HeroSmash

About

HeroSmash is a browser-based MMO where you build a superhero or villain in a city ruled by superpowers. You skip traditional classes and just pick whatever abilities you want to equip for your specific play style. The story kicks off with two factions fighting over an ancient relic called Pandora while aliens try to freeze time. You might see a grim future where humans are enslaved, but the narrative stops there without giving players a way to fix that timeline. This project never really broke out beyond Artix Entertainment's existing fanbase before it quietly faded away. Subscriptions ended in 2014 and development stopped completely by 2015, leaving the game stuck in beta mode for years. The servers finally shut down in 2020 when Flash Player support disappeared from browsers everywhere. It remains a niche title that offered a distinct comic book vibe without the polish of other major MMOs at the time.

Storyline

Takes place in a city of superhumans. Two factions have warred over a relic left behind by the first Smasher, Pandora. Luigi daVinci, with overwhelming support from players who backed the supervillain faction, makes off with the relic after making a pointed jab at Demolicious. Demolicious, for her part, retreats to lick her wounds. She later requests the player (if they backed the superheroes) to assist her in investigating Franklin Apartments where the robotic genius Azimoff lives. They find few leads about this and return to Herospire. Luigi daVinci reveals to the supervillain player that he intends to bring back his deceased brother, which presumably shocks them. He becomes irate when they keep pressing the question. Later on, an alien invasion takes place in a suburb outside of town in Pleasanton Oaks. The player heads there and after driving off the initial recon forces, manages to ring the mastermind behind the invasion. Clock Blocker reveals that he means to freeze time in order to prevent a bad future from taking place, despite being presumably from the same alien faction he is avoiding. If the player was subscribed to the game, they could glimpse the bad future. It's strongly implied that humans have been killed or enslaved as the guidebot in that future remarks that "The Oblivion rule this city and have enslaved the human race. They have no problem "taking care" of rebellious humans, so watch your step." Otherwise, the game's story ends there with no way to actually prevent the bad future alluded to or Clock Blocker's time freeze.