The Mysterious Island

0:33 The Mysterious Island is the first giant hand-crafted single-player map in Heroes of Might and Magic: Olden Era, added in Patch #13 (v0.80.45) on Aug 20, 2026 (Unfrozen). It is the official remake of "one of the most popular custom maps for Heroes of Might and Magic III", made by its original author, the map designer Papyjama, who joined Unfrozen as a level designer in June 2026. The map takes its story from Jules Verne's novel and lets the player pick any of the six factions, and Unfrozen says its story "is just getting started": it will grow once the game has an underground level. Two more maps followed on Sep 3, 2026 in Patch #14: the classic map "Broken Alliance", also by Papyjama, and the scenario "Prisoners" (Unfrozen).

Quick facts

Papyjama joins Unfrozen

1:47 On Jun 15, 2026, six weeks after Early Access began, Unfrozen answered "various calls regarding additional PvE content" by announcing that The Mysterious Island, "one of the most popular maps for Heroes III among PvE fans", was coming to Olden Era "together with its author as our new Level Designer" (Unfrozen). Unfrozen said hiring Papyjama would let it add maps and scenarios "at a regular pace", that his map would be "the first giant-sized hand-crafted map" in the game and "the first of many such PvE additions", and that it was then "in the late stages of development". Papyjama wrote that imagining adventures for others "has always been a dream". Unfrozen also published an interview with him about how the original map came to be.

2:11 Community Feedback #5 on Jul 28, 2026 set the order: The Mysterious Island in the next major patch, then Prisoners and Broken Alliance shortly after. It described the Island as a map of "engaging narrative events" and a landscape "that remains challenging even after conquering a large portion of the land", made for "exploration fans who love spending months in a single run" (Unfrozen).

The map

Patch #13 called the map Papyjama's "official remake" of his Heroes 3 map: "The iconic map comes to life anew through the mechanics, factions, and atmosphere of Olden Era" (Unfrozen). It is a large map with six playable factions and a story drawn from Jules Verne. Part of that story waits on a feature the game does not have yet: its narrative "will be expanded in future updates as essential mechanics are introduced, such as the underground level". The underground is a Stage 3 item of the Early Access Roadmap, with no date.

Unfrozen's notes describe it only as a single-player map. On Sep 3, 2026 it called Broken Alliance "the first new custom map" playable in custom lobbies and hotseat, so The Mysterious Island is not one of those (Unfrozen).

Broken Alliance and Prisoners

0:49 Patch #14 (v0.80.49) of Sep 3, 2026 added two more PvE maps (Unfrozen):

2:59 Broken Alliance returns "for the third time in Heroes history", Unfrozen says, after appearing in Heroes 2 and Heroes 6, "refreshed and visually enhanced" (Unfrozen). It is also the first new custom map playable in custom multiplayer lobbies and in hotseat, and since Sep 30, 2026 it can be played with Alliances through Custom Game (Unfrozen).

3:23 Unfrozen's Devlog #6 showed Prisoners on Sep 3, 2026, the day it came out: picked from the scenario list, it opens on a vampire commander's briefing before the search begins.

The other scenarios

Olden Era launched on Apr 30, 2026 with "premade scenarios with self-contained stories, with even more coming during Early Access" beside Act 1 of the Campaign (Unfrozen). Patch notes name three of them, "Fun and Graves", "Gorges of Discord" and "Glittering Strait", among the scenarios they fixed in May (Unfrozen, Unfrozen). Scenario maps cannot be started in the online lobby: Patch #2 removed them on May 2, 2026 because they caused desyncs (Unfrozen). The Game Modes page lists every way to play.

What comes next

1:22 Unfrozen has promised more of these maps, and on Jul 28, 2026 asked players what they wanted in a PvE survey. Patch #14 said that "the frequency of patches with PvE content will go up", and that it plans "to bring back even more classic skirmish maps based on your feedback" (Unfrozen, Unfrozen). On Sep 30, 2026 it said it was "hard at work on new single-player adventures" with "more news in October", and on Oct 15, 2026 that new story maps and single-player adventures were in progress and "announcements are coming soon" (Unfrozen). As of Oct 21, 2026 no new map has been named.

Frequently asked questions

How do I play The Mysterious Island in Olden Era? Update Heroes of Might and Magic: Olden Era to Patch #13 (v0.80.45, Aug 20, 2026) or later: The Mysterious Island is a free single-player map in the base game, playable with any of the six factions.

Who made The Mysterious Island for Olden Era? Papyjama, who made the popular Heroes of Might and Magic 3 map of the same name, remade it for Olden Era after joining Unfrozen as a level designer in June 2026.

Can I play The Mysterious Island in multiplayer? Unfrozen describes The Mysterious Island only as a single-player map. Its Broken Alliance, added on Sep 3, 2026, is the first new custom map that can be played in custom multiplayer lobbies and hotseat.

What is Broken Alliance in Olden Era? Broken Alliance is a classic medium-sized map from Heroes 2 and Heroes 6, remade by Papyjama and added to Olden Era on Sep 3, 2026, in which you conquer the allies who betrayed you. It is played from Custom Game or Hotseat, not Quick Start.

What is the Prisoners scenario in Olden Era? Prisoners is a fast, story-driven scenario added on Sep 3, 2026 in which you lead a search party for missing commanders and can only gain new heroes by freeing them from prisons.

Will Olden Era get more PvE maps? Yes, Unfrozen says: it promised more frequent PvE patches and more maps from Papyjama, and on Oct 15, 2026 said new story maps and single-player adventures were in progress, though none had been named by Oct 21, 2026.

Sources

• BETA Patch: Balance Update - New Damage Formula, Smarter AI & New Creatures, Unfrozen, Oct 15, 2026
• Alliances & Updated Random Map Generator, Unfrozen, Sep 30, 2026
• Patch #14: More PvE Content and Plans for the Future!, Unfrozen, Sep 3, 2026
• Patch #13: The Mysterious Island, Unfrozen, Aug 20, 2026
• Community Feedback #5: Upcoming PVE Content and Events!, Unfrozen, Jul 28, 2026
• Heroes of Might and Magic: Olden Era Roundup at the Hooded Horse Summer Sale, Hooded Horse, Jul 2, 2026
• Upcoming PvE Content: The Mysterious Island!, Unfrozen, Jun 15, 2026
• Patch #7: Removing Abuses and Improving Campaign, Unfrozen, May 21, 2026
• Patch #6: Network Stability, Balance Tweaks & Campaign Fixes, Unfrozen, May 13, 2026
• Patch #2: Difficulty adjustments and Bug Fixes, Unfrozen, May 2, 2026
• Heroes of Might and Magic: Olden Era Released!, Unfrozen, Apr 30, 2026
• Devlog #6: Heroes of Might & Magic: Olden Era - more PvE Content and Roadmap Patch Preview!, Unfrozen Official, Sep 3, 2026 (video)
• Heroes of Might and Magic: Olden Era | Community Feedback #5: Upcoming PvE Content and Events!, Unfrozen Official, Jul 28, 2026 (video)
• Heroes of Might and Magic: Olden Era | Q3 Roadmap Patch: Introducing Alliances!, Unfrozen Official, Sep 30, 2026 (video)