In Company Of Heroes 3, every battle tells a story...what's yours?

Company of Heroes 3 is the ultimate package of action, tactics and strategy. Take charge in the heat of real-time battle, then command as a General guiding the overall campaign where every decision matters. ​

Overwhelm your opponents with new and familiar factions, units, and international Battlegroups. Command ground, air and naval forces and build supply lines to crush enemy advances on the new Dynamic Campaign Map - no two playthroughs are ever alike! Play at your own pace across campaign and skirmish modes before diving into blistering multiplayer action. Discover the untold stories of a stunning Mediterranean theatre, featuring next generation destructible environments, all powered by Relic's proprietary Essence Engine. ​

Company of Heroes 3 delivers the next generation of acclaimed tactical gameplay. Beloved combat mechanics collide with authentic new gameplay features, making for the deepest tactical experience to date. ​

Relic Entertainment and SEGA are excited to reveal that players are getting a final chance to play Company of Heroes 3 before its launch on Steam on February 23rd, 2023.

Eager strategy fans can head over to Steam right now and participate in the Multiplayer Tech Test – helping Relic prepare for launch by testing its servers and infrastructure on a large scale. 

The Multiplayer Tech Test is available now and runs until Monday January 16th 18:00 GMT. Participants will be able to try out eight different multiplayer maps set in both Italy and North Africa and can compete in 1v1, 2v2, 3v3, and 4v4 matches, as well as play Skirmish vs AI, Annihilation Mode and create Custom Games. Players can also explore all four factions and the twelve Battlegroups included in Company of Heroes 3 at launch. 

This Multiplayer Tech Test is aimed at RTS and strategy fans, but Relic has also included “Mission Zero”, a skippable tutorial mission for those who want to warm up their RTS muscle memory. Furthermore, all playable multiplayer maps are available against AI opponents. 

All you need to do is visit Company of Heroes 3's Steam store page to register.

• Navigate to the Steam store page for CoH3 here
• Underneath "Pre-Purchase" you'll find "Join the Company of Heroes 3 Playtest "
• Click "Request Access"
• That's it!

Multiplayer Tech Test

Objectives & Intent

Welcome to the Company of Heroes 3 Multiplayer Tech Test! This is our last big development push before launch and we’re extremely excited to finally get it into your hands.

Your participation will allow us to prepare for launch by testing our infrastructure on a larger scale. The test also helps us identify new bugs and issues that cannot be caught without having thousands of people playing the game at the same time. 

Your feedback during this test is critical. Though the game is essentially ready for launch, your feedback on your experience - everything from faction balance to units to systems and more - will help inform fixes and patches in the first few weeks and months of the game’s life. This will also help us iterate on quality-of-life improvements, feature priorities, future iterations of gameplay elements and content. 

Test Objectives

Server load and stability  

• Match performance - server calls during matches 
• Logins - server is capable of handling large numbers of player logins 
• Matchmaking - server can match players quickly and efficiently based on our parameters

Queue testing 

We will be changing access to certain game modes during the Multiplayer Tech Test to monitor how the queues work individually. This will vary with the number of players testing at any given point in time and will be communicated in Community Spaces (forums, Discord) and social media. 

Client stability & compatibility testing 

A large group of players testing the game with different PC set-ups will give us the chance to test a lot more hardware and software configurations than we would ever be able to do with our team. We will be focusing on learning about: 

• Hardware issues 
• Software configuration issues 
• Crashes - We will be monitoring crash reports to ensure CoH3 is optimized for as many configurations as possible. Help us by filling in the Bugsplat report should you get one! Our team reads every single one of these and the more information we get, the better we can understand the issue.  

Bug Reporting 

With a large group of players, we are going to be able to discover new bugs and issues that we never had the chance to encounter during internal testing. This will help us squash as many critical issues in the launch window as possible. You can report a bug by going to this link. Be sure to select “Report Feedback or Bug” under “Nature of Enquiry.” 

