promoting sustained competition beyond daily modes. To uphold integrity, Hero Wars implements robust anti-cheat measures, prohibiting third-party tools, bots, and exploits that provide unfair advantages, with detection via automated systems and player reports. Violations, such as account sharing or using unauthorized software, result in permanent bans without compensation, as outlined in the Terms of Service. Fair play policies, reinforced through community guidelines, emphasize equal conditions in PvP by banning toxic behavior and fraud; support reviews evidence like screenshots and player IDs to enforce these rules. Updates to detection methods in 2024 focused on harsher penalties for automated cheating, ensuring a balanced environment for legitimate players.^[59]^[60]^[61]^[62] Guilds in Hero Wars serve as player-formed communities that emphasize collaboration, strategy sharing, and collective advancement, enabling up to 30 members^[63] to join forces for enhanced gameplay experiences. To create a guild, players must reach team level 12 and select a unique name, banner, and minimum team level requirement ranging from 12 to 120 for prospective members.^[64] Guild masters manage membership, promoting active players to roles like officer or general based on consistent daily contributions to maintain guild momentum and eligibility for advanced features.^[65] Guild quests form the core of collaborative efforts, where members complete shared tasks such as campaign missions, glyph enchanting, and dungeon explorations to accumulate activity points and titanite, unlocking tiered rewards distributed to all participants.^[66] Notable events like Clash of Worlds encourage guild-wide participation in cross-server competitions, with teams defending fortifications and capturing points to climb rankings, yielding shared prizes including summoning spheres and exclusive items based on collective performance. In-game communication is facilitated through dedicated guild chat systems, allowing real-time messaging for coordinating quests, sharing tips, and building camaraderie among members.^[64] In the Dominion Era version, voice chat integration enhances tactical discussions during events, while cross-guild alliances enable temporary partnerships for mega-events like Guild Clash, where multiple guilds strategize against rivals for substantial communal rewards.^[66] Social progression ties directly to guild achievements, with increasing activity levels granting bonuses such as extra enchantment runes and guild master's presents filled with resources to bolster individual and group capabilities.^[66] Guilds often feature mentorship initiatives where veteran members guide newcomers through mechanics and team building, fostering long-term engagement and reducing barriers for beginners.^[63] The game supports broader community interactions through global tournaments like the Global Championship, broadcast via official live streams to showcase top guilds in competitive formats.^[67] In 2025, developer-led events expanded to include fan art contests and interactive streams, rewarding creative contributions and strengthening player connections beyond in-game alliances.^[68] These elements briefly intersect with PvP guild wars, where social bonds influence team selections for defensive strategies.^[57]

Updates and expansions

Major content releases

Hero Wars launched its mobile version, Hero Wars: Alliance, in 2017, introducing touch-based controls optimized for portable devices and push notifications to alert players of energy refills, event timers, and rewards.^[69]^[70] In 2020, the pet system was added as a key progression feature, allowing players to summon over 20 companion pets that provide stat boosts and battlefield support without taking damage; for instance, Oliver enhances healing capabilities for allied heroes.^[71]^[28] The 2023 Dominion Era rebranding elevated the PC and browser version with improved graphics, additional campaign chapters expanding the storyline, and cross-progression support between platforms to unify player accounts.^[72] Crossovers expanded in 2024, notably with Tomb Raider introducing Lara Croft as a playable hero during a limited-time event from May 13 to May 26, featuring unique skills and artifacts tied to her lore.^[73]^[74] A faction system overhaul divided heroes into six primary groups—Eternity (often associated with elder-like preservers), Chaos, Mystery, Progress, Honor, and Nature—introduced around late 2021 to early 2022, influencing team affinities, synergies, and faction-specific events like brawls and seasons that reward coordinated builds.^[75]^[76]^[77] These releases have driven significant revenue growth, contributing to the franchise surpassing $1.5 billion in lifetime earnings by mid-2024.^[69]

