Company of Heroes Review | Should You Play it in 2019? 

the retreat-mechanic is absolutely revolutionary.

It's a timeless game,the physics and graphics still hold up,also sometimes using Trainers is fun,just bomb the battlefield to bits looking at flying corpses

07:51 They even placed a visible tank crew on the unit model, now that is WWII RTS done with a passion.

Masterpiece of all time. From struggling to beat normal ai to challenge of defeat a hard ai with barrack only and no doctrine allowed. Yeah, I don’t think there will be any RTS game can replace it.

Just fired this game up after a long while and realized... This is how RTS games should be. Even modern RTS games can’t hold up to this masterpiece. Also, I got the second game (base game) for free on Steam. It will be free until 11/17.

Coh1 campaigns are all amazing, I still love each and every one of them.

Yes play this game and best part is when you hear Kampfgruppe lehr has proven its supperiority once more!

Best part of CoH 1 are your units. (at least for me). They are so precious, just listen to them and you'll see why. Props to the voice actors, they did a fantastic job!

Ill never stop playing... Its potatoe and noob friendly. I never got that great at micro managing but i can still pretend im multi taaking with that delightful shift button :)

With Modern Combat Mod and Modern Wafare OST I CAN STILL GO FOR 20 YEARS

This video: *exist* Me: don't you dare massacre my boy

Coh2 is one of the Best multiplayer RTS games IMO. It´s the only game I´ve never uninstalled and played consistently every week since release.

I played Coh2 1600 hours in 1 year I love Coh2

With regards to the drop in fps, it's usually due to the terrain scarring that occurs as the game goes on, and the game engine is optimised to handle a certain number of models (hence the double meaning in the word "company"), so massive armies like in 9:46 would definitely murder your framerate. Still, great video, and yeah, still playing it even now, especially with a bit of tinkering (can't really say modding cos it isn't) with the game files so that German units speak German, something you can't do in COH2.

I would like to expand the range of opinions you've heard about CoH II: it's my favorite strategy game of all time. While it sacrifices some the asymmetry present in the first game, it does so in the interest of making a far more balanced competitive experience. The asymmetry is still there, and very significant, but the factions are over-all more similar than in the first game. The true sight system is the single biggest improvement over the first game, besides the tighter competitive balance, and it adds a great deal of depth. Vaulting is certainly nice, but not nearly as much of a game changer. Where the first game really shines is in it's single player campaign and presentation. While the sequel is miles ahead in terms of graphical fidelity, the first game really nailed sound design with phenomenal voice acting and writing for every faction. The sound track is unforgettable, moving between tense and epic. The original commander system was also better than the one in CoH II, which is unfortunately oriented towards micro transactions. Modding is also vastly better in CoH I. Both games are strong contenders for my favorite strategy game, but CoH II wins out mostly due to my greater interest in multiplayer competitive compared to campaign. If I just wanted to chill out with a couple of friends, I think CoH I might be the better experience. It's far less punishing and stressful than the sequel, with lethality being a lot lower. It's a game that lends itself to just enjoying the atmosphere. But normally I'm looking for a tightly balanced and tense 1v1 brawl, which is where the sequel really shines.

This game is absolutely brilliant, picked it up a few days ago Such a shame that Dawn of War 3 ended up how it did

I have to say this: the soundtrack is simply AMAZING which is quite rare among RTS. And the campaign is one of best. The first mission was such a masterpiece, no one beats it!

I LOVE COH1, but I enjoy COH2 more. It's more intense and brutal. Plus the feature to have variety when it comes to skimish options is amazing.

I still remember the Demo for this game, waiting hours to download for a demo on my Dial-up. One Skirmish Map (Duclair?) And US Carentan Campaign. But it was worth it.

