company of heroes 2: the western front armies

The focus of the expansion is strictly a multiplayer one, with a fresh set of eight new maps on the Western Front to go alongside the new armies. Things like the Sturmtiger tank need the crew to actually get out to reload its gigantic gun, making them terribly vulnerable, while the loss of any of these expensive tank units will difficult to recover from. Of course, the rustiness that saw the King Tiger wipe me out was also the reason why I let it get separated and ultimately destroyed by the AI’s heavy guns, which again plays into the risk/reward balance of the army. Having seen my US army be wiped out by a single King Tiger, I was pretty eager to turn the tables and unleash my own on the AI, and it was great fun to see it leading the charge for me. However, for me the real joy of the Oberkommando West comes with the tanks.

You gain more resources for doing so, but it leaves part of your infrastructure vulnerable, even if these trucks are then dug in and surrounded by sandbags. As you capture territory, you can play with the risk and reward of driving what are effectively your base buildings out to control points, to create a forward base of sorts and give a visual twist and bulge-like look to the minimap. Here too, a large part of the individuality comes from the base building, with the army running off the backs of trucks. It brings together the ideas of the German’s technological superiority at the time, with heavily mechanised forces and particularly fearsome tanks, but also the lack of resources that led to the ambitious surprise attack at the Battle of the Bulge. That’s something which stands in contrast to the similarly broad strokes of the Oberkommando West. It all adds up to an army that, at first blush, seems to be light and nimble. Helping you back them up, you can also drop in unmanned machine guns and anti-tank cannons. Sending them deep into the fog of war is generally unwise, but the option is there, and there’s an improved interface, with a circle that scales and has chevrons to indicate wind direction simply and effectively. Vehicles can de-crew, for example, which does leave them far more vulnerable than staying behind metal, but means that your tanks and vehicles can now head out and capture control points for you.ĭropping in paratroops has also been improved, allowing you to do this at any point on the map, but with a varying degree of risk. It’s a flexibility which can be seen in almost every facet of the army.

Company of heroes 2: the western front armies