Darkest Hour: A Hearts of Iron Game

Last updated

Darkest Hour: A Hearts of Iron Game
Darkest Hour Cover.png
Developer(s) Martin Ivanov
Publisher(s) Paradox Interactive
Engine Europa Engine
Platform(s) Microsoft Windows
Release
  • WW: 5 April 2011
[1]
Genre(s) Real-time grand strategy
Mode(s) Single-player, multiplayer

Darkest Hour: A Hearts of Iron Game is a 2011 grand strategy video game developed by Martin Ivanov and published by Paradox Interactive. It is the first installment in the Hearts of Iron series to not be developed by Paradox Development Studio, instead being developed by a team of independent developers led by Ivanov; Paradox let them use their in-house Europa Engine.

Contents

In Darkest Hour, as is the case with other Hearts of Iron titles, the player can take control of almost any country that existed in the game's timeframe, which spans from 1914-1920 or 1933–1964 depending on the scenario. Management of the state includes its political, diplomatic, espionage, economic, military, and technological aspects. The game was released on 5 April 2011. [1]

Description

Darkest Hour is, at its core, an evolution of Hearts of Iron II: Armageddon . [2] This has been considered crucial by the development team to make it easy to port community-made modifications from Hearts of Iron II to Darkest Hour. [2] Moreover, the most important changes to the engines have been added as mods to the core game, with the name Darkest Hour Light and Darkest Hour Full: [2]

Gameplay

Darkest Hour Full provides different grand campaign scenarios (where it is possible to choose any of the nations involved) or battle scenarios (focused on single theaters of operations, with only a few nations involved and playable). [2]

The scenarios are:

The player can build land divisions, aircraft fleets, and naval ships/fleets, and combine these into corps and armies. The player also has the ability to control the appointment of military leaders of land, air and naval units as well as to control the appointment of individual government ministers and military commanders in key General Staff positions. The player can declare war, make alliances, claim and annex territories. The player can also alter the social and economic policies of their nation using sliders, such as democratic versus authoritarian, free market versus central planning and so on. Moving the sliders would result in different bonuses and penalties, allowing for a range of choices and strategies. Technological research is also controlled by the player. All this is on a global scale, with the player simultaneously dealing and interacting with nations across the world. The game can be paused at any point.

The game provides a launcher that allows the player to change its settings (like resolution, language, etc.) and eventually choose a mod to run on top of it. [2]

The 1.02 patch, released on November 11, 2011 [3] added four new grand campaign scenarios and new functionalities (infantry units can now have two brigades and it is possible to upgrade a unit to a different model, for example, a simple infantry unit can be upgraded to a motorized unit). The four new scenarios are:

With the 1.03 patch, [4] further scenarios were added:

Furthermore, two battle scenarios were added. In these, the player can choose between a small number of nations. The battle scenarios focus on specific battles or wars:

The latest patch version is 1.05, released in December 2017. [5] A hotfix, 1.05.1, was released in February 2018 with a second hotfix, 1.05.2, released in June 2022. [6]

Development

Darkest Hour was first announced on September 14, 2010, by Paradox Interactive. [7] The game became possible due to Paradox licensing its Europa Engine, in 2008, to independent developers. [8]

Expansion packs

The Iron Cross expansion for Hearts of Iron II and Arsenal of Democracy: A Hearts of Iron Game is also compatible with Darkest Hour. [9]

Community mods

Many mods designed for Hearts of Iron II: Armageddon were also converted to Darkest Hour. The most popular of these mods are: Kaiserreich (alternate history where Central Powers won World War I), the Total Realism Project Mod (Historical challenge mod for single and multiplayer), the Fallout Mod Fallout's Doomsday (set in the world of Fallout games), and Mod33 (rework of the game, beginning in 1933).[ citation needed ]

Other community mods include World in Flames II, which provides a more challenging German campaign, and The Grand Campaign 1914-1991, which lets players start from the 1914 scenario and play up to the year 1991. The New World Order mod allows users to play up to 1991 and focuses on the Cold War between the US and USSR. Similarly, the Fatherland Mod features an alternate timeline where Germany has won WWII and fights a Cold War against the USA. Another alternate history mod is The Bonaparte Legacy where CSA won the American Civil War and the Franco-Prussian war didn't happen leading to French Empire losing WW1 and becoming a national-socialist state in the 1930s.

Kaiserreich was released the same day as the game.[ citation needed ] Mod33 was released on 27 August 2011. The same year in September, the mod Arms, Armistice, and Revolutions (AAR) was made available, which linked the 1914 scenario to the classical 1933/1936 grand campaign. There were also plans to integrate the mod into the main Darkest Hour game in future patches. AAR was developed as an open project, and thus players were free to participate in development. AAR later formed the basis for The Grand Campaign 1914-1991 mod.