"a period of time that has been seldom explored in the strategy genre" boy, what about Codename panzers, Stalingrad, Blitzkrieg I and II, Commandos, Men of War/Faces of War, Theatre of War, Close Combat, Combat Mission, Panzer General, Hearts of Iron? As far as I am aware, early 2000s were full of WWII Strategy games :P

You should give COH 2 a chance. There are some really good mods (Spearhead for example) that overhauls the game completely. I have almost 900 h on it

It really isn't rock paper scissors. Yes small arms fire won't damage most tanks or buildings, but it is much more dependent on tactics. An anti-tank gun is a hard counter for armour, but tanks can outmaneuver and destroy the guns. MGs are a hard counter to infantry, but infantry can flank and destroy mg positions. In true 'rock paper scissors' this would not be possible where the hard counters would win regardless of how the units are used which is the case in most other RTS games.

Making an Intro of about 1min30 developing the narrative and making that engaging is very tough work and you nailed it

Great video Zade, It's been years since I played COH myself but I'm reinstalling right now

I enjoyed your gwent stream today - keep it up! Subscriped to your yt as well of course. But why is there no Gwent content on your channel? Would be nice ;)

I still play this game to this day with my younger brother and my nephew. And though it is dated, the mechanics to this day still hold up amazingly. The AI to this day still proves challenging to beat on Skirmish, combined with the rock-paper-scissors concept you covered, the AI knows how to flank, find loopholes on your defenses, and even retaliate if you are far behind their lines by outflanking you. And yes, EVERY UNIT COUNTS, even the basic Rifleman Squad can put an Iron Cross Unit on pinned while you get a Sherman Crocodile to them down. My brother, my nephew, and I have yet to beat 3 Experts on a 3v3 skirmish. And the Campaign is gripping! You get to feel the grit and complication while you are busy laying the groundwork to victory for each campaign. Red Ball express is a pain in the ass, but Carentan and Cherbourg was amazing. The German Campaigns was a welcome addition too! So should you play it? Heck yes. I'm playing it with friends every weekend, and the multiplayer base is very much alive to this day. If you want a fix of reality and want out on the Red Alert-esque style of play, go for Company of Heroes!

If you get the choice between the first and second game, choose the first one. CoH 2 is in all matter (except graphics, but that's not what you're really looking for if you want a good RTS) a downgrade from the first game. The tech tree from the first game was changed to a "doctrine" system, with doctrines that you can buy (or grind), with each one giving you specific abilities/units at specific levels. You only get 2 factions unless you are willing to spend 13€ for each individual faction. The game is littered with microtransactions, ranging from benign camouflages that don't affect gameplay, to "bulletins" (basically upgrades to specific units) and doctrines/commanders, some of which are essential for competitive games or flat out better than others. Other than tha gameplay is mostly unchanged from the first one, with the notable exception of snow maps that have a blizzard mechanic, though that's rather minor and only serves to slow gameplay down. The whole experience feels more like a grindy free-to-play game rather than a decently priced game.

Now Oct 2019, I love this just start. I love your video!

Great vid man! No mention or footage of the British airborne though?! Landing gliders right in the middle of no man's land and storming the enemy with troops and tetrarchs never got old. Yeah, they were generally weak units, but they'd make the coolest entrance ever - death from above baby!!! The US airborne were also awesome

When strategies were AAA pc games, love that era.

Great review! This is one of my favorite childhood games

Nice Vid! btw i have a question. Can you play the first 3 campaign with only coh tales of valor? Idk which one i want to buy

I do play skirmish on daily basis. Best WW2 game along with Steel Division 2. I think my fav. thing about CoH2 is destruction and physics, plus great sound effects and soundtrack.

Add the blitzkrieg mod for more fun! I still love this game :)

great review if you can get your hands on it. i'd like it if you could cover *armies of exigo* its a good rpg with a medium learning curve. sadly its not on steam. would have to find a disk copy or....do it the "other" way.

Great review!

CoH, Blitzkrieg, Axis & Allies, Codename: Panzers, Men of War. Good days, gotta revisit.

Fantastic review would love to play this but what spec PC do I need to play it please?

