Big Red One
The original Company of Heroes was once of my favourite RTS games for PC and the expansion was also a great addition to the package, but it’s been so many years since it released that it made me question wherever Relic still had what it takes to create an amazing RTS and obviously after the THQ collapse, it was in limbo for a short while until Sega took the reins and thankfully we now have the sequel to one of the highest-rated RTS games of all time.
But has the wait been worth it? Without a doubt, Relic has created a game that feels very familiar but new as well. You are placed as the commander of the Soviet Red Army as you push back the Nazis from Mother Russia all the way to Berlin in a great and quite long campaign that will definitely test your skills to the max. The traditional RTS gameplay from the original is still intact for the most part, while additions to the system included weather dynamics affecting the battlefield are a nice touch.
It would have been nice to see the game from more perspectives than just the Soviets, but the campaign is great overall, but it does seem to retread old ground seen in the expansion “Opposing Fronts” and the overpowered flamethrowers are a definite misfire on Relic’s part. The Theatre of War mode is probably the highlight for me which has both solo and co-op missions where you compete for high scores on the leaderboards, some are quite creative and will get you thinking what’s the best way to move forward, while online skirmishes are also fun overall.
If there’s a problem to be had with Company of Heroes 2, it’s that it feels more of an expansion than a full-blown sequel…even after all these years since the original and Opposing Fronts. Visually, the game is impressive though…even on the lowest settings, which I sadly had to enable due to my PC being quite outdated in the graphics department. Voice-acting and music is a mixed bag and the framerate is consistent though, as long as you stick to the settings that works best for your rig and the game looks good on the whole.
The Verdict
Company of Heroes 2 is a great RTS, there’s no denying that. The problem is that it’s more of a rehash expansion hat a full sequel and after 6-7 years, that’s hard for fans of the original. On the plus side though, it wasn’t broken in the first place so Relic have just reworked the game with this in mind. The only real blunder is those damn overpowered flamethrowers which ignore cover and can burn your high-skilled soldiers to a crisp in seconds. Other than that, it’s a good game and one that any RTS fan should get.
