Hearts of Iron IV: Paradox Games play Best with Friends Part II

 Paradox Games With Friends: 

Europa Universalis IV: Paradox Games play Best with Friends

Hearts of Iron IV: Paradox Games play Best with Friends Part II 

Time Played: 43 Hours (Greece, British Raj, Brazil, and Italy)

During the pandemic I find that I've switched from playing mostly single player games, to playing mostly multiplayer games. Before the coronavirus I played three games a week, one of Dota, another of Europa Universalis IV, and a third game with other friends. Since March I've added Overwatch, Among Us, Phasmaphobia, and a second Paradox game to my inventory.

My friends and I couldn't continue our second game of EU4, due to file corruption. The four of us started our third iteration, which we just finished, but one friend joined me in a multiplayer adventure through other Paradox Games. The Hearts of Iron series is beset with dangers. Each player claims that only their favorite version of HoI (2, 3, Darkest Hour, or 4), is worth playing. I had tried Hearts of Iron II (20 hours), eight years ago! My friend had extensive experience with II, but we played III instead. Well, we would have, but the multiplayer server wouldn't allow our two games to connect. When Hearts of Iron IV went on sale, we bought it.

Neither of us had played Hearts of Iron IV before, but while I had minimal experiences with the series, my friend had played HoI II. He told me the series was designed to be played as the Axis, because the Allies are stronger. Playing a quick solo game as Greece confirmed this. While I did absolutely nothing, the Allies conquered Italy by 1941, and marched into Berlin by 1942. I witnessed a similar outcome as I ruled the British Raj. Both of these nations were limited politically, and I played these games quickly to their conclusion. Greece is shacked into diplomatic neutrality. Raj develops into an industrial power, but as a vassal of the United Kingdom, it lacks political decisions. After earning some experience, I played Brazil, the superpower of South America. There are interesting lesser nations, but most players will prefer to stick to the superpowers.

My friend and I partnered up as Germany and Italy, with myself as the lesser partner. The host chooses a starting date between 1936 and 1939. An earlier start, before the War, expands the players' options. Changing research, political maneuvers, and industrial production allow players to enter World War II with different resources than the historical event. Starting in 1936 offers these advantages, but with obvious downsides. HoI IV is about war, and the lack thereof is dull. Two conditions alleviate this boredom. Like EU4, all Paradox games allow playing at faster speeds. With so little to do, even speed x3 or x4 allow proper decision making during the per-war period. And of course, planning out the war (and talking about random stuff) passes the time.

Hearts of Iron IV feels like a faster game than EU4. At normal speed, each day in EU4, and each hour in HoI IV is two real life seconds. EU4 contains approximately 135,720 days, while HoI includes (from 1936) 113,880 hours. That's only twenty percent smaller, but HoI contains more empty time than its sibling. The first three years required only four 1½ hour sessions to finish. Even during the war we averaged six months at least a session.

Prior to the war Italy researched better weapons and tactics, built civilian and military factories, and prepared the political under-girding to turn neutral nations into fascist allies.

For military success the player designs divisions template. Each nation comes with a few prepared templates, but they are not sufficient for victory. The player must design their own to succeed, but look at this, just look at it:

This designer isn't for beginners. Two columns of stats, one of costs, seven terrain adjusters, the player can add additional combat units and support groups, and this is just a simple infantry division. Hearts of Iron IV expects the player to comprehend the relevant data, and the best division composition, with minimal education. A new player can't be expected to succeed with a major power on their first play through, but many lesser powers are too dull to play. And weaker nations won't provide a sufficient experience to learn the best division compositions.

Germany proceeded through the normal steps of preparing for World War II. One significant difference was, if memory recalls correctly, invading the Netherlands before it was guaranteed by the Allies. This ensured that, after the Allies joined the war to defend Poland, Germany was quicker to begin its attack against France, because it had to pass through one fewer enemy.

As Germany was doing its thing, my most significant contribution was in the Spanish Civil War. The outcome of this war is the most significant determiner of the game. The conflict begins in mid 1936, when the rest of the world is free of conflict. HoI IV allows Italy to send three volunteer divisions to aide the rebels. German can only send one division. In such a small war, with both sides poorly prepared and equipped, these four divisions made all the difference. Based on the evidence of only five games of HoI IV, the Spanish Civil War is a toss up. The Fascists win half the time, while the Communists win the other half. The Allies can't win the civil war. A communist in Spain makes a Fascist victory in Europe impossible. Once Germany betrays the Soviet Union, they'll have a perpetual sore on their western flank. A fascist victory in Spain doesn't ensure Germany's success, but it is essential.