2025 developments

In January 2025, Nexters announced the game's roadmap for the first half of the year, highlighting the introduction of two new heroes, enhancements to cross-platform account transfers between PC and mobile devices for seamless progression, and the launch of a new PvP league system in the second quarter to provide ranked competitive play with seasonal rewards.^[78]^[79] The seasons system continued to evolve with quarterly themes tied to rotating events, such as the Nature Season in May 2025, which emphasized Titan upgrades and totem progression over 30 days for players at team level 75 or higher, and the Cosmic Season starting in November 2025, featuring 30-day challenges with silver-tier rewards for participants.^[80]^[81] New heroes were released throughout the year, including Lyria in May 2025 as a frontline physical support hero specializing in anti-dodge mechanics and bonding with high-attack allies to grant vampirism bonuses for sustained team survivability.^[82] In November 2025, Electra von Grave debuted as a tank who deploys an absorption shield via her Embrace of Pain ability, absorbing damage to herself (with another skill redirecting ally damage to her) before exploding to deal area damage to nearby enemies, providing frontline protection and control.^[83]^[84]^[85] Technical updates included ongoing mobile optimizations, with improved browser performance for Android devices to reduce lag in battles, alongside server-side fixes in September 2025 addressing overload issues during peak events like the Tournament of Power to ensure stable matchmaking.^[86]^[87] The event calendar featured guild-focused activities, such as the 28-day Guild Season quests in August 2025, which rewarded collective progress with resources and included adjustments to prevent overload during high-participation periods.^[88]

Reception and legacy

Commercial performance

Hero Wars has demonstrated strong commercial viability as a free-to-play mobile RPG, accumulating 185 million installs across iOS and Android platforms by mid-2025. The game sustains a substantial player base, with over 14 million monthly active users reported by its developer GDEV. This user engagement has been pivotal to its longevity in a competitive market. Financially, Hero Wars reached $1.7 billion in lifetime revenue by 2025, reflecting consistent monetization success since its 2016 launch. In 2024, the title contributed significantly to GDEV's overall revenue of $421 million, underscoring its role as the company's flagship product. Quarterly performance peaked in Q1 2025, driven by seasonal events that boosted in-app spending. The game holds a top 10 position among grossing strategy RPGs on mobile in 2025, with particularly robust earnings in the US (59% of revenue in Q1 2025) and Europe. Monetization relies heavily on in-app purchases, which drive the majority of income through hero summons, energy refills, and VIP passes that enhance progression and rewards. Following updates tied to the Dominion Era mode, Hero Wars saw approximately 13% year-over-year revenue growth in Q2 2025, signaling sustained expansion.

Critical and player reception

Hero Wars has received mixed but predominantly positive reception from professional critics, who praise its engaging RPG mechanics, strategic depth, and variety of content despite some criticisms of repetitive progression. A 2023 review on GameFAQs awarded it 4.5 out of 5 stars, highlighting the game's numerous activities suitable for both casual and on-the-go play, describing it as an "excellent" mobile RPG with strong replayability. Similarly, in 2024, Insider Gaming lauded it as a "phenomenal online RPG game" for its immersive fantasy world and hero customization options. However, some outlets have noted issues with visual polish and grindy elements, such as inconsistent animations and prolonged early-game advancement. Player ratings reflect broad appeal, with an average of 4.6 out of 5 stars on Google Play based on over 1.69 million reviews as of late 2025, where users frequently commend the hero variety, tactical team-building, and frequent events that keep gameplay dynamic. On the Apple App Store, it holds a 4.5 out of 5 rating from approximately 205,000 reviews, with common praises for the cute art style, AFK-friendly features, and diverse tasks that provide steady progression for free-to-play users. Complaints in both stores center on paywalls at higher levels, where in-app purchases become necessary for competitive viability, slow advancement for new players, and misleading advertisements that do not accurately represent the game's idle RPG nature. Community feedback, as aggregated in app store reviews and gaming forums reported by professional sources, shows enthusiasm for seasonal events and new hero introductions, such as the 2025 Electra von Grave update, which generated hype for its meta-shifting abilities and team support potential. Negative sentiments often focus on balance issues in PvP modes following patches, with players citing frustrating matchmaking and perceived favoritism toward spenders. Despite these, the game's longevity—spanning over nine years since its 2016 release—earns consistent praise for sustained developer support, including 2025 updates that introduce fresh content to combat staleness and maintain player engagement.

