Company of Heroes 2 is a real-time strategyvideo game developed by Relic Entertainment and published by Sega for Microsoft Windows, OS X, and Linux.[5] It is the sequel to the 2006 game Company of Heroes. As with the original Company of Heroes, the game is set in World War II but with the focus on the Eastern Front, with players primarily controlling the side of the SovietRed Army during various stages of the Eastern Front, from Operation Barbarossa to the Battle of Berlin. Company of Heroes 2 runs on Relic Entertainment's proprietary Essence 3.0game engine.
CheatModThis popular mod does just what it says on the tin, or allows you to add resources, spawn units and much more. The latest version is 2.501 which adds new units for the Tales of Valor expansion. This mod is particularly recommended if you like to test your strategies in the game before taking on more experienced players, or if you simply want to have fun with some of the novel units like the Eselschreck. Some of the features offered by CheatMod are: – Toggles to switch off enemy AI, regardless of the difficulty you are playing at. This allows you to easily capture points, territory and just kill Jerry off. – Instant veterancy upgrades, instant building production or just spawning whatever unit you want, all by pressing hotkeys. – Eye-candy features such as changes of atmosphere, lighting, unlimited camera zoom and new units for both allies and axis. – Custom map support List of playable races in d&d 5e. All the above can be done by simply using pre-defined hotkeys in-game, and the installation instructions are provided in the compressed archive. The mod is recommended, and you can find a download link in the references section. Battle Of the BulgeBoTB is a hefty work, with the various aspects (such as maps, coding, and models) put together by dedicated moddb.com and 1337coh.com community members. It offers up to 20 new historical scenarios, new units like the 101st Airborne, and new models/skins for many units (i.e. Pak40, Panther, Stug etc.). There is an incredible amount of content in the mod, and substantial work went into the original/subsequently released updates, so playing the campaign is quite rewarding and you won’t feel short-changed. Some of the features include: – All new capture system, not making use of strategic points; simply settling more units than your opponent into territory will instantly capture it, making it a more realistic experience. – A more immersive experience by adding subtle touches of realism, like tire-puncture if driving through barbed wire, use of smoke-grenades by infantry, longer construction times, limited line-of-sight for tanks and much more. – Some nice aesthetic touches for units, icons and skins, with a somewhat refined GUI. – New doctrines and squads, adding a further historical touch to your BoTB campaign, rich and immersive. If you particularly like playing single-player campaigns you will probably love this mod. It enriches the game with the possibility for further scenarios, adding to what is already given in the vanilla game and the two expansions. The download link is at the bottom. Normandy 1944: European TheatreThough this mod is a sequel of Tales of Valor, it can be considered another overhaul, since it changes many game-play aspects of the game. It definitely deserves a place amongst other notable Company of Heroes mods, adding new subdivisions when choosing a doctrine (new buildings and units available), new command trees, more realistic emphasis on skirmishes and combat, and stunning new artwork. Normandy requires more resources than the original game, such as more RAM and better graphic hardware. Some of the changes that come with the mod: – New subdoctrines when choosing a commander: for instance Infantry division offers 1st Infantry division and 2nd Ranger battalion, Airborne division offers a Glider regiment and British 6th division. There are many more and they all come with new units. – Realistic combat, which means you need to pay attention to unit’s commanders and vehicle maintenance or suffer the consequences. Fear plays a part in your advance and your squad must make sure they have field-visibility to be effective. – Command trees are revamped, based on historical divisions in the Normandy phase of WW2. You now have 16 commander choices instead of the traditional 3 for allies and 3 for axis (6 commander choices). – New sound, new units and skins, plus a user-friendly UI. If you love COH and have exhausted every possibility by playing the single-campaigns time and time again, this mod will give you lots of fresh new content made available by dedicated community members. Requires Tales of Valor. Europe At WarThe original name for this mod was “Dartborne' and it is now being updated under the EAW name. It is a welcome addition to the list of Company of Heroes mods, but it doesn’t offer the same comprehensive re-working as the previous overhaul mods mentioned. You can play this mod in multiplayer mode assuming whoever you are playing against has it installed too. Main features are: – The number of men for each of the squads is increased. – Tank power is increased, and AA/AT units are also more powerful to balance things out. – Provision trucks have been added for all allied and axis factions, and the trucks can also spawn and provide weapons. – Units like the Sherman Firefly, M7 Priest, Radio Operator and M5 Stuart. – New units for commanders, like Sniper parachutists or Glider Jeeps for Airborne, Sherman Calliope or Pershing M26 for Armor and assault engineers for the infantry