Hearts of Iron IV

[Barrister]

But, seriously, I'm about to put this game away and wait for a patch.  There are just a bit too many game-breaking bugs or design decisions at the moment.  Having no control over your borders, having clusterfuck borders after some countries capitulate, an AI that just can't figure out how to attack across the straits, it's just so many things that are obviously not working right.  My guess is that this game would be a lot more finished if D-Day happened on September 6.

First Paradox game then?

I think Paradox as of late has actually cleaned up their act when it comes to game releases, and no longer released games in their alpha or beta stage.  But with HOI IV, and from what it sounds like, Stellaris, they took a big step back.

Stellaris is eminently playable at release.

[frunk]

For me so is HOI IV.  We'll see as I get further in, but it's lightyears better than any other HOI at release.

[Zanza]

Stellaris lacks a bit of content in the middle of the game, but it does not have game-breaking bugs or design decisions.

[MadBurgerMaker]

If you like counters with NATO symbols, these are nice: http://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=699668071&searchtext=counters

I also got this to go with it: http://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=698665197&searchtext=

[Richard Hakluyt]

A naval battle report is needed.

[FunkMonk]

So I bought this after having a weird cold and I stayed home from work for a couple days because I felt miserable. Figured, why the hell not? I need something to do and their last game, Stellaris, didn't have any real game-breaking bugs and despite having little actual content, seems a solid enough base for an interesting and varied 4X game. Money decently spent, if not exactly a bargain.

I've played Hearts of Iron 4 for many hours now. The first several were just coming to grips with all the new systems and the UI. I've played mostly the United States because I figured it would be a good way to get to know the game. Safe, away from trouble, and the US typically has its hands full with every single one of the game's systems, from diplomacy, war in the air, on the ground, and at sea, and especially the mega importance this game puts on your economy. I like tooling around with supply chains and boy, does this game deliver on that front.

Every single aspect of war in this game is entirely dependent on your economy. What you build, how you set up your factories, the resource supply chain, and the logistics of getting yours tanks and your guns to the front, are all abstracted just enough to not make it feel automatic and therefore boring, but still require enough forethought and skill to make it challenging. Even as the US I feel like I need to produce a hundred different things but I only have enough resources to focus on some of them, to the detriment of others. The technology tree also ties into this; you only have a few slots so what you choose matters as it dictates what you can build, which dovetails nicely into the army division builder.

The division builder follows this same overall concept of "feel just right"  level of micro versus macro. I can easily build whatever the fuck I want, dependent of course on what you have available to you. Regardless of how easy it is, i still feel like the choices I made in the tech tree matter, and when I press the Train button that when my production and supply chains go to work filling out what I designed in the division builder. It's simple in its complexity and once you get it it's so intuitive that I felt like an idiot ever questioning this system at all. Seeing your little armies kitted out in gear you built especially for them and seeing how they fare makes me feel like my decisions matter. That's really, really good in a video game.

The diplomacy is less well fleshed out, and i wish the game would show better feedback in certain areas, like air combat and sea battles, but the system, as a whole, works, and works brilliantly. There does appear to be a bunch of little bugs in the game (for instance, I retooled a production queue once to a new fighter but it still kept on producing the old obsolete fighter) but I know P'dox will fix these. The AI is half challenging and half wonky. Sometimes it appears to have a brilliant time pushing your shit in and sometimes it leaves whole fronts undefended. These are things I also know will be improved upon.

To end, basically this is the most interesting and fully fleshed out AT RELEASE video game P'dox has ever put out. It's engaging. I'm always doing something, whether it's retooling factories or researching technology or browsing the focus tree or assembling armies with an easy to use front and attack order. And I always feel like what I decide matters. This is a far cry from Stellaris which is competent but utterly uninteresting at the moment. Hearts of Iron 4 has actually hooked me in a way a video game rarely has. I foresee countless hours coming up with new divisions and production chains and new ways to push Germany's shit in.

It is a good game. At $30 using the promo code on GMG it's a fucking steal. If you want, wait a couple patches. But buy it eventually.

[Zanza]

Heh, just bought it at Wingamestore.com for 29 USD. It asked me whether I live in Germany or the Rest of the World as the German version is censored and Steam enforces that.

[Zanza]

This looks pretty daunting. The various optimizations remind me of Excel. And not in a good way.

[frunk]

If you like counters with NATO symbols, these are nice: http://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=699668071&searchtext=counters

I also got this to go with it: http://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=698665197&searchtext=

I use Coloured Buttons, DzK Better Counters and better terrain view.

[MadBurgerMaker]

If you like counters with NATO symbols, these are nice: http://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=699668071&searchtext=counters

I also got this to go with it: http://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=698665197&searchtext=

I use Coloured Buttons, DzK Better Counters and better terrain view.

Yeah the colored buttons are good too.  I installed better terrain view at work, but haven't checked it out yet.  I was having some trouble telling what was what in some places, especially along the borders where the map is all glowy.

[jimmy olsen]

I'm just not really interested in WWII strategy games anymore, it's too unbalanced. The Allies can't really lose, and if the game allows you to win regularly as the Axis, it's probably not a very accurate game.

I'd rather play a mod/DLC WWI scenario.

[FunkMonk]

I'm just not really interested in WWII strategy games anymore, it's too unbalanced. The Allies can't really lose, and if the game allows you to win regularly as the Axis, it's probably not a very accurate game.

I'd rather play a mod/DLC WWI scenario.

That's a beef I have with the game too. How ahistorical you have to make the game to, well, make it a game. Historical accuracy sacrificed for the sake of a "balanced" game, but is it too much? I haven't played enough to answer that really answer that yet.

And I think you're absolutely right.  This game will fit a WW I scenario perfectly, actually. In some ways this game fits that war much better, namely the front system. And balancing the economies will probably be easier and a lot more "historical".

[Alcibiades]

Ai is terrible, there will never  be a D-day in the current set up, AI lands 1-2 divisions and does nothing with them.  The AI didn't even bother doing the Pacific campaign at all in my game.  There is no ledger, at all.  Can't tell how the naval war is going, just randomly sinking a few convoys with my subs every week.

Production is the best its been, so far.  Air war is much simplified, for good and bad.  Research kind of sucks, you upgrade sliders....but when you add 'weapon' or 'armor' upgrades to your vehicles, it does just that, its a stat increase.  No putting on  88mm gun instead of a 75mm gun etc.  Kind of meh. 

Also the new way that they handle armies sucks.  No leaders, and theyre basically all boring husks that slowly gain attributes and perks.  Old way was definitely better, really dislike this part the most.

[MadBurgerMaker]

Am I missing something, or is the air assignments interface really clunky?  It's kind of a pain to find units and shuffle them around or have them do stuff (click on airfield, click on airwing, right click? on region, find airwing in region list, click to give mission).  Carriers also seem to have the same thing going on, except it's sort of a mix of the naval and air UI.  Everything is run through little icons all over the map, then somewhat randomly located windows that open. 

[mongers]

Am I missing something, or is the air assignments interface really clunky?  It's kind of a pain to find units and shuffle them around or have them do stuff (click on airfield, click on airwing, right click? on region, find airwing in region list, click to give mission).  Carriers also seem to have the same thing going on, except it's sort of a mix of the naval and air UI.  Everything is run through little icons all over the map, then somewhat randomly located windows that open.

Fog of War?