Controversies

Hero Wars has encountered various controversies related to its advertising practices, game balance, data handling, and technical reliability, drawing scrutiny from regulators, players, and legal entities. In 2023, the German Advertising Council (Werberat) launched a probe into Nexters Global's Facebook advertisements for Hero Wars, deeming them deceptive and sexist for depicting a scantily clad woman chained to a tower as a helpless damsel in distress, reinforcing harmful gender stereotypes. The council issued a public reprimand against the Cyprus-based developer, emphasizing violations of its behavioral guidelines on discrimination and exploitation in advertising. Although no monetary fines were imposed—the Werberat relies on reputational pressure, which achieves compliance in 91% of cases—the ruling prompted Nexters to revise its ad campaigns to avoid similar stereotypical portrayals.^[89] Accusations of pay-to-win mechanics have persisted, with critics arguing that progression in Hero Wars disproportionately favors paying players through manipulated in-game economies and subscription models. In 2024, the New York-based law firm Wittels McInturff Palikovic initiated an investigation into Nexters (now under GDEV Inc.) over claims of unbalanced gameplay that encourages excessive spending, alongside deceptive sales tactics like unsubstantiable discount offers and difficult cancellations. The probe, centered on consumer harm from pay-to-win elements and psychological incentives akin to casino mechanics, remains ongoing as of late 2025 with no reported resolution.^[90] Data privacy concerns emerged in 2025 amid reports highlighting the mobile app's use of tracking cookies for user analytics and personalized ads, as detailed in the game's official policy. While Nexters affirmed compliance with the EU's General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) by obtaining consent for non-essential cookies and limiting data retention, the practices triggered backlash from users worried about invasive profiling and third-party sharing. Advocacy groups noted the cookies' role in behavioral targeting, prompting calls for stricter opt-out mechanisms, though no formal violations were upheld.^[91]^[92] Server instability became a flashpoint in 2025, with frequent overloads disrupting major events like the Tower of Power finale, causing login failures and lost progress for thousands of players. These issues continued into November 2025, with authentication errors and outages linked to third-party infrastructure problems disrupting access during peak times. GDEV responded by distributing compensation in the form of premium gems and issuing public apologies via in-game notices and social channels, attributing issues to high traffic volumes during peak updates. These incidents highlighted ongoing infrastructure challenges in scaling for the game's large user base.^[87] To address broader ethical concerns, GDEV introduced fair play guidelines in 2024 as part of its membership in the Fair Play Alliance, prohibiting abusive behaviors and promoting equitable competition, while committing to transparent patch notes detailing balance changes and anti-cheat measures. These steps aimed to rebuild trust amid the controversies.^[61] The cumulative effect has slightly eroded the active player base, with some veterans citing frustration over perceived inequities.^[93]