company, making a nice change from the standard flame-thrower wielding engineers (easily killed). While not a huge mod by any means, EAW is still good if you enjoy minor additions to your game or wish to try out new things in your multiplayer game. COH: Afrika KorpsThe Afrika Korps mod plays out the invasion of Africa in the early phases of WW2, and introduces new units and new maps which accurately depict that theatre. Introduction of new divisions for allies, like Patton’s 7th and the British Long Range Desert group, and introduction of the crucial Afrika Korps for the axis add further scenarios to the list of Company of Heroes mods. There are no Italian units for the axis unfortunately, but it is still good to play through. Features include: – New maps with desert terrain, featuring historically accurate scenarios in the WW2 African theatre. – Plenty of new regiments and units, like the 7th Armor division, 30th Armored Corps, 1st Ranger Division and the axis 10th Armor Division and 501 Tiger section. Company Of Heroes Mods Steam– Like the original game, emphasis is on real scenarios so an all-out blitz is not always called for. Hold out positions with Rommel’s campaign or crush British forces with your Afrika Korps Panzer-division. If you like spending time on hefty single-player campaigns, and have finished the game’s OC already, then this mod is for you. Enjoy the mods and re-play those WW2 scenarios in the comfort of your own home. References
In January 2013, Sega acquired Relic Entertainment and along with it the Company of Heroes intellectual property from THQ.[6][7] The game was released on June 25, 2013 in North America and Europe.[8]
Gameplay[edit]Resources[edit]
The resource-generation system from the first game has been modified. Players will still capture specific flagged points all over the map to collect munitions and fuel credits, which will be invested in assembling their units. Most armies can construct caches to increase the fuel or munitions income from these points, though some points produce a higher income of one material but cannot have caches built on them. Instead of the soldier units actually gathering at the flagged point itself, capturing the point is possible if the player's units are inside a specific zone with no enemy units in the same zone. The accumulation of these resources and the size of the player's army can be much faster if players capture various flagged points all over the map. In order for a player to receive the benefits of a captured flagged point, it must be part of a continuous area of captured territory, thus allowing an unbroken chain ('supply line') connected to the headquarters. Thus, the resource intake will be curtailed if the opposing side captures territory that isolates ('cuts off') owned points from other allied sections in the map. Manpower is used to build common units, and the amount will decrease the larger a player's army grows.
Buildings[edit]
Units can occupy a civilian building and use it as a temporary strongpoint. However, the occupants can be flushed out through attacks by artillery or soldiers using flamethrowers and grenades. The building-damage system from Company of Heroes is retained and enhanced; wooden buildings set afire will continue burning until they are reduced to cinders. Furthermore, buildings can be damaged by tanks and light vehicles driving into them.The Soviets' main structure is the Regimental Field Headquarters, which is used to produce conscripts and field engineers. The Special Rifle Command, Support Weapon Kampaneya, Mechanized Armor Kampaneya, and the Tankoviy Battalion Command are the respective Soviet equivalents of the original game's barracks; weapons support center, vehicle center, and tank hall. A field hospital can help treat seriously injured soldiers. The Wehrmacht's main structure is the Kampfgruppe Headquarters, which is used to produce pioneers and MG42 Heavy Machine Gun teams and to upgrade battle phases to allow for more advanced units and structures.
Combat mechanics[edit]
Combat includes controllable units that are recruited and ordered directly by the player (through the user interface at player-controlled buildings, or through a doctrine ability), as well as activated support actions, such as artillery bombardment or air cover suppression. Every controllable unit type, whether infantry or vehicle, has an associated construction cost and recruitment time, as well as a range of fighting abilities. Vehicles and infantry can eventually be upgraded by purchasing specific capabilities. Upgrades generally improve the unit's effectiveness. Some upgrades are global, granting immediate benefits to all deployed units, while others must be purchased on a unit by unit basis.Most combat takes place through direct, line-of-sight engagements. As with the original Company of Heroes, colored dots will show locations that provide varying degrees of cover for soldiers and support units. Soldiers can also climb over low terrain obstacles such as fences and walls while vehicles, depending on their type, can simply smash through obstacles. Occasionally if a vehicle takes too much damage, it will be abandoned rather than destroyed; the crew is killed but the vehicle remains mostly intact. Abandoned vehicles can be repaired by engineer units and recovered or captured by sending an infantry squad of sufficient size to crew it, or they could be destroyed by collateral fire to deny them to the enemy. The game also offers the player a chance to complete side quests in a mission, which are denoted by an inverted triangle icon.