The clicking dialogue was pure gold Paratrooper: "Airborne! Wanna go blow up HQ?!" Sherman: "Oh goody we've got one of *those* players." Grenadier: "Clickity fucking click! Fucking scheisse!"

Great video! Well done. :)

Needs bigger squads, let caution or movement speed priority option to determine hit accuracy to balance it.

is it still worth it on 2020 for multiplayer mode? i mean is there still many players play this game? i have played this game but only campaign mode never experienced the multiplayer mode.

just bought this, maybe 2 months ago. Great game, still learning.

Yes, it now soon 2020 and I used to play Command & Conquer and this game blows that away. I love to see C&C do a WW2 based game in their format, please!

Love this game. Also found some cheats that remove the ability cooldown so what do I do spam artillery and make the map a crater hell hole.

What RTS was that that you first showed in the 1st second?

Wait, Jeremy Soule was the one who composed the music for the original Company of Heroes?! I've known and loved this game for over a decade, and this is still news to me. Wouldn't say it pops into my memory like his work in Elder Scrolls, but it fits the WWII setting perfectly.

I'm playing CoH in 2022 (it's been almost 12 years I think) and this game still kicks ass to this day. One of my favorite games of all time.

Can you still play Company Of Heroes online? i used to play with the new steam version or something really want to play online again

the servers are still avaliable in 2020 via steam?

9:45 Great scots! Its not even spawn camping anymore, its base raping.

Found the game disc for this game packed in a move box never tried it back when i got it but 2023 feels like the right time to try it out

Tiger Ace campaign is the best in this game oh, and the soundtrack for each faction is also aight

I v played this game since 2007. I bought the game DVD and installed the game in my laptop. Now i still play it in steam occationally.

5:28 That's why it's called Strategy, because individual units doesn't matter, as it's more about the grand scale. When individual units matter it's called Tactics. Hence why I think it would be more appropriately to call COH a real-time tactics game, rather than strategy.

What was the fantasy RTS that he showed? Battle for Middle-Earth II?

Company of Heroes is a fantastic RTS game! I do play CoH2 these days, but I look back at the original from time to time. By the way: I am looking forward to the boardgame that has just been successfull on Kickstarter. I was always looking for a boardgame that comes close to the CoH series.

I would recommend CoH2, but only buy the Multiplayer faction DLC. The campaign DLC are broken because of balance changes so DONT BUY!

COH is on sale on steam right now. you can get COH 1, 2 and all the dlc for $13.99 right now

Company of heroes 2 now has an option to get every general without necessarily paying for it with real money. I'd recommend it too

When you get this game on Steam, it will set your FPS to 24, i am not sure if its for everyone. But to fix it, open properties of the game and at Start Options Type the following : -Refresh now type the Refresh Herz rate of your Monitor, if its 60 you type -refresh 60 if you got 120 type 120 and so on. Doing this will lock the FPS to your Refresh Herz Rate of your Screen. Enjoy and have fun with this Legend of a Game !!!!

The BEST RTS ever!! And it's 14 years old! Amazing

Will it came out on the i pad

what are names of the sci-fi and fantasy games he showed in the beginning?

I find this is my go to when I want to play something. The only thing is Relic online is a little buggy, does not keep you rank anymore in online matches.

I was constantly frustrated by the ai in skirmish. It was smart and incredibly challenging just on normal. This game really made you think about every move you made.

Where in New Zealand are you from?

I would love to see you cover the Men of War series! I'd say it does not get enough recognition among the RTS genre.

*COH 2 ITS TOO ARCADE*

I love CoH 1 and 2. Especially for CoH 1, I can run it at crappy potato PC. And appplied some mods in it. Effect and gameplay are still the same for both game. But hey, I loved that British bunker tanks in CoH 1 (Churchill series).

