Relic Entertainment was founded in 1997, two years later it revolutionized the real-time strategy market with the unique Homeworld. This is just the beginning: thanks to the quality and inventiveness of its games, the Canadian software house dominated the genre during the 40.000s. In addition to Homeworld and after two modest failures, Relic reinvents strategy games two more times: with Warhammer 2013 Dawn of War and Company of Heroes. And it is precisely the latter, absent from the scene since XNUMX, whom we extend the most cordial welcome with our Company of Heroes 3 Review.
a bunch of heroes
The peculiarity of the series, which we also find in this third chapter, is the scale of its battles. Company of Heroes puts emphasis on what we can define as a group of heroes, a platoon, instead of an endless army, and by bringing the camera close to almost touching the roofs of the buildings, the battle becomes very personal, it absorbs you. It is not enough, and often not allowed, to build a large number of units and have them converge on a hot spot on the map; In the Relic game it is necessary to follow the progress of individual teams with varying attention, deck after deck. With a little effort you will see your soldiers fighting and moving on the field in extraordinary and realistic harmony.
It is at this point that the game, in all its aspects, including the gameplay, manages to express an almost cinematic beauty: the crackling of machine guns, the low flights of planes that scatter flakes of white phosphorus over the ground. opposing soldiers. And then our units, so small but so detailed, raise their rifles along fords, cower under bombardment, group along walls for epic targeted executions, take turns at the windows of a building . Not to mention, and this is the great news, the system that regulates the destruction of buildings and stage elements presented by Company of Heroes 3, capable of credibly collapsing any structure under the blows of conflict, and for mechanized divisions to show all their brazen power by trampling walls with their caterpillars.
Nice and reliable
The same spectacle that Company of Heroes fans are always used to, in this case almost literally since at first glance there don't seem to be any big differences between Company of Heroes 2 and 3. Company of Heroes 3 is clearly built around a more powerful engine. modern, powerful and versatile: you can see it in the greatest amount of general details, in the most elaborate effects, in the new destruction system mentioned above, in the three-dimensionality of the maps. . But the team responsible for Company of Heroes 2 knew how to hide the technical limitations so well back then, that today the distances seem small. But let's be clear: it's Company of Heroes 2 that feels like a game from the future, not Company of Heroes 3 that feels like a game from the past. Would we have preferred better graphics or a wider cut? Without a doubt, who would not deny it, but we are satisfied with a game that is still very pleasant to watch and that did not cause any kind of whim among us. Maximum detail and maximum resolution..
brave infantry
A video game is above everything. gameLet alone a real-time strategy game like this that also wants to give its opinion from a more competitive point of view. However, you will not find any alterations to the well-proven formula here either: Company of Heroes 3 is practically identical to the second game in the series in terms of mechanics, although in certain dynamics it is more reminiscent of the 2006 progenitor. The point of contact is found in he greater emphasis placed on infantry, now much more resistant than before, especially against impacts from a vehicle. This allows you to get away with many of those fatal circumstances in Company of Heroes 2, restoring the lost balance that fans have argued about for years. We bet we will now discuss the opposite problem?
The scales of war
In this case it is a simple matter of taste, no choice seems to unbalance or even damage the balance of the series. They are different approaches for different palates, the one adopted by Company of Heroes 3 is probably the option that keeps its eyes more on the action, trying to keep soldiers alive, rather than restoring lost units in the menu below. Focus on the objective, which in Company of Heroes 3 is basically, among a dozen variations, always the same: conquer and defend control points required by the mission. Each checkpoint earned provides the player with a cyclical reserve of one of four available resources, needed to create new soldiers, assemble new vehicles, launch special attacks, or build new structures. On some maps there are also checkpoints that can be transformed into field hospitals, to prevent injured teams from returning to the starting position. One was also included in Company of Heroes 3. tactical rest which allows you to suspend the action and calmly plan what each unit will have to do. The tactical pause doesn't ruin any of the original gameplay, but it does allow you to approach the game with less pressure, which isn't a bad thing considering how intense the battles can get. Naturally, the tactical pause is not present in multiplayer, where the Relic series keeps its real-time strategy core unchanged.
