Hearts of Iron III

[Banza]

To those unfamiliar to this game, little preview box made by Joe Robinson.

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A cult classic, Hearts of Iron is a strategy title from the Paradox development studios. The basics: You get to choose to play as one of countless countries that were present during World War 2, and lead them to victory over the rest of the world. Featuring a fully integrated combat model, a wide range of strategic and diplomatic options for your country, and an intuitive AI system, Hearts of Iron III is shaping up to be the best game in the series yet.

Just listening to the developers talk, and reading what little information that has been released so far, you can tell that Hearts of Iron is going to be getting a major overhaul. The official line by Paradox upon announcement was that the game would focus on satisfying veteran players through a multitude of brand new features and systems", and some of the changes made seem to support this.

One of the main changes that has been made to the game is size. There will be around 150 countries available from the start, more then the previous two titles, and all will be playable. There are also over 10,000 land provinces to be captured and controlled within these countries, so straight from the off you can tell this is going to be a larger game. The graphics have also been vamped up, making a shift that is comparable to when the Total War series went from Medieval to Rome. There will be new brigades and unit options available to you, more technology options, and even diplomacy has been given a re-vamp.

The potential scale of this game is staggering. Hearts of Iron as a series has always been notorious for being a hardcore strategy title, with a lot of micro-management. So far it seems as if this ethos hasnt changed, but the guys over at Paradox have also streamlined some features, to make things overall easier for the player. For example, there will be a new AI hierarchy system which will allow you to assign campaigns or fronts to them, so that you may better concentrate on the battles that need your immediate attention. The learning curve for the game in general will also (allegedly) be lowered, and you can even assign troops to particular theatres so that two-front wars can fought better.

In terms of warfare itself, the combat mechanics are being revised currently, so there were no concrete details available for that, however a new strategic warfare mode has been included, so it will be interesting to see what that will entail. As mentioned before there will be more brigade and division options, along with the ability to customise your divisions by adding in several different brigade types.

With historical accuracy being a major theme for Paradox games, you can be sure that Hearts III will be getting its fair dues. Youll be able to see thousands of political and military leaders in action as you play through the game, and all of the featured countries are accurate to the time, include those that could have plausibly come about during the time period for the game - 1936 to 1948.

Other new features include: A Government-in-exile system that allows you to operate even if your country is taken over. You can re-build your armies and even run guerrilla campaigns against the invaders. There will also be an all new intelligence system, with several types of intelligence sources available to you, making it possible to get information about all kinds of enemy movements. The new economic model will allow you to purchase weapons abroad, along with other commodities. The technology system has also been given a re-vamp, with multiple sections and certain countries can have unique attributes.

There will be three alignments in this game: Axis, Allied and Communism. Only a handful of countries will start off aligned, with the others remaining more or less useful. However, with historical accuracy being what it is, some countries will be more favorable towards one alignment then another, and so are more likely to join that faction. Still, there is still a lot of freedom within the game, especially when your own country is concerned.

Anyways, this aint much of spoiler, becouse best spoiler for this game is your history knowledge.
You tube link to intro! WOA!
And this is how game actually looks like.
Fan of micro-managment finaly are happy again! With new HoI number drei!

[Fletcher]

I got HoI II Armageddon, I WISH I had a PC powerful enough to play HoI III:(

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"Oh chuffing blimey, another day, another person being whiney!"
Fletcher's Feedback and Stories Thread

[Banza]

I belive it is coming out in August, maybe it is out already (who knows those shadow pirate ways).
From game SS's, and few clips on You Tube, game shouldnt have any high graphic demand. It is basicly same as HoI2 (Dooms/Arma) but with alot of new events, and er...AI, Diplomacy changes.

[Sarawr!?]

Well, if it's the same as HoI 2 Doomsday/Armageddon, then I should be all set because I have both of those, as well as the first HoI.

So...August?

Sweet.

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[LN] Recruitment | Rachel Baker Bio

[Banza]

Almost same.
Every new HoI had something new in it, but all basics are still the same. We'll see, soon enough.

[darthbeck]

i have HoI 2. the third one looks even more awsome.

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<span style="font-family:Century Gothic">Violence is Golden</span>

[Jihadjoe]

If I said I wasn't almost jumping up and down in anticipation about this, I'd be lying. It looks -awesome- and that is all I can say.

*counts his pennies*

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[Patrician]

Im dying for this to come out. Time to paint the world grey again. I loved the way they could cram so much detail into so little hard drive space in HoI2. This should be fantastic.

[Banza]

If you wants some Multiplayer action, leave your Skype, so when it comes out...*Rawr*

[CaltuRe]

The II much better than the III.

And someone said about multi?
I have HoI II Armagedon + mode 33 on it.