The NDA for Relic’s upcoming standalone mutliplayer expansion, Company of Heroes 2: The Western Front Armies, has just been partially lifted. The testers that have experienced the game up to this point are now allowed to divulge some details before the release on June 24th. We’ve compiled a bunch of info about the upcoming game below.
Confirmed Units
United States
- Sherman 75 and Sherman 76
- M3 Stuart
- US 105 Howizter
- US armored Calvary AFV with 75mm short
- US riflemen with bars and bazookas
- Us infantry with Grease guns
- US halftrack
- US medical truck
- M8 recon
- US M36
Oberkommando West
- Halftrack Stuka
- Panzer III Long
- Panzer IV short and long
- Panther
- King Tiger
- Fallchirmjagers with FG42s
- Pumas
- Jagdtiger, sturmtiger
- Jagdpanzer IV
Additionally, in a screenshot released by Polygon today, you can see the wreckage of an M7 Priest self-propelled howitzer on the battlefield towards the lower left. It’s very likely we’ll also see this unit in the game.
Confirmed Maps
- Hurtgen Forest (2-4 players)
- Trois Pont (2-4 players)
2 maps have been confirmed up to this point due to the partial NDA lift. It was reported by a tester to that the actual total will stretch to around 8 maps at launch.
Confirmed Mechanics
Risk vs Reward
– US Paratroopers can be dropped anywhere on the map, including places hidden by fog of war. Environment objects such as dense forests can kill your paratroopers as they land.
– The German Sturmtiger is an insanely powerful tank that fires a 38cm rocket. Once fired though, the Sturmtiger crew must exit the vehicle to manually reload for the next shot. The crew is highly vulnerable to counterattack during this time.
– The German King Tiger tank will require a huge amount of resources; for most players the King Tiger will be their only tank. While the King Tigers gun is the most devastating anti-tank weapon in the game, the King Tiger is also slow in both speed and turret rotation. Effectively using the King Tiger will require cordinationing with teammates to ensure it doesn’t get flanked.
– The German Oberkommano team will utilize mobile bases; a similar mechanic was seen in the original Company of Heroes game for the British. Additional resources will be granted for brave players that expand their bases to the front lines, despite the grave risk of losing everything in battle.
You can pre-order Company of Heroes 2 – The Western Front Armies
right now on Amazon.com for $19.99, this includes both the US and Oberkommano West teams. The standalone multiplayer expansion is set to release on June 24th, 2014.