A group of modders created a spiritual successor in Hearts of Iron IV known as "Darkest Hour: A HOI4 Mod"

See also

Related Research Articles

<i>Hearts of Iron</i> 2002 video game

Hearts of Iron is a 2002 grand strategy video game developed by Paradox Development Studio and originally published by Strategy First for Microsoft Windows. A Mac OS X version was released by Virtual Programming the following year. In 2004, Atari SA published Hearts of Iron: Platinum, an updated version that sought to improve several aspects of the game.

Video game modding is the process of alteration by players or fans of one or more aspects of a video game, such as how it looks or behaves, and is a sub-discipline of general modding. A set of modifications, commonly called a mod, may range from small changes and tweaks to complete overhauls, and can extend the replay value and interest of the game.

<i>Hearts of Iron II</i> 2005 video game

Hearts of Iron II is a 2005 grand strategy video game developed by Paradox Development Studio and published by Paradox Interactive for Microsoft Windows. A Mac OS X version was released the same year. It is the sequel to Hearts of Iron.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Paradox Interactive</span> Swedish video game publisher

Paradox Interactive AB is a video game publisher based in Stockholm, Sweden. The company started out as the video game division of Target Games and then Paradox Entertainment before being spun out into an independent company in 2004. Through a combination of expanding internal studios, founding new studios and purchasing independent developers, the company has grown to comprise nine first-party development studios, including their flagship Paradox Development Studio, and acts as publisher for games from other developers.

<i>Europa Universalis III</i> 2007 grand strategy video game

Europa Universalis III is a grand strategy video game developed by Paradox Development Studio and published by Paradox Interactive. The game was released for Microsoft Windows in January 2007, and was later ported to Mac OS X by Virtual Programming in November 2007.

<i>Hearts of Iron III</i> 2009 video game

Hearts of Iron III is a 2009 grand strategy video game developed by Paradox Development Studio and published by Paradox Interactive for Microsoft Windows. A Mac OS X version was released the same year. A grand strategy wargame that focuses on World War II, it is the sequel to 2005's Hearts of Iron II and the third main installment in the Hearts of Iron series.

<i>Darkest Hour: Europe 44-45</i> 2008 video game

Darkest Hour: Europe '44-'45 is a free modification developed by Darklight Games, and The Darkest Hour Team for Tripwire Interactive's multiplayer first-person shooter video game Red Orchestra: Ostfront 41-45, It is based on the Western Front during World War II between 1944 and 1945, depicting the conflict between Allied and German forces. Several large-scale operations are covered, including the invasion of Normandy, Battle of the Bulge, Operation Market Garden, and Battle of the Hürtgen Forest.

<i>Arsenal of Democracy</i> (video game) 2010 video game

Arsenal of Democracy is a 2010 grand strategy video game developed by BL-Logic and published by Paradox Interactive for Microsoft Windows. It is based on Hearts of Iron II - Armageddon and developed on Paradox's in-house Europa Engine. It is developed by BL-Logic, a development studio made up by fans of the Hearts of Iron series and active members of the modding community. Arsenal of Democracy was announced on 8 September 2009 and released on 23 February 2010.

<i>For the Glory</i> 2009 video game

For the Glory is a grand strategy wargame that is based on Europa Universalis II and Paradox's Europa Engine. It was developed by Crystal Empire Games, a studio composed of members of the Europa Universalis II modification "Alternative Grand Campaign / Event Exchange Project" (AGCEEP) team, and published by Paradox Interactive. It was announced on September 4, 2009 and was released November 10/11, 2009. The game is available for Windows.

<i>Crusader Kings II</i> 2012 video game

Crusader Kings II is a grand strategy game developed by Paradox Development Studio and published by Paradox Interactive. Set in the Middle Ages, the game was released on February 14, 2012, as a sequel to 2004's Crusader Kings. On October 18, 2019, the video game became free to play. A sequel, Crusader Kings III, was released on September 1, 2020. Crusader Kings II attracted a wider audience than Paradox's previous games, contributing to the growth of the company.