Simply put: CoH is just fun, it ain't a micromanagement hell, it isn't always fair and units have enough health to rectify stupid mistakes, but it makes for such a fun experience. It's the only game I can think of where I have played every campaign multiple times, and I just keep coming back, because they're just good fun

I’ve always thought that CoH was an RTT game. But after playing it, I realize, it was more of a modern evolution of Dawn Of War 1, with a realistic theme. I’m kinda impressed with the gameplay, and how it felt so unique, I’ve already put 72 hours for both CoH 1 & CoH 2. It’s just feel so refreshing, after many years and nearly 1 decade of playing C&C 3. :)

I cannot wait to see a homeworld video or one for world in conflict

This is the first video I have watched by you. I think it wont be the last

You know i still play this game in 2022 And if you play with your friends is pure gold time

Jeremy Soule did tracks for CoH? Wow! Had no idea, no wonder I like it so much lmfao.

The legacy edition is on sale right now through steam

Just bought this game I am so looking forward to it

"A period of time that had seldom been explored in the strategy genre" Excuse me, what? If you mean in traditional RTS form, I'd agree, but there had been tons and tons of WW2 games in the wider strategy genre by 2006.

Excellent, dude

You are not mentioning the armor physics of this game, which is really great.

Always in my heart. Also with the CoH Online f2p game which was fun too but not available anymore.

Mix factions mod allows to play allies and axis in same team, also i like europe at war mod over blitzkrieg who is also good mod.

I still consistently play my hard copy of CoH from 2006. It's an amazing game, and the second one is just as good imo.

I’ve played both games extensively. Mostly multiplayer on coh2. I think coh2 is a great time and graphics look great every time I play. This is just my opinion, and of course each game is wonderful.

I have never been the biggest rts fan, but love historical strategy games like hoi4 or a couple of other games. CoH1 is probably my favorite rts ever, I bought it on a whim while on sale waiting for a update for a different game to drop, and played through the whole game and all dlc in a few days. Honestly CoH was more fun than that update ever was. Definitely worth it even from the perspective of a person who doesn't care about rts that much. I would give it a solid 9.5 out of 10, just because CoH2 had some qol features. Otherwise this would be 10/10

Just had a lan this weekend and coh2 was played heavily. Good stuff :):)

its weird because I have memorys of the game running well when it first came out, but i might not have had a sharp eye for such details at the time, does anyone else know if it ran better on PC's of the era?

When I start to play the game I can't see my units and it's very laggy.

I still play for the online, it's not the hardest game to learn to play to a decent level with all the main mechanics being intuitive and the visual feedback.

I love CoH 1 campaign, the intro, soundtrack, the heat of the war, map design... Got me feel very realistic

One thing that always bothered me a little about this one is the extremely limited amount of factions you get to play, even with the expansions. Whenever I play a historical strategy game (and I DO prefer historical ones over fictional ones), one thing I always look forward to is seeing all the different sides of a conflict, and COH just didn't deliver on that front at all, even with the expansions. Still a great game though, but it's certainly something that has always annoyed me.

CoH 2 has been given away a lot for free. Its almost impossible for one to NOT have it today. Another is that you can play CoH 2 if you just buy a dlc. No base game required.

Alongside command and conquer and the Lord of the Rings strategy games this is one of the best strategy games ever made for PC

It's probably very subjective, but the OST you have chosen to highlight is on the lower end. 'A Storm's Brewing' or the 'Main Theme' would be way better - in my opinion. As for negatives, CoH is kind of arcadey and barebones in vanilla. Unit pathing and responsiveness could see improvements as well. All the pros are spot on.

is there a community still for coh1?

The problem I found with this game is the learning curve. It's the kind of game I got tired of, but then want to get back to every now and then. Relearning is not like riding a bike, certainly. The gameplay is diverse enough that little parts of the game are only remembered upon experiencing them again, such as the RNG and the tiny little unit interactions that can make or break an entire match. Matches themselves can last up to an hour or longer sometimes (or maybe me and my team mates are all just noobs).

I'm still playing most weeks a decade since I got it and I fully expect to be playing in another decade. It's a game like chess, timeless.

Now we need a video of if you should play company of heroes in 2024.

What hardware do you run?