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Jul 15, 2025 · In 2023 it went through a change, changing its name from Nexters Inc. to GDEV Inc., reflecting a reorientation to a gaming platform with a ...Missing: rebranding relocation geopolitical
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Hero Wars: Alliance Fantasy - Overview - Apple App Store - US
Released in US on 23 December 2016 and globally on 04 January 2017. 'Hero Wars: Alliance Fantasy' belongs to the 'Games' category maintaining a content rating ...
[18]
Hero Wars – Release Details - Android - GameFAQs
For Hero Wars on the Android, the GameFAQs information page shows all known release data and credits.
[19]
Hero Wars: Alliance Fantasy - App Store
it's a test of your strategy, timing, and leadership. Collect powerful heroes, upgrade their skills, and lead them ...
[20]
Hero Wars | TMNTPedia | Fandom
The game was developed by Nexters Global Ltd. and combines strategy, action, and fantasy elements. In July 2023, Nexters underwent a rebranding which made the ...
[21]
What Platforms Can I Play the Game on? - Hero Wars: Alliance
There are two games: Hero Wars: Dominion Era for PC and laptop browsers. Hero Wars: Alliance for mobile devices.
[22]
Hero Wars Best Heroes Tier List (2025) with Electra von Grave
Oct 28, 2025 · The whole list is restructured for the meta end of 2025 with new sections that hopefully explain the heroes priority better than the old tiers.Hero Wars Martha Skin... · Hero Wars Galahad Skin... · Hero Wars Celeste Skin...
[23]
Hero Classes - Hero Wars Alliance - OMG.ROCKS
Oct 13, 2025 · Each hero has only one class which allows you to level up unique runes and specific class-only abilities. There are seven classes in the game.
[24]
Spring Festival 2025 Guide: What to Buy in Hero Wars Alliance
Apr 17, 2025 · In this guide, we'll focus on the event shop, the best purchases to make, and which heroes deserve your investment depending on your level of progress.
[25]
Champion Season June 2025 - Hero Wars Central
May 30, 2025 · Champions Season is a 30-day event for players who are Team Level 80 or above. It focuses on Hero Equipment, Coins, Skin Stones, and other stuff to upgrade ...
[26]
Hero Wars best teams in November 2025 | Pocket Gamer
Nov 1, 2025 · Meta Team Examples ; Lilith, Phobos, Corvus ; Isaac, Astrid & Lucas, Fox ; Dark Star, Fox, Andvari ; Kai, Maya, Lian ; Ginger, Isaac, Astrid & Lucas ...
[27]
9 Of Hero Wars Best Team Combos You Should Go With [In 2025]
Nebula has good synergy with high-damage-dealing heroes, especially Jhu. Jet only heals heroes with the highest physical attack, which is perfect for the team.
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Hero Wars Alliance Best Team Guide 2025 - Theria Games
Jan 31, 2025 · Good teams include Corvus, Keira, Jet, Sebastian, Andvari; Faceless, Jorgen, Morrigan, Keira, Andvari; and Keira, Qing Mao, Jet, Sebastian, ...
[29]
All About Pets – Hero Wars - Dominion Era
Evolution (star rank) increases pets' main stats. To level up a pet's evolution, you need gold and Pet Soul Stones. The number of Soul Stones required for an ...
[30]
Ultimate Pets Tier List Guide for Hero Wars: Dominion Era
Oct 1, 2025 · To increase a pet's strength, you'll need to evolve them using Gold and Pet Soul Stones. As the pet's star rating increases, so do its core ...
[31]
Lara Croft: bio, skills, and artifacts | Hero Wars
Lara Croft: detailed description of the character's skills, skins, and artifacts, as well as their bio and artworks. All information about the character in ...
[32]
Hero Wars Lara Croft Skin & Glyph Priority (Mobile & Browser)
Here is the ideal order in which you should invest in Lara Croft's skins. Very Important! Do NOT invest in the skins in the same order you invest in the glyphs!
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Orion - Hero Wars Alliance - 2025 - OMG.ROCKS
Apr 30, 2025 · Provides magic penetration to the whole team · Fast energy gains and great AoE damage · Easy to upgrade to an absolute star.
[34]
How to Level Up - Hero Wars: Alliance - Nexters
Leveling up your characters is fundamental to increasing their power. Higher-level heroes have better stats and can equip more advanced gear, making them more ...
[35]
Main Resources and Where to Find Them - Hero Wars: Alliance
Another source of energy is the "Get free energy" quests. They are available three times a day. To complete them, go to the Daily quests menu at the specified ...
[36]
Hero Skills - Hero Wars: Alliance - Nexters
To level up a skill, you need both Skill Points and gold. After you use Points, it takes time for them to restore: you get one Point every five minutes. You can ...
[37]
Outland - Hero Wars: Alliance - Nexters
Outland is located in the upper-left part of the main game screen and contains two PvE modes: Highwaymen and Masters.
[38]
Tower - Hero Wars: Alliance - Nexters
Every day, you can ascend to the very top of the Tower, battling various opponents and collecting team boosters and chests with rewards.
[39]
Elemental Cradle & Hydra - Hero Wars: Alliance - Nexters
a ...
[40]
About VIP Levels
### Summary of VIP Levels
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Combat System FAQ - Hero Wars: Alliance - Nexters
