Analysis of Company of Heroes 3

Company of Heroes 3 has a version for consoles which we detail in our following review

There’s a genre that at first glance doesn’t seem to fit the very nature of the console. We’ve seen for decades how many real-time strategy (RTS) titles have tried to break into other alternative platforms without complete success. It is difficult to “port” the commands from the PC to the traditional controller… but not impossible. There are exceptions like the mythical Halo Wars who realizes it well, and that is why he was enthusiastic about the work that sega and Relic Entertainment they did with Company of heroes 3. An effort for affordable control that we saw explained in videos and press releases. Did they achieve what they set out to do? Well, we will see that later in this analysis.

For those who do not know this warrior saga, we are in front of a RTS set during World War II. In this game, strategy is of vital importance. It will be necessary to know how to organize our squads very well, their roles on the battlefield and the efforts in our camp for the mission to be a success. Also, this time we will have a huge map where to move our troops to face the next mission. And if all this is too little for us, we can always count on the online multiplayer facet surrounding the title. A little candy for fans that has been tarnished in various ways, and one that console users will blame more directly.

A high-risk mission

Like many games ported from PC to consoles, it’s not just the work on new gameplay that commands. There is interface work, simplification in the menus and shortcuts with the buttons that must be present to make the experience as rewarding as possible. We have already seen both sides of the coin. On the positive side I remember soccer manager and its two completely different versions. and on the other hand we have Cross Kings 3, which had serious flaws in its approach on consoles. And while the effort put into Company of Heroes 3 is palpable, it wasn’t enough for what we’ll talk about below.

Relic Entertainment’s title has two main campaigns: one taking place in Italy and another very interesting secondary one where we will move through the Libyan desert. Well, in the Italy campaign tutorial, there is an informational popup that cannot be removed as there is no button to remove this notification. This problem persists two weeks after the game’s release, and in addition to completely breaking the game experience, one wonders if there really is an exhaustive porting work between the PC and console versions. A slap on the wrist that comes with various bugs that can be found in its phases in Libya, the only campaign I was able to enjoy.

Thousand deployment options

If we forgive this mistake (or if the developer ends up fixing this mess), we have a very interesting proposition. We will be able to command our troops with a radial menu accompanied by direct actions that are very visual and understood at all times. Also, since we don’t have the speed of a keyboard and mouse, we can do use of the tactical pause, and with all battalions “frozen”, establish routines and attack patterns without nerfs and without haste.

Company of Heroes 3 has many things to consider. From destroying entire buildings because there are enemies on their roofs, to repairing battle tanks to use in our favor, or take into account the seniority of our troops if they participated in a skirmish. Everything is taken care of down to the smallest detail and without being very demanding with the player, it makes you participate fully in everything that happens on the screen.

The good side and the bad side

Also, this time we will have four factions that we will control. It should be noted precisely the faction of the campaign in Lebanon, managing the very Afrika Korps led by Marshal Rommel. And although it is true that the enemy AI is not notorious, we will have to be careful not to be ambushed when carrying out a mission with our soldiers. Anyway, If we see that we are not a match against the CPU, we can always opt for a much greater challenge thanks to the multiplayer mode which includes the title. One of the fundamental pillars of its PC version and the reason we are hooked on our teams for days and days.

We will almost even see the bullets

Already diving into its audiovisual aspect, we can say that Company of Heroes 3 complies with it in an optimal way. It is a pleasure to see our little soldiers moving around the stage and carrying out the actions that we entrust to them. And whether to take a rocket launcher, repair a vehicle, take cover, use a flamethrower, enter a building… Everything is faithfully recreated. It is true that on the screen there will never be many teams, Unlike other titles with a similar profile like Age of Empires 4 (saving the distances between the two games). We will not only see good animations of our soldiers, but also the details of tanks, armored vehicles and other combat vehicles also present a good level.

Scenarios aren’t far off either. It is true that the desert is less striking in this respect, but when we visit Italy and move between coastal towns, or we make a landing with explosions everywhere, everything is much more spectacular. It’s like reliving any war movie but with an aerial view. Moreover, although the title is in English, we will have a translation in our language so as not to lose the detail of the instructions of our superiors and the story that revolves around our action hero.

Conclusion of Company of Heroes 3

SEGA and Relic Entertainment are making their way with their saga and creating a third installment with a version for consoles. We are facing a strategy game where we will have to manage our squads, the base of operations and all our movements around the stage, completing the missions that make up the campaign in Italy and Libya. All this with a control adapted to the command based on radial menus and a simplification in the interface if we compare it with its PC version.

The problem is that, despite this effort to provide us with a version suitable for consoles, there are major bugs that after two weeks are still not fixed. It’s a shame, because the mechanics of Company of Heroes 3 work very well. And although it’s not the same as playing with a keyboard and mouse, the controller can be a good alternative for those who don’t have a good computer. We’ll see if they fix those mistakes and continue to shape a franchise that today has a good community of users.