The story centers around a tale in which 4 heroes (Cleric, Rogue, Fighter, and Wizard) defeated an evil wizard (Kaedin) 150 years ago who now has come back thanks to a group of evil clerics who have attempted to harness the dead wizard's power for themselves. Thankfully, you can choose one of these heroes and attempt to save the land of Baele, again, from the destruction that Kaedin is about to wreak. You are weaker than you were, however, and must collect the shards of your ancient weapons to become powerful enough to face your adversary again. The story proceeds through bits and pieces of what's told to you by NPC's with whom you interact and your mission, as you become more and more powerful, will be to find five Gems and face Kaedin again while rebuilding yourself to be what you were in the past.

Heroes succeeds on many levels - as long as you're prepared for what you're getting into. It's a hack and slash and "repeat as directed" adventure wherein you'll have to slog your way through many many battles, using spells, weapons, or items to defeat the monsters in which you face. Because of the many environments and enemies, the game doesn't become tedious in the least. You’ll be facing Trolls, Drow, Hobgoblins and many more creatures that, if you've played AD&D at all, will be very familiar to you. There's some adherence to the AD&D 3.5 rule set as well. Obviously, as you progress you'll be rewarded with higher experience levels and the ability to advance the powers that you feel are either the most important to your character or most important to your success in the future. Equally, you can upgrade various aspects of your armor and armament as you progress via the gold that you accumulate and through adventuring or by selling the goods that you no longer need.

The meat and potatoes of Heroes is the adventuring, however, and how easily that is controlled. You can assign various spells and attacks to buttons on your controller. Your character can also "purchase" finishing moves (via experience points) which can also be assigned to a single button. The right trigger provides scrolling access to these commands and you can change whatever you'd like without having to go through a complex menu system. The areas of exploration vary wildly, from idyllic woods to abandoned barracks and temples and poisonous swamps. None of these become so complex that you'll find yourself getting lost. There are, however, cleverly hidden areas that house treasures that are essential to your progression, so it is necessary to watch for these closely. The ideally sized areas help keep the game fresh and prevent the player from falling into hack and slash boredom because it's constantly changing. Many a title has suffered from kill, maim, repeat syndrome and thankfully Heroes isn't one of them.

Heroes isn't all pudding, however, and it does have weaknesses. On the whole, the game isn't terribly challenging if you play your cards right and make sure you have an Amulet of Resurrection at the ready. You'll also find that the Boss characters aren't all that intimidating or difficult to defeat, particularly once you find their weakness. Some of these (particularly the first) are mildly amusing puzzles, but on the whole they are somewhat disappointing. The game also suffers from slowdown in peculiar places which aren't as wholly bothering as they are a nuisance or moderately distracting. Finally, there is the double-edged sword of not being able to carry everything that you come across. While this most certainly is realistic, one must wonder whether or not it really has a place in a game like this. At least there are Warp Points available (via a Warp Stone that can be purchased at the castle shoppe) so you can go back and forth somewhat easily to unload your goods. Some levers and traps can be hard to spot if you don't have your camera angle set right, but that's a problem easily alleviated by taking your time as you explore.

There's a lot to like here, however, as well. You'll find the added feature of (gasp!) being able to save wherever you want. See that? Miracles DO happen. Some have said the graphics aren't as nice as they could have been or the character models should have been improved. It can be agreed that they could've been improved but you can say that about any game that you want to talk about. The magic spells, in particular, really shine in Heroes and have a certain level of fluidity that almost makes them seem real. The ability to instantly zoom in and out via the right analog control stick is also a nice feature for getting the "big picture" and coming in close to see your surroundings.

You have to take Heroes for what it is - a hack and slash dungeon crawl that's trying to keep things somewhat simple. Characters are predetermined, as is your course. Even if you're a hardcore D&D fan, there has to be a soft spot somewhere in that soul of yours to explore the dungeons, battle the Beholders, and vanquish the evil wizard - or you've lost what D&D originally set out to be. This isn't Gauntlet, Baldur's Gate, or Icewind Dale II, but it's a damn fine addition to the Xbox's growing library and certainly the (first) best in the genre on the system. Want hardcore D&D? Try Temple of Elemental Evil for the PC, but try Heroes anyway. It's worth the trip.

· · · Haohmaru