We Love It's Guide to…
Command US, British, or German forces in turn-based Normandy battles, using terrain, armor angles, and unit upgrades to win.
Released 11 Apr 2024
Flank Armored Vehicles
Trigger Overwatch Ambushes
Give Units Heroes
Headquarters: World War II is a fast-paced turn-based strategy game where your battlefield tactics are as important as your army management skills. Experience both sides of the war, battling in Europe as the USA, the UK, or Germany. Storm bunkers, occupy houses, win tank duels.
Developed by Starni Games · Published by Slitherine Ltd.
Set during the Battle of Normandy, the game puts you in command of US, British, or German forces across three campaigns, each with nine operations. You lead infantry, tanks, artillery, and support units through objective-based missions.
Battles play out in turns on grid-based maps. Positioning, line of sight, cover, elevation, and the direction of vehicle armor affect combat; destructible buildings and wreckage can also change the battlefield. Units can attack and use special actions, while reaction fire and overwatch make exposed movement risky.
Between missions, you can change or upgrade units, level them up, and assign heroes. Units carry crews whose losses can reduce their capabilities. The game also includes AI skirmishes, multiplayer battles for up to four players, and an editor for creating skirmish and multiplayer maps.
Players who enjoy the game often describe its turn-based battles as approachable while still offering tactical decisions about positioning, scouting, and when to attack. Reviews also praise the detailed visuals and animations, the overwatch and reaction-fire mechanics, and multiplayer with friends. Some players value its brisk, streamlined approach to WWII tactics, while others find the campaigns or systems too simple or repetitive.
Headquarters: World War II is a fast paced turn-based strategy covering the Battle of Normandy in the three plot-driven campaigns and a number of skirmishes. Choose your side, form your force, assign heroes, level up your units, and use Headquarters skills to overcome the enemy.
The game's combat system is based on an easy to learn - hard to master approach. Deceptively easy at a first glance, it offers lots of possibilities:
Units have front/side/back/top armor and their positioning matters a lot
Fences and other obstacles offer a directional cover that depends on the angle of attack
Different terrain types offer various bonuses and affect Line of Sight
Destroyed vehicles and other large objects affect the battlefield and provide cover
High Ground mechanics allow multiple levels of terrain elevation that affect Line of Sight and combat effectiveness
Destructible buildings with different stages of demolition create unique challenges
All units and scenery are created with the finest attention to detail using Unreal Engine 4 to achieve a very realistic visual style:
Realistic unit models with proper physics in place
Visceral elements of devastation - burning tank hulks, ruined houses, shell craters, smoke, death, and destruction. You will witness this and many other horrors of the war
Varied surroundings - your troops will come across war-torn battlefields as well as peaceful villages with cattle and fields of grain. Mind your tanks - this quaint beauty is quite fragile
See all sides of the story by completing 3 campaigns with 9 operations in each.
The game features United States, United Kingdom, and German campaigns all set in the Normandy landings period of the war.
Between the battles, you can upgrade or change your units, level them up, and assign heroes to them, granting unique abilities
Every unit has a crew - and the crew is the heart of any unit. Losing different crew members results in different penalties for the unit. Losing a gunner means the unit has fewer attacks, losing a driver means the unit has reduced mobility, and so on.
Test your skills against an AI on each of the 6 skirmish maps. Different victory conditions require versatility in your planning and tactics.
Play skirmish battles against real opponents or 2x2 team battles with friends. The game supports multiplayer battles with up to 4 players both with real-time connection or using Slitherine’s CombatHQ system.
Use the Editor tool to create your own skirmish/multiplayer maps and share them with the community.
| Platforms | Windows |
|---|---|
| Achievements | 102 |
| Age ratings |
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| Controller support | Xbox |
| Controller required | No |
| DLC / extras | 3 listed on Steam |
| DRM / EULA |
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| Content notices |
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| Website | Official website |