Client and server maintenance & patching 

As we plan to support CoH3 for a long time, we are using this test to make sure we are ready to deliver updates and perform maintenance without a hitch. We will be testing this both on the client side (when you need to download a patch through Steam) and on the server side (when the update is deployed via our servers and downloaded in-game).

Available Features

• Mission Zero – First time launch tutorial (skippable). Note that there are many tutorials and first-time-user tooltips that will not be present in this test, but you will be able to experience at launch.  
• As this test is Multiplayer focused, Tactical Pause will not be available. However, at launch, Tactical Pause will be available in the singleplayer Dynamic Campaign Map in Italy, in the North African Operation, and in singleplayer Skirmish.
• Multiplayer Modes & Skirmish vs AI: 
  • 1v1 
  • 2v2 
  • 3v3 
  • 4v4 
• All 4 Launch Factions 
  • US Forces 
  • Wehrmacht 
  • British Forces 
  • Deutsches Afrikakorps 
• All 12 Launch Battlegroups 
  • US Forces: Airborne, Armored and Special Operations Battlegroups  
  • Wehrmacht: Luftwaffe, Mechanized and Breakthrough Battlegroups  
  • British Forces: Indian Artillery, Armored Support and Air & Sea Battlegroups  
  • Deutsches Afrikakorps: Armored Support, Italian Combined Arms and Italian Infantry Battlegroups 
• Maps (Note: We will have more multiplayer maps included for launch!) 
  • 1v1 
  • Road to Tunis 
  • Twin Beaches
    
  • 2v2 
  • Pachino Farmlands 
  • Torrente
  • 3v3  
  • Gazala Landing Ground 
  • L'Aquila
    
  • 4v4  
  • Mignano Gap 
  • Winter Line  
• Automatch & Custom Games 
  • Victory Point Mode 
  • Annihilation (see note below)

Schedule

Registration

• January 4th – January 13th  
• Playtest registration can be found on the CoH3 Steam store page here.

Multiplayer Tech Test

• Wednesday, Jan 11th @ 10am PT to Monday, Jan 16th @ 10am PT 

Planned Downtime 

• January 12th from 1pm PT to 3pm PT 
• Dependent on player numbers 

Backup Downtime 

• January 13th – 10am PT to 12pm PT 
• We will only use this downtime if we did not conduct maintenance on January 12th
• Dependent on player numbers

Once the planned downtime is complete, we will be providing access to the Annihilation victory condition. 

Player Feedback

For those that have been with us since we first revealed Company of Heroes 3, you know we want to hear your feedback and you know we take it seriously. Please share your thoughts and concerns, as that’s how we continue to improve CoH3 in the days ahead. 

As a reminder, we won’t be able to make any major design, feature, or gameplay changes before our official launch on February 23rd. However, your feedback will inform future iterations, balance changes and patches in the weeks and months ahead. Our team’s focus for launch will be to squash any newly discovered critical bugs and crashes – anything that’s a showstopper. For example, if your game consistently fails to launch, that is something we need to know about so we can fix it before launch. 

• You can fill out this survey after you have played the Multiplayer Tech Test to help us continue our work on CoH3!
• You can leave your feedback on the community forums here.
• On our Discord Forums here.

Where to Report Bugs

You can report a bug by going to this link. Be sure to select “Report Feedback or Bug” under “Nature of Enquiry.” 

Should your game crash and you receive this Bugsplat screen, please add as many details as possible in the comment box and click “Send Error Report.” Like we said, our team reads every single Bugsplat report we receive, so please submit them as they help us track and resolve issues!   

