Ongoing production and financial troubles plagued the company, however, and in January 1986, Hero Games made an arrangement with Iron Crown Enterprises, publishers of Rolemaster and MERP.
On April 25, 1996, ICE's role in handling publishing and distribution was taken over by R. Talsorian Games, just before Iron Crown itself suffered financial difficulties in 1997.
During this period, Bruce Harlick, who had been the first official hire of Hero Games in 1982, continued in his role as Line Developer.
Cybergames.com retained Bruce Harlick as president of their Hero Games subsidiary, but eventually decided to leave the publishing market in 2001.
In December 2001, a new company called DOJ, Inc. acquired all rights to Hero Games, keeping none of the remaining original staff.
In 2011 Darren Watts left DOJ, Inc., to pursue other ventures, and warehouse manager Jason S. Walters assumed the role of CEO, acting in consultation with Steve Long and its other investors.
The company now focuses on promoting stand-alone products that utilize various versions of the 6th Edition Hero System rules.
Recent Hero Games publications include Champions Complete, a stand-alone, moderately priced book for playing Champions, and the Monster Hunter International Employee Handbook, a stand-alone roleplaying game detailing the world of Larry Correia's Monster Hunter International.
Few of these characters are still used by the company (now known as Heroic Publishing), although Icestar is mentioned as a casualty from "The Battle of Detroit" in Champions Universe.