Company of Heroes 2 - PC

Company of Heroes 2 is a game for the seasoned, hardcore real-time strategy gamer. Which is kind of apt, actually, given that the setting for this long-anticipated sequel happens to be one of the most gruelling and incredible conflicts during the Second World War: the Eastern Front.

Pitting the Soviet Union’s Red Army against Hitler’s invading Nazi forces, this is a tactical war game that seeks to lay bare the operation’s sheer brutality and harsh conditions.

Using sneaky and underhanded tactics is the way to achieve victory in Company of Heroes 2, and yet there are risks and rewards for sending your troops off in any given direction.

Darting about in clear, open roads is an obvious invitation to a rocket in the face, but it can offer a direct route if you’re hurriedly trying to provide reinforcements. Similarly, slipping through woodlands and crawling past bushes in the snow is the best strategy for surprise attacks, but the cold conditions can negatively affect your soldiers’ performance and your men will move much more slowly.

Improvements to the gameplay mechanics have made for a more dynamic system this time around too. AI will automatically think to track enemy vehicles that have left persistent marks in the show, while simultaneously being quite shifty about it so they can avoid getting spotted. Instead of a fog of war, we’re now treated to a line of sight feature - meaning that you’re now able to see as far as is realistically able by your soldiers on the map.

It seems that Company of Heroes 2 is the faster-paced, historically-accurate sequel that RTS buffs have been looking for.