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Company of Heroes 3 is Relic Entertainment’s upcoming newest entry to the Company of Heroes series, and we got the chance to preview the game.
According to the developers, Company of Heroes 3 will be the biggest Company of Heroes game to be ever released across both Single and Multiplayer Co-Op.
Single Player Battalion
As previously mentioned, Company of Heroes 3 will be featuring the biggest single player campaign at launch in the franchise’s history.
Contributing to that would be the North Africa Operation, which is the focus that we will be going through in the preview.
You may have guessed it, in the North Africa Operation, the players will be playing as the long awaited African Corps. The African Corps will be featuring a new radical mobile, hard hitting style of gameplay that will be a fresh new experience for fans of the franchise.
Re-experience some of the most famous battles from this period like the second Battle of Tobruk and the Battle of El Alamein as you fight off against the British Forces in the North African Operation.
Experiencing it first-hand, the diverse set of environments like the hot desert winds that sweeps across the battlefield accompanied it by the tank against tank combat is a breath of fresh air.
The authentic North African culture ranging from small coastal fishing villages and popular tourist sights, was a relatively unique experience if you were you compare it to the previously shown Italy.
The development team mentioned that the inclusion of the North Africa Operation is largely due to the under-representation of the Mediterranean region in game media and they would like show their interpretation of World War 2 in North Africa.
Introducing DAK
Play as the famous Deutsches Afrika Korps faction for the first time in the Company of Heroes franchise that introduces a new type of gameplay with focuses more on heavily mechanised, and armoured vehicle tactics with long-ranged artillery fire.
Taking inspiration to the real life African Corps, the development team wanted it to be close to the real deal such as their dependency on vehicles and how their infantry worked with it to make the gameplay experience be as authentic as possible.
Here are some of the list of new units that came along with the North African Forces:
| Panzerpioneer Squad | Panzergrenadier Sqaud | MG34 Machine Gun Team |
| le.IG 18 Support Gun Team | Pak 38 Anti-tank Gun Team | Pak 36 88 |
| Famo Recovery Half Track | StuG III D Assault Gun Sd.Kfz.142 | Panzer 3 tank |
| Panzer 3 flamm | Guastatori Squad(combat engineer) - italian units | L6/40 Light Tank - italian units |
The North African force’s prowess lies with their tanks and vehicles and their unique hit and run tactics that wrecks havoc and spread terror on the battlefield.
Relive the battlefield
One of the main parts of the appeal with the North African Corps would be some of their historical battles that took place in Tobruk and El Alamein.
If you’re a WWII history buff with an interest in specifically the North African, you’ll be in for a treat as the North African Operation will be told in a more narrative driven experience in comparison to the Italy campaign.
The new faction isn’t the only thing that’s being newly added to Company of Heroes 3 – brand new features will also be implemented to take the beloved Company of Heroes formula to a whole new level.
One of the new features that’s added to Company of Heroes 3 is tank riding, where players are able to mount infantry units on top of a tank and use that as a combined force.
Players can utilise this new feature to able to get their units around the map faster and also opens up brand new opportunities which includes new flanking routes, and new strategic planning overall.
This is feature is added particularly in relevance for the North African troops with their combined synergy of infantry and mechanised vehicles.
Unlike in previous entries of the Company of Heroes franchise where major pieces of artillery or guns have been in fixed positions where their utility were limited.
In Company of Heroes 3, players will be introduced to a new feature where players will be able to tow and reposition those powerful weaponry and redeploy in the battlefield with brings in more flexibility and strategy positioning.
Although, while repositioning across the field, those equipment will still be vulnerable to enemy fire, so players will need to keep in mind while trying to move around those artillery, which opens up a more interesting and engaging gameplay for Company of Heroes 3.
Another feature that has been improved is the side armour which the development team talked about previously, where the features adds in a new dimension to vehicular combat where positioning and flanking is put on a higher priority during combat because players will be awarded for it.
In my opinion, this is a pretty neat new mechanic that they added in this new entry to the franchise, as it includes a whole new level of micro-managing individual units which is very reminiscent to my time playing the RTS genre.
Additionally, traversable trenches has been added to the game. Players will be able to ride their tanks over the top of the trenches even if its occupied by other infantry units, which adds in a lot more authentic and organic flavour towards the vehicle-infantry combat.
Rooftop combat is also a new feature that players will be able to see. Players are able to take cover on top of ruse to shoot through adjacent buildings or units that are out in the battlefield, as it adds in a more immersive and cinematic experience for players.
By combining these new mechanics, it adds a new sense of verticality and players can take advantage of the high grounds in certain situations. Whether it be breaching buildings, dislodging or entrenching enemy positions, this gives players a new sense of flavour to their usual gameplay sessions.
