Mediterranean coasts, vineyards and the smell of blood mixed with gunpowder… The Company of Heroes series has made a strong comeback with Company of Heroes 2 and continues to innovate without losing its strength. Let’s take a look at this new game “Company of Heroes 3” and its innovations.
Developed by Relic Entertainment and published by SEGA, the new game in the real-time strategy series Company of Heroes, Company of Heroes 3, was released on the PC platform on February 23, 2023. The console version of the game is currently available for PS5 and Xbox Series X.
The new game in the series, which focuses primarily on the Southern Front of World War II, features the German Wehrmacht Corps, the US, British and German Afrika Korps in both single and multiplayer modes. Company of Heroes 3 aims to offer a new generation gaming experience while building on the strengths of the series. Let’s take a closer look at the fundamental dynamics of the game and what it brings to the series.
One of the bloodiest fronts of the Second World War was undoubtedly the Southern Front. Nazi Germany’s occupation of North Africa and Italy did not last long. With the support of the local population and the main Allied forces, quick and sudden attacks were carried out against the occupying troops.
The story of COH3, set during the wars in which Adolf Hitler and Benito Mussolini were history, is told to us from the perspective of the local population. In the Italian Dynamic Operation, we conduct an operation from Sicily towards Rome. We would like to skip this part without giving any more spoilers. In this article, we will mainly focus on what new features fans of the series can expect.
We manage the German corps in the North Africa campaign. The story in this section is inspired by the events in Libya and Egypt during the Second World War. The mission system in this section offers the classic COH experience we know.We intervene in real-time to specific targets and try to capture them.
The turn-based system in the Italy Campaign can be said to be almost the same as the mechanics familiar from Total War games. It’s revolutionary for this new game in the series. We are sure that strategy lovers will love it. The structure of the campaign map is nicely integrated with different mechanics under a mission other than the main game.
The control of units, resource management, and interaction with the map are quite good. However, despite offering you choices, the somewhat limited nature of the open world feels lacking.
Company of Heroes earned a special place among strategy enthusiasts with its first game. Following the first game released in 2006, the second game of the series, Company of Heroes 2, came out in 2013. The second game revolutionized the series with its graphics. With features like snow effects and ice mechanics, the game was set on the Eastern Front, another tough front of World War II. In the second game featuring Russia, we spent long hours filled with missions and stories. COH2 still has a serious player base.
Frankly, making a sequel to such a successful and beloved second game seems a bit risky. Adding innovation to the series and maintaining the existing audience is crucial. The power of the renewed game engine, mechanics, animations, and the Italy Campaign are among enough reasons to get Company of Heroes 3. It seems that Company of Heroes 3 will rely on its loyal player base.
The Essence Engine, which has been developed throughout the series from the first game to date and used in games like Age of Empire 4 and Warhammer, has undergone a major change. While Company of Heroes 2 was the first game to be released with the 3rd generation of the Essence Engine with DirectX 11 support, COH 3 has further developed the engine to the level of Essence 5.0. Age of Empires 4 became the first game to use the engine at this level.
Numerous new details like the trajectory of bullets and cannons, assault animations on buildings, attract players to the game.
The sound is one of the most discussed topics in the 3rd game of the series. Of course, it will improve with the updates that will come. But it seems a bit difficult to hear those satisfying sounds in COH. Essence 5.0 certainly shows itself, and animations and graphics are brought to an impressive level in COH 3.
Of course, this is also reflected in the gameplay mechanics. Sega shared trial versions of the game with players before releasing it, and the game was postponed. With these feedbacks, you can expect a good gaming experience.
Overall, the multiplayer mode, the part we always play, won’t surprise you with something extraordinary. That’s why we referred to COH 2 from time to time. However, with the Italy Campaign and the renewed graphics and mechanics, the game has been made. So the development team actively embracing the game gives hope. The number of players currently on the servers is not bad either. A new game can be joined in up to 2 minutes. With new events to come, Company of Heroes 3 seems to take its place among the games you strategy-loving players will play for years to come.
