In August 2022, the Hasbro studio Avalon Hill announced HeroScape: Age of Annihilation, a new standalone game that would be fully integrable with previous HeroScape titles that were released from 2004 to 2010.
The caveat on this announcement: This title would be crowdfunded to ensure that enough people wanted this game to make it worth Hasbro’s time, and when the crowdfunding campaign on Hasbro Pulse ended on November 15, 2022, only 4,300 people had backed the project, just over half of the 8,000 backers that Hasbro required to meet its funding goal.
In response, Hasbro said that it would shelve the design and move on to other things: “As we said during the campaign if this project doesn’t meet its goal, we won’t be able to produce Age of Annihilation. That has not changed.”
However, just because Hasbro won’t produce more HeroScape, that doesn’t mean that no one can.
Renegade Game Studios — which already has licenses to release the Hasbro-owned titles Acquire, Axis & Allies, Diplomacy, Robo Rally, and Squad Leader — has now announced a license with Hasbro to bring HeroScape back to market. Here’s an excerpt from the press release about this deal:
Fans will get to experience classic elements of the game they love with all-new content, alongside the introduction of terrain packs, faction boxes, and more. Going forward, Renegade hopes to introduce new models in a variety of configurations and price points for both new and hardcore Heroscape players.
“Heroscape brought a lot of people into hobby gaming and to this day there is a robust and passionate community; we look forward to growing that community and continuing to offer new and exciting models for gamers to enjoy,” said Scott Gaeta, President and Publisher of Renegade Game Studios. “Additionally, we will be partnering with hobby stores to give Heroscape and its community of players the best home possible where they can make new friends and engage in exciting battles across Valhalla!”
Additionally, Renegade will provide online community and organized play support, including a future World Championship. Hobby stores can look forward to organized play and point of purchase support at launch.
“Fans have been clamoring for a revival of Heroscape, and we’ve heard you. That’s why we are tremendously excited to bring back and expand the beloved brand with the Renegade team, who are big fans themselves,” says Bradley Bowman, Licensing Director of Global Toys & Sporting Goods at Hasbro. “We’re celebrating this return alongside our fans, and look forward to offering existing players more ways to enjoy the game and introducing a whole new generation to Heroscape and its endless imaginative potential.”
Heroscapers can sign up for a Heroscape Newsletter from Renegade to stay informed of the latest developments and news!