The ace in the hole
Teams of soldiers, like armored vehicles, unlock new abilities with experience, while by paying with collected resources it is also possible to upgrade or specialize your equipment. Vehicles can be upgraded with new arsenal or converted entirely: a troop transport truck can evolve into a kind of ambulance to heal soldiers even during action, while a tank will be able to mount an anti-aircraft system or double its machine guns to make it more lethal against infantry. Choices that will also have to be made based on the resources and strategies of whoever is in front of you. Not all opponents will have dangerous aircraft, just as you will not always have all the special attacks in the game at your disposal. Its presence will also depend on the chosen mode...
The resistance
Company of Heroes 3 has its own inevitable component multiplayer (but ranked games will be added after the initial adjustment phase), offers fun cooperative battles where it is possible to face the AI with up to four players at the same time and in its single player modes it offers both a classic choice and fun linear campaign set in North Africa composed of eight maps, it is a small revolution, that is, the compelling Spanish campaign where the objective will be to leave Salerno to liberate Rome. This new mode is very similar to what Total War usually offers, that is, a strategic part that supports the tactical system: what you will have in the battles is what you will have managed to organize on the tactical map. To call in air support during a mission, you'll need to have an airport or aircraft carrier nearby, as well as the right aircraft and the right resources: on the tactical map, these are obtained by conquering cities, rather than control points. It is also possible to press alliances with partisans locals, help them in their insurrections, to be able to use their sabotage work wherever we deem appropriate. When two armies collide on the tactical map, exactly as happens in Total War, the game will revert to the classic Company of Heroes 3. Furthermore, the number of maps cannot support this expanded structure for long, leaving room for a boring repetitiveness.
To reconquer Italy
Just like in the African campaign, where each mission is meticulously constructed to achieve maximum involvement, even in the Spanish one there will be some unique missions with a more choreographed and adventurous construction, let's say even narrative. In short, these are not anonymous missions that replicate a battle in PvP, this happens in secondary battles that can also be resolved automatically, but rather experiences built for the occasion by the developers so that they are unique and so that the landing in Salerno is unforgettable. . totally different from Foggia's capture, both in the setting and in the dramatic crescendo. On the one hand, this makes the Spanish campaign more characterized in its main points, fun and exciting until the end, but at the same time it greatly affects the replayability once you have managed to complete it. It's not a big problem considering that the two campaigns, with their two different scenarios, troops and game mechanics, will keep you busy for quite a few hours. Considering multiplayer, co-op, and four different sides (US Forces, Wehrmacht, Afrikakorps, and British Army) instead of the usual two, you're sure to have no shortage of content in Company of Heroes.
the diamond in the rough
Vi However, a certain type of finish will be missing.: The menus are unacceptable, the graphics lack that extra sprint even in saturation, the multiplayer is currently reduced to the basics with only two modes because the work is still open and for this reason the ranked matches are also temporarily missing. The Spanish campaign is a nice novelty, full of subsystems to pay attention to and is undoubtedly an idea on which the series can build its future; However, we see that it could offer much more, that the project is a 1.0 that above all lacks greater dynamism.
The great thing about Company of Heroes 3 is that it is as phenomenal to play as ever.AI It behaves very well and forces you to keep your attention even in the rear, the maps of the two campaigns are all very interesting and diversified, with more level differences than those of previous games. The fourteen maps available in multiplayer aren't bad either, but it will take some time to understand whether they're really up to the task of close competitive matches.
Conclusions
Tested version PC with Windows digital delivery Steam Price 59,99 € Holygamerz.com 7.5 Readers (17) 8.5 your voteCompany of Heroes 3 is a great game because its gameplay is an already winning system, which does not have to prove anything. The new Spanish campaign is a platform that we hope to see expanded with new scenarios, while the North African campaign, although more classic, will surprise you with its peculiar troops and exciting battles in the open field. After ten years it may be a little short, and after two games already published with the same name we did not expect a diamond in the rough. It will grow, it will improve, but at the moment there is a bit of a bad taste in the mouth.
PRO
- Company of Heroes battles are always exciting
- The new destruction system is very convincing.
- The Spanish countryside has great potential
AGAINST
- Poorly maintained and confusing menus.
- Basic multiplayer with very few options.
- Ten years later, graphically we expected a bigger breakup