Known Issues & Bugs

• To replay the tutorial mission, you will need to delete your save file under Documents > My Games > Company of Heroes 3 - Playtest
• If a user begins a game in a Custom lobby and a player tries to join after that lobby is no longer available, they may encounter a crash.
• Twin Beaches has the incorrect territory point income and Victory point count.  
• Battlegroups may show as pink placeholder boxes after finishing an automatch game. 
• If a player leaves while a match is loading, there may be an error loading match stats afterwards. 
• There is a slight chance that if the host of a lobby searches for an automatch game, then fails the search and leaves the party, once they try to rejoin they will not see themselves in the lobby. 
• If a lobby host selects “Start Match” as a player is changing their Faction selection, they may load into the game with Battlegroups that do not function. 
• The Smoke Launcher ability on the Panzer III cannot be used more than once. 
• When certain units pick up a team weapon from a different faction, they may use that unit’s voice lines. 
• White Phosphorus tracer rounds have the wrong color. 
• The 251 Medium Carrier is missing a voiceline to indicate when Auto-Reinforce is enabled or disabled. 
• Stuka Anti-Tank Loiter ability is not functioning as intended.  
• All Loiter abilities are targeting units in a larger area of effect than intended. 
• Constructing and repairing may cause certain units to t-pose. 
• Text chat box may get wider than intended when typing long messages. 
• Wehrmacht Sniper is missing Veterancy descriptions.

Make use of daring flanking moves to expose enemy side armor, experience all new infantry breaching mechanics allowing you to flush enemy units from their garrisons, and master elevation to enhance your line of sight and gain the upper hand.

Welcome to the Mediterranean - a breathtaking new theatre filled with untold stories of war. Engage ferocious enemy forces across Italian mountain passes, breathtaking coastal vistas and the sweeping deserts of N Africa. Stunning visuals deliver authentic and highly diverse environments designed to keep you on your toes. ​

Mountainous maps will require uniquely different strategies from coastal towns, with verticality now greatly affecting units’ line of sight (True Sight). Desert plains will call for careful reconnaissance and daring armored maneuvers. On this new frontline, intelligence trumps speed and clever use of local terrain will let you bewilder your opponents and rout them from the field.

Experience the biggest single player campaign in franchise history. The new Dynamic Campaign Map delivers full ‘sandbox-style’ gameplay, allowing players to command the overall war effort and experience an unprecedented level of strategic choice. ​

Establish vital supply lines before deploying rear guard defenses to secure your advance. Launch air and naval strikes to weaken and scatter enemy forces or liberate a nearby town to develop a Partisan spy network. Choose your forces and upgrade your veteran companies to match your playstyle. Meanwhile, the optional Full Tactical Pause feature allows players total control over the pacing of single-player action. Plan your attacks, then effortlessly queue up lethal precision plays that will give you the edge in battle.

Company of Heroes 3 promises to delight even the most ardent WW2 enthusiasts thanks to the largest number of launch factions in the series to date. ​

New army customization mechanics will allow you to call in the help of a varied cast of specialist units. Take up the fight with new elite squads including the American-Canadian Special Service Forces, the revered Gurkhas from the Commonwealth and many more. ​

From devastating tank destroyers to clandestine recon vehicles, Company of Heroes 3 features the largest roster in the series to date. The super light Weasel, the armor sniping Nashorn, and the Chaffee Light Tank are just a few of the units making their debut. Also, let's not forget revamped classics like the M3 Recovery Vehicle Halftrack, which can now be used to repair and steal abandoned enemy vehicles!

Feel the blistering impact of every mortar shell and naval bombardment with Relic's state-of-the-art Essence Engine. In Company of Heroes 3, every location becomes a fully destructible sandbox, opening up limitless tactical gameplay options for you or your enemy to exploit. ​

Bring fortified buildings crashing down onto enemy squads, then witness enhanced destruction mechanics at play as soldiers exploit fresh ruins as dynamic cover. Stunning new rendering and particle FX technology depicts fire, sand and smoke like never before. Brilliant new soldier animations combine with enhanced A.I, delivering realistic squad reactions to the battlefield. Optimized for DirectX 12 and multi-core CPUs, Relic's new engine technology will deliver cinematic action to rival any Hollywood blockbuster.

Company Of Heroes 3 is coming to PC on February 23, 2023, followed by PS5 and Xbox Series X|S in 2023.