Here you can find answers to frequently asked questions about the combat system: how hero skills work, how energy generation affects battles, how damage is ...
[42]
Game Basics - Hero Wars: Alliance - Nexters
Hero Wars: Alliance is a role-playing online fantasy game with PvP battles. Starting with the Campaign, you will progress through the game and unlock new ...
[43]
How to Build an Effective Team
### Summary on Team Positioning, Front and Back Lines, Damage Intake, and Tanks
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Damage Types - Hero Wars: Alliance - Nexters
Heroes can deal damage of three types: physical, magic, and pure. Make sure to check the damage type a hero deals to make them even more effective!
[45]
https://support-hwa.nexters.com/hc/en-us/articles/12581439931666-Energy-generation-in-combat
[46]
General Information About Heroes – Hero Wars - Dominion Era
There are seven roles in the game: Tank characters have more health and are more resistant to damage than other roles. Tanks usually stand on the front lines to ...
[47]
Campaign – Hero Wars - Dominion Era
The Campaign is the main game mode in Hero Wars: Dominion Era. It becomes available at the first level and consists of 15 Chapters and 218 missions.
[48]
Campaign - Hero Wars: Alliance - Nexters
The Campaign is a game mode in Hero Wars: Alliance. It becomes available at the first level and consists of 13 Chapters and 190 missions.Missing: PvE Trials<|control11|><|separator|>
[49]
Tower – Hero Wars - Dominion Era
The Tower unlocks at team level 15 and consists of 50 floors. Every day, you ascend to the very top of the Tower, battling various opponents and collecting ...
[50]
Dungeon - Hero Wars: Alliance - Nexters
Each Dungeon floor has five rooms. These rooms fall into two options: ... Note: Titans' health and energy do not reset between battles and update only with the ...
[51]
HYDRA: New Game Mode — Trailer | Hero Wars: Alliance - YouTube
Mar 25, 2021 · Play Hero Wars: Alliance NOW! ▻ https://herowars.me/PlayHWA Subscribe to our channel! ▻ https://herowars.me/YouTubeHWA The Guild Boss, Hydra ...Missing: PvE campaign Tower Trials difficulty
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The Awakening of Electra von Grave | Hero Wars: Alliance - YouTube
Sep 26, 2025 · Play Hero Wars: Alliance! ▻ https://herowars.me/3Kg6siU Subscribe to our channel! ▻ https://herowars.me/YouTubeHWA Can you hear them?Missing: event | Show results with:event
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Arena - Hero Wars: Alliance - Nexters
The Arena is a PvP game mode that unlocks at team level 10. This article tells more about the Arena rules, battles, and rewards.<|control11|><|separator|>
[54]
Grand Arena - Hero Wars: Alliance
The Grand Arena is a PvP game mode that unlocks at team level 50. Here, you can fight other players in 3x3 battles.
[55]
Guild War - Hero Wars: Alliance - Nexters
Guild War is a cross-Guild competition where Guild Champions use teams of titans and heroes to destroy other Guilds' fortifications and receive points.
[56]
Guild Clash: First Launch - Hero Wars: Alliance
Guild Clash will run as a 7-day event. It consists of several phases: Registration. Matchmaking. Preparation Phase. Battle Phase. Finalizing Results. You can ...
[57]
What Actions are Prohibited in the Game? - Hero Wars: Alliance
Our Terms of Service prohibit the following actions: usage of third-party tools;; usage of methods that grant an unreasonable advantage;; provision of the ...
[58]
What Happens to a Player for Cheating? - Hero Wars: Alliance
Our Terms of Service strictly prohibit cheating. We permanently ban players who use third-party tools or methods to gain an unreasonable advantage.
[59]
Community rules - Hero Wars | Online action game | RPG
It also applies to the language used in your in-game name and guild name. Offensive and toxic behavior includes, but is not limited to: general misconduct ...
[60]
[Hero Wars Guide]Weekly Report 2024.Week47/48 – Insights with ...
Dec 9, 2024 · Cheat Prevention Measures Are Too Harsh. Q. It seems like the Nexter's anticheat automatically ban any “game error” message that happen, no ...
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Guild - Hero Wars: Alliance
Each Guild can have four positions: member, Officer, General, and Guild Master. The Guild Master can change the names of the positions.
[62]
[Hero Wars Guide]Guild Recruitment - HeroWars攻略 .fun
Oct 4, 2024 · Up to 50 players can be recruited at the same time. Not available at 30 guild members. No ability to add a message when sending. You must send a ...
[63]
Guild – Hero Wars - Dominion Era
If you want to create your own Guild, click the Create guild button. You will have to choose your Guild name, language, minimum team level (from 30 to 130), and ...
[64]
Hero Wars Alliance Guild Guide - Theria Games
Jul 24, 2025 · Hero Wars Alliance Guild system unlocks at team level 12, allowing players to join or create a Guild with a custom name, banner, and level requirement.
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https://h-w.fun/en/guild-recruitment/
[66]
Summer Festival 2025 Livestream — Hero Wars: Dominion Era
Hero Wars: Dominion Era. 233 views · Streamed 3 months ago #Livestream #HeroWars #SummerFestival ...more ...
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Hero Wars: Alliance hits $1.5 billion in lifetime revenue while ...
