Heroes And: Generals

Operated light, medium, heavy, and tank destroyer vehicles. Tank combat required knowledge of armor thickness and component damage.

Crucially, the resources available in the FPS match were entirely dependent on the General. If a General forgot to send a tank supply line to a city, the infantrymen on the ground had no armor support. This created an unprecedented level of tension and accountability between the two player bases. The Dynamic Arsenal and Progression System

As a General, your job was to move these Assault Teams across the map, initiating battles by attacking enemy-held cities or reinforcing your own frontline positions. When your Assault Team engaged an enemy, the resulting conflict became a playable battle for the 'Heroes' on your faction. Crucially, in the RTS layer. This created a powerful, interdependent loop: the Generals' strategy dictated the flow of resources, and the Heroes' performance in battle decided the outcome of the war.

Yet, in the years since, hope has emerged from the community that loved this game. As of 2025 and 2026, several independent projects are attempting to revive the Heroes & Generals experience:

This paper examines Heroes & Generals (Reto-Moto, 2016), a first-person shooter (FPS) that integrates a persistent turn-based strategic layer. By analyzing the game’s unique "War" mechanics, this study explores how the title bridges the gap between tactical shooters and grand strategy wargames. The analysis highlights the innovations in player-driven logistics and command structures while critiquing the technical and balance challenges that ultimately impacted the game's longevity. Heroes and Generals

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: This was the first-person perspective most players started with. You could fight as infantry, a paratrooper, a tank crewman, or a pilot. Combat was gritty and focused on historical accuracy in its depictions of uniforms, vehicles, and terrain.

Heroes & Generals: A Retrospective on the WWII FPS/Strategy Hybrid

New players often found the progression system overly punishing, facing veteran players with heavily modified weapons and top-tier tanks. Operated light, medium, heavy, and tank destroyer vehicles

At its heart, Heroes & Generals was not just one game, but two games seamlessly integrated into a single, persistent online war. This unique dual-structure was its defining feature and the source of its most compelling moments.

Despite its technical challenges, Heroes & Generals is remembered for its ambition. It wasn't just another corridor shooter; it was an attempt to make players feel like a small part of a massive, player-driven conflict. It cultivated a dedicated player base that valued team play and the strategic depth often missing from faster-paced, modern FPS titles [source 0.5.1].

This created a notorious "grind" for new players. A beginner starting with a basic bolt-action rifle would routinely face veteran players carrying heavily modified automatic weapons and elite combat badges. While highly rewarding for long-term players who earned their gear through hundreds of hours of playtime, it created a steep barrier to entry for casual gamers. 4. The Shutdown and Future Attempts

Unlike standard arena shooters, matches in Heroes & Generals were determined by resources called Assault Teams. The infantrymen, paratroopers, tankers, recon snipers, and pilots fighting on the ground were directly drawn from the strategic assets deployed on the global map. The Strategy Game (The Generals) If a General forgot to send a tank

Despite its passionate community and unique concept, the end came for the original Heroes & Generals in 2023. On January 31, 2023, the developer, TLM Games, announced that the current game would be shut down within six months and that the team would begin work on a new sequel built on Unreal Engine 5.

The core appeal of Heroes & Generals was its dual-layered design. It seamlessly connected individual player skill with a theater-wide war effort. The "Heroes" Layer (First-Person Shooter)

Unlike standard shooters where you choose a class at the start of a match, H&G utilized a deep character-based progression system. Every soldier was an individual character you "hired" and leveled up.