We first heard about the Soviet-themed No Step Back Hearts of Iron 4 expansion back in May during PDXCon remixed. Given that the Man the Guns expansion almost went an entire year between announcement and release, I for one was expecting a similar wait time. But despite the size of the Soviet Union rework (which requires its own design team), despite the overhaul of the supply system, and even all of the modding improvements, Hearts of Iron IV: No Step Back is coming sooner than we could have hoped for.
By the end of November, you’ll be able to guide the Soviet Union through any number of paths – the historical one Stalin led it down or various alternate forms of socialist paths. You can even try to restore the Monarchy. At the extreme end, there are 29 new distinct entities the Soviet Union can be broken up into.
It’s not just about the Soviet Union though – Poland and the Baltic nations will also get new focus trees. In terms of other features, there will be a new army officer corps mechanic, the new tank designer, as well as premium features on top of free rework to supply. Also, railway guns!
Here’s a new trailer marking the release date news:
The Soviet Union hasn’t had any TLC since Hearts of Iron IV’s launch in 2016, so this has been a long time coming. The only other prominent nation from launch in need of a rework is Italy.
As always, this expansion will be accompanied by a free patch. The supply and logistics overhaul mentioned above will be the headline, but there will be other quality of life improvements as well, like combat changes designed to tackle the war game’s slightly stale meta.
Pre-orders for the expansion are open, and Paradox will be throwing in a bonus music track as an incentive if you put your money on the table early. You can watch this video for a behind the scenes look at how the new track was made.
Hearts of Iron IV: No Step Back will release on PC via Steam and the Paradox Store on November 23, 2021.