If you want to play 6,7 & 8 play the might and magic merged mod and just roll with the slight scuff. It’s worth not having the original experience for the most part. The two xeen games also serve as a stand in for all games before them and you can pretty much skip the early ones.

Do not play 9. Even as a curiosity. It was the death of the studio, was half finished, and will just be one of the most frustrating games you will play if you even slightly try to play as intended. I still feel the disappointment of booting it up, having just finished a playthrough of 8 in preparation, and getting an hour in and realizing that maybe crusaders of might and magic was a sign that the magic of the studio was gone forever.

10 is okay if you manage to like world of xeen, but you’ll hate it if you like the 6, 7, 8 trilogy.