The real-time strategy genre never really got me. While I’ve had good times playing Command & Conquer and StarCraft, it wasn’t until 2006 that my passion for the RTS genre really took off when Company of Heroes landed on my weary old PC.
Company of Heroes 3 released on PC in late February and is now available on PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X/S editions. After 10 years since the last full game in the Company of Heroes series, this new title is undoubtedly the most ambitious yet. It includes two campaigns, the first and longest of which is set in Italy in 1943 and deals with the invasion that led to the overthrow of the fascists and the death of Mussolini.
The action takes place in Sicily, where we find ourselves in a series of battles against the Nazis that will take us north towards Rome. The story is told through static sequences and emotional letters soldiers write to loved ones, offering a shocking insight into the brutality of war at the time.
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The gameplay in Company of Heroes 3 is divided into two parts. On the one hand we have the turn-based part that takes place on a strategic map. Here you can move units including tanks, foot soldiers, planes and ships along the coast to bombard cities and coastlines you wish to conquer. In addition, you gain various strategic advantages by conquering port cities, towns and airfields. For example, airfields allow you to send planes, cities with hospitals allow you to heal your wounded soldiers, and port cities give you access to more troops.
In Company of Heroes 3 you will regularly receive strategy recommendations from British General Norton, American General Buckram and Italian partisan leader Valenti. These characters rarely agree, and depending on which recommendations you follow, you will develop a relationship with the appropriate commander. This, in turn, unlocks various bonuses and perks ranging from deploying paratroopers and anti-aircraft support to increased naval firepower. Once you’ve made the strategic choices, the turn is over and it’s the opponent’s turn to take action.
Much like a turn-based RPG, Company of Heroes 3 undergoes a significant change as you go into battle. At this point, the game takes on the format of a traditional RTS, where you’re immersed in a specific battle. Here you must set up the command center, support structures and bases, move companies and order soldiers to move, attack or lay mines.
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It is important to mention a very useful feature called Tactical Pause. This feature allows you to pause the game and issue a series of commands to your troops during the pause. These commands will be queued and executed simultaneously when you continue the game. So if you’re feeling a little overwhelmed amidst the intensity of combat, you can always use this option to pause, think about your next move, give orders to the units, and then continue the game. This feature is especially useful for gamers like me who are not that familiar with RTS. Hardcore RTS players might not like it that much, but luckily they can do without it.
The game’s second campaign is titled “Operation North Africa” and is slightly shorter compared to the Italian one. This campaign consists of eight missions that take you to the other side of the war, where you take control of DAK (Deutsches Afrikakorps) tank units in the African desert under the leadership of Chief Tactician Rommel. In contrast to the narrow streets of Italian cities, this campaign is characterized by the desert setting, which gives it a more open atmosphere. Even if it’s not as precise a tactic as in tight urban areas, being able to lead tank units through the desert is exciting.
Competitive and cooperative multiplayer is also available for up to 8 players, allowing you to play as US Forces, British Forces, Wehrmacht and Deutsches Afrika Korps. It’s clear that the main focus was on the two campaigns, as neither the skirmish mode nor the multiplayer area offer many new features, but both work as they should.
In addition to the two campaigns, the game also offers the option to play in skirmish mode, where you can choose between victory point and annihilation modes, face off against computer-controlled units and customize the rules to your liking. In addition, there is a competitive and cooperative multiplayer experience for up to 8 players, where you can take control of the US Armed Forces, British Armed Forces, Wehrmacht and the German Afrika Korps.
While the main focus of the game was the two campaigns, the skirmish mode and the multiplayer mode offer many innovations. However, it’s important to note that they continue to offer a solid and functional experience.
Games of this nature are best enjoyed with a keyboard and mouse, and Company of Heroes 3 is no different. However, the studio has managed to come up with a control scheme that works reasonably well with a controller, if some fiddling is required. Adaptation and can be a bit difficult to deal with in chaotic situations. Nonetheless, the control scheme does its job satisfactorily, and it’s important to note that controlling with a controller in a game of this type will never achieve the same level of precision as that achieved with a keyboard and mouse.
The graphics in Company of Heroes 3 offer an interesting combination. On the one hand, Italy is presented in a beautiful way, with cities full of beautiful and detailed structures. However, the destruction can lead to everything being destroyed beyond recognition, for example when a few enemy tanks collide in the narrow streets. In contrast, the strategy map is simpler and lacks the same visual beauty. The game offers two graphics configuration options: performance (1080p at 60 fps) and resolution (4K at 30 fps). It’s surprising that a game with relatively simple graphics isn’t optimized to run in 4K at 60 frames per second. If you go for the “Performance” option, the graphics suffer visually, so it’s important to consider whether you really need 60 fps in a game of this nature. On the other hand, the audio section is superb, with shocking explosions and high-quality voices from your units as you move them across the battlefield.
Company of Heroes 3 from Relic Entertainment proves that the series still has a lot to offer. Both campaigns provide many hours of gameplay that is fresh and exciting. The combination of real-time and turn-based strategy works effectively and makes for a dynamic and varied experience. While the controls are acceptable, it takes some getting used to to fully master them. The graphics are detailed and impressive. However, there is a certain lack of optimization that affects performance
It is clear that Company of Heroes 3 offers a rich gaming experience for strategy lovers. If you don’t have a PC to play with, the console version is a great alternative.