At 1939 the war in Europe exploded. As Italy I persuaded the Balkans and Turkey to join the fascist Axis, while assaulting Great Britain's African territory from my bases in Libya and Ethiopia. In contrast to real life, I conquered the Suez Canal, trapping British forces in Sudan. From there I began a long campaign which stalled out along the Congo River, and just short of the Coast of South Africa. With another Army Group, Italy invaded modern Tunisia and Algeria, pushing to the outskirts of Algiers.

It was about this time that the United States entered the war. My friend in Germany, having crushed the Russian defenses, was past Moscow, nearing the Ural Mountains. Under my influence, a Turkish revolution had secured the country for fascism, and eastern Europe as well. Iran, Iraq, and Afghanistan would join later. But the United States changed everything. The Allies, under the United Kingdom had initiated numerous naval invasions across Europe, but the might of the USA altered the outcome.

As Italy neared total victory in Africa, and with Germany close to annihilating the Soviet Union, I glanced at my long neglected homeland. I was shocked to see it dotted with American, British, and French troops. Unlike Europa Universalis IV which notifies the player with pop-ups whenever a territory is captured, Hearts of Iron IV doesn't do any of that. The Allies, with their overwhelming naval superiority were able to conquer Italy in days. My ally and I noticed this near the end of a session. We looked at the auto save feature. Europa Universalis saves the three most recent January 1sts, but Hearts of Iron IV only saves the 1^st day of the most recent month. We couldn't rescue the war from when we noticed the invasion, and unfortunately that was the 4^th of May, meaning the only save file was May 1^st. We decided to replay the session the following week.

Even forewarned, the Allied Invasion nearly caught us by surprise. Americans took Sicily and the boot of Italy south of Napes, while the British and more Americans captured everything north of Rome. I held a sliver of the country, the middle, including the capital. This defense earned enough time to enabled me to conquer South Africa and Sub-Saharan Africa, while Germany pushed past the Urals.

Still the Soviet resisted, but Italian forces were returning home. With all of west Russia under German control, the Soviets moved the capital to Vladivostok on the Sea of Japan. Japan was engaged in a separate war with the Allies, but at peace with the communists. I had a brilliant plan. Invite Japan into the war, launch an invasion from Japanese controlled Korea, and finally knock the Soviets out of the war. This would free up desperately needed German forces for the Western Front.

Even I couldn't have imagined how successful my plan would be. My friend in Germany had been trying for years to convince fascist Spain to join the Axis. The Spaniards had repeatedly refused, claiming exhaustion from their civil war. Yet, Japan joined our war, and brought Spain along as well, under their leadership.

Great Britain, England, and other Allied forces were entrenched in Southern France, Northern Italy, Southern Italy, Yugoslavia, Greece, and Turkey. But in a swift move, Spain conquered Gibraltar. With the Rock under Spanish control, and the Suez managed by Italy, no Allied supplies could enter into the Mediterranean Sea. In a single diplomatic stroke, hundreds of divisions were stripped of supplies, and eventually captured. Italy was saved, Vichy France protected, Africa conquered, and Russia defeated. With this abrupt turn of events, Axis victory was only a matter of time. Great Britain fell, Ireland followed, along with British Raj. Out of boredom the Axis invaded South America, and any countries in the Middle East which refused to join the alliance.

South America fell, but the game ended in 1948, before an invasion of the United States could happen. Still, Axis had trounced the Allies.

Normally I review the mechanics, the details, and systems of a game. That isn't the point here. Hearts of Iron IV is like other Paradox games, but it has more significant flaws. It's more rigid, in that countries are mostly locked into their predetermined political path. Only the lesser nations are manageable. It is a less dynamic game, where interactions are limited. Allied and neutral nations are unable to assist in the Spanish Civil War, or to take any serious actions to deter the Axis powers. Once a nation is drawn into war, it remains in perpetual war for the rest of the game. Countries don't negotiate peace until the entire allied Faction is defeated to the last city. The computer is bad at combat. Even when it accidentally encircles an enemy force, cutting of the supply, it allows the surrounded stack to remain, forcing it to keep a huge number of forces engaged to hold it in place. Even though it could attack these unsupplied soldiers and destroy them quickly, it wastes its time. The computer doesn't conduct concentrated attacks, but lines its forces up equal distributed against the enemy computer's also equally spread out line. It relies on attrition instead of tactics.

Finally, we encountered a bug later in the game. Random territories, like Istanbul, the capital of Turkey, suddenly became uncontrolled. No one could reconquer them.

In short, Hearts of Iron IV is too complex without explanation, too simple in campaign tactics, and too inflexible in political strategy.

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