<i>Europa Universalis IV</i> 2013 video game

Europa Universalis IV is a 2013 grand strategy video game in the Europa Universalis series, developed by Paradox Development Studio and published by Paradox Interactive as a sequel to Europa Universalis III (2007). The game was released on 13 August 2013 for Windows, OS X, and Linux. It is a strategy game where players can control a nation leading up to and during the early modern period - from the Late Middle Ages following the Battle of Varna (1444), the final crusade, to the Napoleonic era with the timeline finishing on 2 January 1821 to coincide with the death of Napoleon on 5 May 1821. Players navigate their nations with conducting trade, administration, diplomacy, colonization, and warfare.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Paradox Development Studio</span> Swedish video game developer

Paradox Development Studio (PDS) is a Swedish video game developer founded in 1995. It is closely associated with its parent company and video game publisher, Paradox Interactive. It is best known for its grand strategy wargame series Europa Universalis, Hearts of Iron, Victoria, Crusader Kings, Stellaris, and Imperator.

<i>East vs. West – A Hearts of Iron Game</i> Cancelled 2014 grand strategy video game

East vs. West – A Hearts of Iron Game is a cancelled grand strategy wargame that was to be set during the Cold War era between 1946 and 1991.

<i>Fallout 4</i> 2015 video game

Fallout 4 is a 2015 action role-playing game developed by Bethesda Game Studios and published by Bethesda Softworks. It is the fourth main game in the Fallout series and was released worldwide on November 10, 2015, for Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One. The game is set within an open world post-apocalyptic environment that encompasses the city of Boston and the surrounding Massachusetts region known as "The Commonwealth".

<i>Hearts of Iron IV</i> 2016 video game

Hearts of Iron IV is a 2016 grand strategy video game developed by Paradox Development Studio and published by Paradox Interactive. It is the sequel to 2009's Hearts of Iron III and the fourth main installment in the Hearts of Iron series. Like previous games in the series, Hearts of Iron IV is a grand strategy wargame that focuses on World War II. The player can control any country in the world, starting either in 1936 or 1939. Players have the option of following a nation's historical path, or leading various non-historical paths.

Long War is a fan-made partial conversion mod for the turn-based tactics video game XCOM: Enemy Unknown and its expansion, XCOM: Enemy Within. It was first released in early 2013, and it exited beta at the end of 2015. Almost every aspect of the original game is altered, creating a longer, more complex campaign that presents players with more strategic choices and customization options. Long War adds a significant number of new soldier classes, abilities, weapons, armors, and usable items, and also introduces new features, including soldier fatigue and improvements to alien units over the course of the game.

<i>Star Wars: Galaxy of Heroes</i> 2015 video game

Star Wars: Galaxy of Heroes is a mobile collectible RPG game. The game received a soft launch in Australia during October 2015, and was formally released on November 24, 2015.

<i>Imperator: Rome</i> 2019 video game

Imperator: Rome is a 2019 grand strategy wargame developed by Paradox Development Studio and published by Paradox Interactive. It is a spiritual successor to Europa Universalis: Rome (2008). It received generally positive reviews from critics, however development and support for the game was suspended by May 2021.

<i>Fallout: London</i> 2024 total conversion mod of Falllout 4

Fallout: London is a 2024 total conversion mod developed by Team FOLON. It is based on Fallout 4, the 2015 action role-playing game by Bethesda Softworks. The mod takes place in a post-apocalyptic rendition of London, and is notable for its departure from the series' typical United States setting. Reviewers praised the scope and detail of Fallout: London for a free project, praising its use of British locations, themes, and cultural references in the Fallout setting, whilst critiquing the mod's bugs and performance issues upon release.

<i>Kaiserreich</i> (mod) Hearts of Iron IV mod

Kaiserreich: Legacy of the Weltkrieg is an alternate history total conversion mod for the grand strategy video game Hearts of Iron IV (2016). Set in an alternate timeline where the Central Powers won World War I, the politics of Kaiserreich is drastically different from the politics and borders present during the real World War II, with several nations impacted by civil wars and revolutions and the definitions of communism and fascism being altered.

References

  1. 1 2 "Darkest Hour: A Hearts of Iron Game Released" (Press release). Paradox Interactive. 5 April 2011. Archived from the original on 22 January 2013. Retrieved 8 March 2018.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 "First Developer's Diary". 14 September 2010.
  3. ↑ "Darkest Hour Patch 1.02 + Hot-fixes". Paradox Interactive Forums.
  4. ↑ "Darkest Hour Patch 1.03 + Hot-fixes". Paradox Interactive Forums. 30 September 2012.
  5. ↑ "Darkest Hour Patch 1.05". 3 December 2017.
  6. ↑ "Darkest Hour Patch 1.05.2 (hot-fix release)". 8 June 2022.
  7. ↑ "Paradox Interactive announce Iron Cross and Darkest Hour". Paradox Interactive. 14 September 2010.
  8. ↑ Licensing Europa Engine, Paradox Plaza
  9. ↑ "Paradox Interactive announce Iron Cross and Darkest Hour!". Paradox Interactive Forums.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.