mobile battler Hero Wars: Alliance.Missing: Unity engine
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Push Notifications - Hero Wars: Alliance - Nexters
To enable push notifications on your Android device, follow the instructions below: Open Settings. Go to the Apps & notifications section. Tap Hero Wars — ...
[69]
Pets - Hero Wars Wiki - Fandom
Pets can patron Heroes after reaching Promotion rank Blue to grant bonus Stats, the patronage skill will be unlocked by promoting the Pet to rank Violet.
[70]
Hero Wars Wiki - Fandom
Hero Wars Wiki is a community site that anyone can contribute to. Discover, share and add your knowledge!Heroes · Adventures · Special Events Calendar · Special Events<|control11|><|separator|>
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Hero Wars Launches Special Crossover With Tomb Raider
May 13, 2024 · Mobile developer and publisher GDEV has launched a new collaboration with Crystal Dynamics, bringing Lara Croft from Tomb Raider to Hero Wars.
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Lara Croft Raids the World of Hero Wars in a Special Limited-Time ...
Lara Croft Raids the World of Hero Wars in a Special Limited-Time Event. Apr 29, 2024. Lara Croft from Tomb Raider reaches for an artifact.
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What are Factions!? | Hero Wars Mobile - YouTube
Dec 30, 2021 · will be folded into the new Faction System! What are factions? Which is the best faction? ... Keep Up To Date With The Latest Hero Wars Info: ...
[74]
How to Build a Faction Team | Hero Wars Mobile - YouTube
Jan 1, 2022 · Hero Wars Mobile recently announced the addition of the Faction system; this is intended to replace the "Specials," or "Tribes" system that ...Missing: introduction | Show results with:introduction
[75]
Hero Wars Alliance Factions Guide - Theria Games
Feb 8, 2025 · Each hero in the game belongs to a specific faction. There are six factions in the game: Eternity, Chaos, Mystery, Progress, Honor, and Nature.
[76]
Hero Wars 2025 Roadmap Revealed: Exciting Updates and New ...
Jan 17, 2025 · Hero Wars 2025 Roadmap Breakdown! New to Hero Wars? Get exclusive rewards when you join through my link: ...
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How to Transfer an Account to Another Device - Hero Wars: Alliance
Tap the name of the operating system of your old device to open the instructions on how to transfer your game account to another device.
[78]
Nature Season May 2025 - Hero Wars Central
May 4, 2025 · The Nature Season, aka Season of Nature, is a 30-day season for players at Team Level 75 or above. It is focused on Titans and Totems and is similar to the ...
[79]
https://support-hwa.nexters.com/hc/en-us/articles/4608506617618-How-to-Transfer-an-Account-to-Another-Device
[80]
Hero Wars May 2025 Update: Lyria, Seasons, Events, and Big ...
Apr 29, 2025 · ... complete breakdown of some of the strongest and most reliable ... heroes best complement each tank – How to recognize when to play ...
[81]
https://h-w.fun/en/report-2025-week44/
[82]
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GsQpSsMrvxE
[83]
How to Play on a Mobile Device – Hero Wars - Dominion Era
The developers are working on optimizing the game for mobile browsers. However, for the best experience, we currently recommend playing Hero Wars: Dominion ...
[84]
[Hero Wars Guide]Weekly Report 2025.Week39 - HeroWars攻略 .fun
Sep 29, 2025 · 1. Guild Quests Are Fixed at 28 Days · 2. Server Overload Right Before ToP End · 3. Unlocking Lara Croft's Skin Upgrade · 4. Poor Quality of the ...
[85]
Hero Wars August Event Calendar Breakdown - YouTube
Aug 3, 2025 · August Hero Wars Calendar Revealed! | Lara Croft Returns + New Events & Overlaps Greetings, Guardians of Dominion! Hero Wars Calendar ...
[86]
Hero Wars: Werberat rügt sexistische Werbung für Videospiele
May 16, 2023 · Der deutsche Werberat hat nun zwei Spieleherstellern öffentliche Rügen erteilt, weil ihre Reklame sexistisch und sogar gewaltverherrlichend war.
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New York law firm investigates Hero Wars developer over false ...
Aug 6, 2024 · WMP lawyers have found evidence during their investigation that Nexters may have lured users into installing and playing Hero Wars through misleading ads.
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Cookie Policy - Hero Wars
We use a third-party tracking service that uses cookies and similar technology to track non-personal or private information on users and mobile application ...
[89]
Privacy Policy of Hero Wars: Dominion Era
Used for anti-cheat measures, fraud prevention, and protecting user accounts. In-Project Transactions. Contract. Transaction details (amount, currency, date ...Missing: fair 2024<|control11|><|separator|>
[90]
GDEV Inc._2024-12-31 - SEC.gov
For the years ended December 31, 2024, 2023 and 2022, Hero Wars generated 90%, 90% and 96%, respectively, of our revenues for each period. For a game to remain ...
[91]
What Platforms Can I Play the Game on?
Official Nexters support article stating that Hero Wars consists of two separate games: Alliance for mobile and Dominion Era for PC/browser, developed by different teams.
[92]
Hero Wars Alliance Guild Guide
Guide confirming the maximum guild member limit of 30 in Hero Wars Alliance.