TrueSight[edit]
The game's Essence 3.0 engine introduces a new line-of-sight feature called the TrueSight system,[9] which aims to better emulate troop visibility in real combat. In contrast to overhead visibility seen in other strategy games, TrueSight more accurately represents a unit's visibility range based on environmental conditions and type of unit.
Weather[edit]
Weather conditions are a major factor in Company of Heroes 2's gameplay, under the new ColdTech weather-simulation system.[10][11] Since many battles in the Eastern Front occurred in winter weather, troops can die of frostbite if caught in the outside during severe weather, especially when pinned by enemy fire; a thermometer-shaped bar to the left side of the unit icon denotes a soldier's body temperature. The soldiers can recover their body heat if they are close to a bonfire or have found a building to shelter in, though soldiers in cover outside will not lose or gain body heat. Players moving through deep snow will move at a reduced speed unless they are on a road; their footprints are also visible to the enemy. Certain maps have frozen bodies of water, allowing for more movement options. However, players face the danger of being attacked from the other side; as a result, the ice can buckle under the weight of the units in movement or shattered by explosions.
Theatre of War[edit]Company Of Heroes 2 Best Mods And Maps
The game introduces the 'Theatre of War', a series of single-player and cooperative missions detailing various aspects of the Eastern Front campaign from both German and Soviet sides. Eighteen missions set in 1941 will be part of the game upon release with the missions from 1942 onward available as downloadable content. The first of these offerings is Case Blue, a package only free to pre-ordered copies and Red Star editions of the game, featuring the Axis forces during the Fall Blau campaign on the Eastern Front.[12] Later releases include Victory at Stalingrad, taking place around the city of Stalingrad during 1942, and Southern Fronts, focusing on events surrounding the spring rasputitsa in 1943.
Order 227[edit]
Company of Heroes 2's campaign attempts to tackle Joseph Stalin's Order No. 227, which prohibits retreating except under the direction of senior officers. Starting from the fifth mission set in Stalingrad, Order 227 will be in effect if the player deploys Fresh Conscripts, Frontovik Squads, or Penal Battalions. A time bar appears on the left side of the map display; for that duration, players must not have their soldiers go into full retreat back to headquarters or else said soldiers will be executed for doing so.
Plot[edit]
The game's story focuses on the Eastern Front campaign as narrated through flashbacks by Lev Abramovich Isakovich, a Soviet Army lieutenant locked up at a gulag in Siberia in 1952. Colonel Churkin – his old commanding officer – shows him a book and interrogates him about his experiences during the war, including the Battle of Stalingrad, the Battle of Moscow, combat in the outskirts of Leningrad, fighting in Poland, up to the Fall of the Reichstag.[13]
Lev Isakovich first reminisces the Battle of Stalingrad in 1942, where he, as a Lieutenant, motivates his men to break through the German lines. As the Soviets reach Red Square, a wave of conscripts is pushed back by heavy defenses. The commissar orders a Maxim gunner to gun down the retreating men as part of Order 227; Not One Step Back. The Soviets attack again, this time the Germans are defeated. As Lieutenant Isakovich and his men inspect the carnage, they stumble upon a lone German survivor trying to surrender, only to be killed. His next experience details when he first met with Colonel Churkin of the NKVD. Churkin orders the Soviet forces to hold the line against the Germans and destroy/burn anything of value that cannot be evacuated to keep it out of enemy hands, including several houses and fields. As the rest of the supplies are evacuated, the Germans bring in Panzers IVs and the Soviets are ordered to fall back to the bridge. As a few soldiers run towards the bridge, Lieutenant Isakovich regrettably detonates the explosives, leaving the men at the mercy of the pursuing Germans. As winter began to roll in, the Soviets under Lev defend Mtsensk from German soldiers and StuGs long enough for T‑34 reinforcements to arrive. Soon later, temperatures dropped to an extreme low; the Soviets were far better prepared for these conditions than the Germans, whose vehicles stalled and suffered more losses to frostbite. Outside of Moscow, a small Soviet force struggles through the snow while destroying several disabled vehicles.
