Recent reviews by JudgeAlfred

Low priced game that is worth every penny. A short, well crafted narrative with more to find/puzzle/explore for those who want all the lore but a very satisfying start-middle-end narrative for those who don't.


Had an amazing time with this one. Highly recommend.

As an avid player and Modification Leader on Company of Heroes 1, Excited is the least I could say about my anticipation of the sequel. I must admit, I played for the first couple of days after launch and then uninstalled it, and only returned to play it again after a couple of months had passed due to the sheer imbalances that were present at launch for Multiplayer.

I can safely say, and quite proudly say that overall the Company of Heroes 2 experience far surpasses the original. The amount of continued content and love this game gets in the form of various DLC/Content updates, plus freebies for those who are strapped for cash is a lovely addition to an already great game.

Before delving any further, it should be noted that the following arguments are the main issues which people raise with this game:

Is this game Pay to Win?

No. It is not pay to win. There are two doctrines per week which are free to all, allowing those who do not own them to use them in their loadouts and try them out. Doctrines are also able to be earned for free through the "War Spoils" system (Although it is quite new, so you will get many drops of things you already own rather than what you'd actually like.) And most importantly none of the Doctrines you could possibly purchase are unfair in anyway, shape or form.

Purchasing a doctrine is another way for players to spice up their gameplay and replayability for multiplayer and if they so wish it, compstomps. Many people seem to think that this is blasphemy, but I must say the original became far to repetative due to the low number of units and options available to a player. With continued support and additions from Relic, players are able to consistently get new experiences and fresh strategies added to the mix which overall adds to the fun factor of the game.

Is the Campaign Biased against Russians?

In my opinion, it is not. The Campaign wasn't something that Relic dreamed up in a meeting; it was heavily based off the writings of a Soviet war correspondent. If you take a look at the source material that this campaign is meant to be loosely based off of, you would probably commend Relic for not being nearly as harsh on the Soviet regime and their practices as the source material was.

Having said this, the campaign might bring up the dark splotches of the past for the Russians, and this seems to be the largest issue people have with it. However, in my humble opinion the pros far outweigh the cons and while parts of the story are dark, they are so for a reason. It is clear that by the end of the campaign everyone is not happy or okay with what has occured within the regime, and I think that is good character development for the plot. Having said this, not everyone will like it regardless. The missions themselves are well thought out in relation to the story, and there are some interesting mechanics with Order "227" and free off map units which keep the gameplay separate and unique from skirmish mode.

Is the AI terribad?

For experienced multiplayer veterans of CoH2, it is by far a breeze to fight against. For newcomers to RTS games or to CoH2 it is perfectly fine. AI has never been the strong suit of CoH as a franchise, and I have to say the AI is more competent than the first one.

All in all I think this title is underrated, and many people seem to have unwarrented issues with this title. This is not just CoH1 with a new paintjob, it is an entirely new game that boasts it's own ideas on how the game should be played, and some may not like that. For me personally, I love this new direction. There are some issues with certain doctrinal units that have never really been fixed (Osttruppen being more or less a waste of space, Field Artillery Officer being in many doctrines that it doesn't really supplement well to dignify it's purpose, etc.) But overall the new content continues to be more and more interesting, offering even cooler ways to play the game.