Numbers Win Wars
Company of Heroes 3 will be introducing four new factions that players will be able to play as, adding in new and old factions from previous Company of Heroes games. The list of playable factions are as follows:
US Forces
One of the Company of Heroes stapled factions, the US forces will stick through the classic American faction feel while some new flavour has been added this time around.
New units and mechanics along with a brand new faction mechanic has been added to allow fun new ways for players to experience through a fresh look on the classical American Army, but at the same time, not straying too far away from the formula so that veteran players will have a sense of familiarity to this classic faction.
British Forces
Unlike past games, the British Forces this time around will be quite different. They will be the least complex faction to play as this time around.
They will also be getting a whole new toolbox, a lot of brand new units which features a lot of adaptability to combat different combat scenarios.
Wehrmacht
This will be the German Army in Italy that has been worked the most closely with the player base over the years to get them right. From the feedback, players wanted a more traditional re-imaging of the Wehrmacht Army.
Maintaining in the defensive trade, excellent team weaponry, formidable infantry units, and late game armour which will be difficult to deal with if players are not properly prepared.
This new German Army will be having a lot of new faction mechanics and interesting ways that players can deploy to form up new strategies in the battlefield.
Africa Korps
The new faction on the block, and also the most anticipated faction in the community. The DAK will be focusing more on hit and run tactics with mobility being the core mechanic for this army’s identity. This faction will be combining the synergy between aggressive and defensive mechanised units on the battlefield. An emphasis on Italian units will also be playing a part of this army through battle groups.
North Africa Mission Alpha
In the first mission, we also got to try out some of the few new mechanics that were added to the game, such as the Towing, Tank Riding and Vehicle Recovery.
As we mentioned before, the African forces is a faction that revolves around mobility. As their key strength, the player’s army can consist of multiple trucks that bring in reinforcements, emplacements and repairs all directly to the frontlines.
We found that having a backbone of at least two or three frontline infantry units consisting of a few Panzergrenadiers that can be created from Headquarters to get your army up and going.
In this mission, we were got to create an le.IG 18 Support Gun which an artillery weapon that is extremely useful against static troops and other support weapons later on.
For newcomers to the Company of Heroes franchise, entering your first combat engagement can be a bit overwhelming as the action sequences all unfold rather quickly. But if things get a bit hectic, players can opt to play at their own pace with the Full Tactical Pause by pressing the “Spacebar” key.
This feature will allow players to freeze their game and allow you to issue up multiple commands at once. And once you’re done with issuing orders, you can press the “Spacebar” key again to let all the sequenced action unfold.
Your success on the battlefield largely depends on using the combined forces to overrun the enemy. As you smoke your enemies with the aid of the Panzer 3 or from the le.IG 18 Support Gun.
One useful skill for some of your tank units would be the ability to fire without needing vision. To use this skill, you can attack the ground or by pressing the “E” key and clicking into the fog of war. This is an essential skill to use if you’re planning on clearing garrison buildings without risking being in the line of sight.
During tank fights, it’s worth noting that the increased chances of penetration will be applied on all shots to the side and the rear of enemy tanks, so this makes the positioning of your unit’s armour be really important. To avoid that, players can use reverse skill on your vehicles to keep your critical points safe from enemy fire.
On that note, if the HP of your tanks get low , it’s better to fall back and get them back into fighting shape by having your engineers and recovery vehicles to assist in repairs.
There’s also the faction’s mainline infantry units who also can assist in repairs, though it’s not recommended since they take a longer time to repair your vehicular units.
In the scenario that your infantry units get dangerously low on health, you can select and press the retreat skill to send them back to HQ or the nearest stationed outpost. By doing that, it saves you the cost of needing to build up new squads.
Veteran units that are on the battlefield for a certain amount of time will also have enhanced benefits, so keeping your units alive is strategically more efficient.
Players will also be able to unlock specific army abilities as you advance through the mission. One of the example would be able to call in the two available Italian units, the Guastatori and the L6/40 Light tank, which has the Luftwaffe Staffel and Bombing Run skills that came in handy during the late game section of the mission.
Company of Heroes 3 will also give units an advantage if they are positioned on the high ground. Players can take advantage of this new mechanic of verticality to gain the upper hand over unsuspecting troops, quite literally.
During my time of playing, I found it to be an enjoyable experience overall going through with the campaign mission.
While I only got to play one mission during the preview, the feel of commandeering your units and micro-managing them through the battlefield in this scale is extremely satisfying, especially for someone who enjoys strategy games.
The newly added North African Corps which was also really fun to play, as the units and gameplay style feel very distinguishable to the other available units in the game.
For more information and future updates on Company of Heroes 3, do check out their official website.