Returning to Stalingrad, Lev recalls that the only thing driving the Soviet soldiers to fight was Order 227, in which soldiers caught retreating would be executed as traitors. As the fighting in Stalingrad was coming to an end, Lev Isakovich, now a captain, searches for German intel. As he discovers a map on an officer, a German Tiger Heavy Tank flattens the building, burying Lev alive under the rubble. Yuri, one of the survivors of the expedition, goes back to HQ to ask to save Captain Isakovich before the Germans reach him. The Soviet forces then move into the area and hold their ground long enough for the captain to be freed. Upon returning to HQ, Major Polivanov shoots Yuri for leaving his post to save Lev, and orders Lev to placed on the next train to Moscow while the remaining soldiers that helped him are executed. As Lev is recovering at the hospital, he is holding a conversation with Sergeant Ivan Pozharsky, who discusses the Siege of Leningrad, which was completely cut off by the Germans for over a year, until the Soviets manage to break through the siege. As fighting in Leningrad continued, a Soviet armored squadron investigates the site of a recent tank battle. However, they are ambushed by a Tiger Heavy Tank. Despite losing their armor, the Soviets manage to kill the Tiger's crew and drive it back to their base.
After recovering from his wounds, Lev abandons his military career in favor of journalism but found nothing inspiring of the war, except for the heroism demonstrated by the soldiers on the battlefields. As the war went on, the Soviets fight the Germans in Lublin, Poland. After the ISU-152s break down the gate of a suspected prison camp, Lev realizes that this was Majdanek, a Nazi concentration camp and a glimpse into the Holocaust. Soon afterwards, Sergeant Pozharsky, who had recently returned to active service, introduces Lev Isakovich to Ania Zielinska, a leader of the Polish partisans. After she returns with a captured German officer, Pozharsky directs her to the supplies that were promised. But Lev watches in horror as Pozharsky betrays Ania and her fellow partisans, claiming that once the war with the Germans ended, the Polish would be fighting the Russians, before executing her. Lev then decides to publish his findings, only to be stopped by Churkin, who promptly assigns him to the 8th Guards' penal battalion.
As the Soviets enter Germany, they encircle a town full of Germans and prevent most of them, including civilians, from escaping. Soon, the Soviets began to lay siege to Berlin fighting the remaining Germans through the streets and ruined buildings, ultimately capturing the Reichstag, signaling final German defeat. Ironically, the Reichstag was disused since Hitler first came to power and millions of Soviets died to raise the flag.
These experiences have left Isakovich shaken as he reveals he tried to defect after the war in order to show the world the truth. He was captured and sent to the gulag on Churkin's orders. Isakovich claims that 'The first casualty of war is Truth' and the truth is in the pages of the book. A man then steps forth and prepares to execute Isakovich, only to be killed by Churkin. Churkin then allows Isakovich to escape the gulag to spread the truth, and commits suicide, stating that he never looked at the pages of the book ever since it was recovered and he was not to survive Joseph Stalin's next purge.
Development[edit]
THQ first announced the sequel to the acclaimed Company of Heroes in May 2012.[14] THQ executive vice president of core games Danny Bilson noted that the publisher will continue working on Company of Heroes 2 following its launch next year.On December 19, 2012, publisher THQ filed for bankruptcy just after postponing the release date of the video game.[15][16] The following month, on January 23, 2013, it was announced that THQ had sold Relic Entertainment to Sega for US$26.6 million as part of an auction of the company's properties in result of the bankruptcy.[6]
Company of Heroes 2 takes advantage of DirectX 11 but also supports DirectX 10. The game also utilizes Valve's Steamworks technology with matchmaking and achievements.[9]
On March 6, 2013, Sega announced that Company of Heroes 2 would be released in North America and Europe on June 25, 2013.[8] A few weeks later, the company announced that the first closed beta will begin April 2, 2013.[17] The open beta was released to the public on June 4, 2013 after the stress tests and the closed beta sessions were finished.[18]
Downloadable content[edit]
Relic has released downloadable content for the game aside from the Theatre of War packs. Commanders: Add new abilities and units to a players arsenal, which are available in skirmish and multiplayer matches. A player can choose up to 3 commanders of which he can choose one during a skirmish. This commander will then give access to 5 unique units/abilities. However, some commanders have been given away for free at certain events by Relic. Vehicle skins allow to alter the camouflage pattern of certain vehicles and tanks and are a purely cosmetic change. Faceplates are another cosmetic change only visible in the main menu or loading screen. With the release of the Western Front Armies DLC, the playable factions of the U.S Forces (USF) and Oberkommando West (OKW) are available. Relic had released The Western Front Armies and Ardennes Assault DLCs, which was released on June 24, 2014[19] and November 18, 2014 respectively.[20] Ardennes Assault added a new, non-linear campaign taking place in Belgium as the USF. The third expansion of the game, titled The British Forces, was released on September 3, 2015.[21]
Reception[edit]
PCWorld gave the game 3.5 out of five stars.[27] PC Gamer rated the game at 80 concluding, 'Company of Heroes 2 is the USSR of real-time strategy games: huge, powerful and just a little bit broken.'[28] IGN gave the game an 8.4, saying, 'More sequel-sized expansion than true successor, Company of Heroes 2 repeats many of the original Company of Heroes feats.[23]
As of March 31, 2014, the game has sold 680,000 copies in Europe and North America.[29]
The Ardennes Assault DLC received a similar score on Metacritic, with a score of 81 compared to the game's score of 80.
