With the Company of Heroes 3 release date coming up later this month, publisher Sega has revealed new details about the Deutsches Afrikakorps, the RTS game’s fourth launch faction. It’s a highly mobile army that specialises in hit-and-run tactics, and it joins the British forces, US forces, and Wehrmacht in the roster of factions you’ll be able to command in Company of Heroes 3.
Developer Relic says the Afrikakorps is Company of Heroes 3’s “most radical and unorthodox army,” specialising in the aggressive use of high mobility armour. Panzer III tanks will handle a lot of the fighting, but they can be supported by half-tracks full of infantry and fearsome Tiger tanks that can be deployed through the faction’s Armoured Reserves system.
With the emphasis on mechanised weapons systems, the Afrikakorps will be doing a lot of towing and repair, and its dedicated support vehicles can be used to maintain damaged tanks and reposition the Afrikakorps’ deadly Flak 36 88mm anti-tank cannons.
Two Italian battlegroups support the Afrikakorps in Company of Heroes 3. There are the Guastatori, who dress in black uniforms and carry flamethrowers. The Italian Combined Arms Battlegroup brings with it the Semovente da 75/18 assault gun, highly trained Bersaglieri infantry squads, and the Carro Armato M13/40 light tank.
Historically, the Afrikakorps saw action throughout Nazi Germany’s North Africa campaign, dealing the US Army’s II Corps an early defeat in the battle of Kasserine Pass in Tunisia – where the Afrikakorps would ultimately surrender in May 1943, along with the remaining German forces in North Africa.
Company of Heroes launches February 23, but you can check out the best WW2 games on PC in the meantime. It might be the perfect time for another playthrough of the excellent Company of Heroes 2: Ardennes Assault.