Controversy[edit]
Relic has been questioned by critics and historians about accuracy of its portrayal of the Eastern Front in World War II. An article written for video game website Polygon by Colin Campbell reflecting on the subject stated that the 'comments on forums and on Metacritic are testament to the strong feelings that the war still generates'. In the same article, it cites the game's director Quinn Duffy who in regards to the creative direction of the first and second game felt that 'the second game is painted on a broader canvas', whereas 'in contrast, the first game focused on a small group of soldiers and did not seek to take a wider view'.[30]
Reception and criticism in Russia[edit]
In Russia and Post-Soviet states the game was found offensive by many users and critics for portraying the Red Army commanders as cruel, using their own soldiers in a cold-blooded way, exaggerating brutal war tactics.[31] After the video made by the Russian blogger BadComedian (real name - Evgeny Bazhenov),[32] thousands of people have signed a Change.org petition demanding Steam to block the game in CIS countries. The petition brands the game as 'disgusting'. In 2013 the sale of the game was banned in Russia.[33]
Russian game publisher 1C-Softclub stopped distribution of the game on 26 July 2013 due to the strong negative feedback (notably a petition to stop the sale that was filed by the game players). Following the news, the game's publisher SEGA released a statement that they were 'taking this issue very seriously and are investigating these concerns thoroughly with all relevant partners'.[34]
References[edit]
External links[edit]
Retrieved from 'https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Company_of_Heroes_2&oldid=903087463'
The Western Front isn’t as quiet as you may have heard from other sources but the Eastern Front is almost certainly a great deal louder. That’s what Company of Heroes 2 would have you believe at any rate, with a flashy new engine and a great deal of clamour presenting its conflict. But does the long-awaited sequel add anything more than enormous flurries and drifts of snow? I donned my thermal underpants and went to war.
For the first hour, Company of Heroes 2’s campaign threatens to be all sound and no strategy, fury without thought. It’s quite comfortably among the loudest strategy games in existence. The soothing click-click of the mouse is drowned out by the death rattle of machine guns and the occasional whirr of a brain cog is lost in the audible violence as the Eastern Front repeatedly explodes.
Given the setting, the constant barrage of noise makes sense. The number of men dying on both sides of the conflict is terrifying, and the focal points of each map are soon clogged with bodies and the smoking ruins of machines. It’s hard to spot the company of heroes among the legions of anonymous dead and doomed, although the cutscenes, which provide a post-war reflection on the horror and guilt of the survivor, are often strong. The sheer visual splendour of combat and the might of the engine can make war a thing to goggle at, players peering at the screen like dogs on the wrong side of a butcher’s window, but it’s a grimy sort of spectacle. Zoom in close and the grisliness of the scene is more apparent – explosions make meat of soldiers, and the dying crawl and stagger.
The constant stream of allies and enemies pouring across many of the campaign maps, the planes and mortars shrieking overhead, and the battles occurring at the periphery all contribute to the sense of a larger conflict. The sense of engaging in a skirmish or defensive action that is only part of an incomprehensible whole is as convincing as I’ve ever seen, sometimes distractingly so. There are times during the campaign when Company of Heroes 2 is so determined to show the scale and set pieces of war that the player takes the role of spectator, following the occasional signpost and using or collecting equipment as and when a commander swearily barks instructions.
All of this combined to make my first impressions underwhelming. I actually scribbled ‘Call of Duty RTS’ on a piece of paper after following another arrow to another target and realising, once again, that constant reinforcements meant there was no danger or risk. More men for the meatgrinder and no reason to care for the consequences.
The menu didn’t help. I debated whether or not it was worth writing a short paragraph about a bloody menu, but here I am, writing that paragraph. It looks more like a digital storefront than an actual game, advertising its (cosmetic) wares, double experience events and broadcasting possibilities. It’s cluttered and wants me to upload my failures and successes, or to paint a tank, or to preorder something or other. I feel like it’s shouting at me.
None of that, even the XP and DLC stuff, has much of an effect on the game. I haven’t bought anything but have unlocked unit abilities and decorations for use in skirmish by playing the campaign and against the AI in the Theatre of War mode. As with the sound of my brain-cogs during a war, the Theatre of War is easy to miss among the noise and mess of the menu. Comprising singleplayer, co-op and competitive scenarios, it’s where the game shines brightest. Pick a battle, either as the Soviets or the Germans, and master a map. It’s a much more direct model of the slow-burn take on RTS that the original game and its add-ons excelled at and it’s tempting to say that it avoids the excess of the campaign, but that’s not entirely true. Instead, it escalates toward it, beginning with basic base construction, more flexible than in COH 1, and expanding into a miniature arms race. You bring tanks, I’ll plant mines and force you onto the ice, or cripple their tracks. You counter with an infantry rush and I’ll be waiting with machine gun killzones at the ready.
On the whole, the pace of the game is as splendidly pitched as ever, allowing room to think and to counter, but never lacking tension. Even against the AI, which is how I’ve spent the vast majority of my time with the game, the ideal next move is often read as much in the actions of the enemy as in the layout of the battlefield. It’s often impossible to know the best route, either through the tech/construction tree or across the map, without at least trying to predict where the next attack is coming from, or what shape it will take. On one level, it’s actual war as a giant tug of war, a back and forth for control of resources and choke points, but it’s also very much like playing with the most incredible box of toy soldiers ever.
The simplicity of movement is a huge part of the game’s tactical appeal. While sometimes muddling around cover rather than sticking to it, when squads do accurately follow instructions, they can be made safe, hunkered down under fire, until their opponents try to flank them or bring in heavier weaponry. Brilliantly, this means that the passage of time itself doesn’t force the player to take action, but the movements and menace of an enemy eventually will. Unless the weather is playing its part, in which case immobility can be death.
During snowstorms, mobility and visibility are reduced, and engineers must start fires to keep troops alive. This, along with the breaking ice that can be the end of a tank or a trooper, may not seem like a huge addition, but as well as being so well realised that I actually feel cold when my men are shivering through them, the snow-laden maps change tactical approaches enormously. In a game so strongly defined by its pacing, the change to unit speed, and the need to react to alter approaches to positioning and construction , have a significant impact on strategies.
The campaign, despite telling its story well, is something of a disappointment, partly because it is so intent on telling its story. With the superb weather effects, a dynamic struggle for territory, taking in the changing seasons, would have been excellent, if unhistorical, and the later stages of the campaign do feature some superb, long-form battles. In multiplayer and against the impressive – if eventually predictable – AI, the technical improvements, such as the much improved line of sight calculations and increased environmental destruction, create alternate tactics.
Ambushes are a much more effective option, particularly when faced with vehicles, which react magnificently to damage, both in terms of losing function and jolting with punchy physicality. The Soviets are also dab hands at requisitioning evacuated vehicles and abandoned weapons, which creates further tension when deploying units. Bring a gun (tank) to a knife (gun) fight and you might find it turned against you.
RTS games often apply pressure as soon as the map is loaded – it’s like being trapped in that sodding garbage compactor – but Company of Heroes is more like fencing or playing chess than bench-pressing. And that’s why this sequel, though a long time coming and slow to find its stride, is a success. It is more of the same, yes, but it still feels different to every other RTS out there. I wanted more of an individual focus, Men of War blustering into my imagination as it so often does, but COH 2 has its own approach, blending small-scale tactical positioning with larger strategic movements and decisions.
I suspect some will be dismayed by how similar the game is to the original and it’s fair to say that it doesn’t feel as fresh or vital. Company of Heroes hasn’t been reduced by the passage of time though, continuing to stand out in its wartorn corner of the strategy square dance. The new engine is spectacular but the visual splendour does threaten to overwhelm the meat of the game, particularly in the campaign’s more explosive moments. Scrape all of the snow and smoke away, however, and something would be lost because the technology does add to the decision-making in more subtle ways than might be imagined. Company of Heroes 2 is a deceptively noisy and violent game that is actually designed for those with slow hands, quick wits and flexible thought processes.
It really does have a rubbish menu screen though.
Company of Heroes 2 is out on June 25th.
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