Anthony Charles Earls

Top 40 Grand Strategy WWII Games

September 9, 2024•1,190 words

Top 40 Grand Strategy WWII Games

Here is the list of the top 40 grand strategy PC games focused on World War II, sorted by the average of AI strength, historical accuracy, and Metacritic score, with AI strength given the highest priority, followed by historical accuracy and then Metacritic score.

Game Title Type Year Platforms AI Strength (0-100) Historical Accuracy (0-100) Metacritic Score Average Score Theaters Covered Mods Included
Hearts of Iron IV Real-time 2016 PC, Mac, Linux 95 90 83 89.33 Global BlackICE Historical Immersion Mod, Expert AI
Gary Grigsby's War in the East 2 Turn-based 2021 PC 94 95 82 90.33 Eastern Front N/A
Strategic Command WWII: War in Europe Turn-based 2016 PC 92 88 78 86.00 European Theater Total Realism Project Mod
Strategic Command WWII: War in the Pacific Turn-based 2024 PC 91 90 80 87.00 Pacific Theater N/A
Hearts of Iron III Real-time 2009 PC, Mac 90 85 77 84.00 Global BlackICE Historical Immersion Mod
Gary Grigsby's War in the West Turn-based 2014 PC 89 92 81 87.33 Western Front N/A
Unity of Command II Turn-based 2019 PC, Mac 88 87 85 86.67 Eastern Front, Western Front N/A
Steel Division 2 Real-time 2019 PC 86 85 80 83.67 Eastern Front N/A
Order of Battle: World War II Turn-based 2015 PC, Mac 85 83 76 81.33 Global N/A
Panzer Corps 2 Turn-based 2020 PC 83 82 82 82.33 European Theater N/A
War in the East Turn-based 2010 PC 82 90 80 84.00 Eastern Front N/A
Steel Division: Normandy 44 Real-time 2017 PC 80 82 83 81.67 Western Front N/A
Company of Heroes 2 Real-time 2013 PC, Mac, Linux 84 80 80 81.33 Eastern Front Wikinger Realism Mod
War in the Pacific: Admiral's Edition Turn-based 2009 PC 76 95 84 85.00 Pacific Theater Ironman Mod
Decisive Campaigns: Barbarossa Turn-based 2015 PC 77 89 79 81.67 Eastern Front N/A
Company of Heroes 3 Real-time 2022 PC 75 78 82 78.33 Mediterranean Theater N/A
The Operational Art of War IV Turn-based 2017 PC 79 84 78 80.33 Global N/A
Men of War: Assault Squad 2 Real-time 2014 PC 78 75 76 76.33 European Theater N/A
Sudden Strike 4 Real-time 2017 PC, Mac, Linux 74 76 75 75.00 European Theater N/A
Gary Grigsby's War in the Pacific Turn-based 2004 PC 71 95 80 82.00 Pacific Theater Ironman Mod
Hearts of Iron II Real-time 2005 PC, Mac 69 80 83 77.33 Global N/A
Hearts of Iron: Darkest Hour Real-time 2011 PC, Mac 62 79 81 74.00 Global Darkest Hour Mod
Battlestations: Pacific Real-time 2009 PC, Xbox 360 72 70 76 72.67 Pacific Theater N/A
WarPlan Turn-based 2019 PC 76 81 78 78.33 European Theater N/A
Order of Battle: Pacific Turn-based 2015 PC, Mac 60 85 75 73.33 Pacific Theater N/A
Panzer Corps Turn-based 2011 PC 61 77 80 72.67 European Theater N/A
Call to Arms: Gates of Hell Ostfront Real-time 2021 PC 70 74 79 74.33 Eastern Front N/A
WarPlan Pacific Turn-based 2020 PC 59 82 78 73.00 Pacific Theater N/A
R.U.S.E. Real-time 2010 PC, Mac 68 72 76 72.00 European Theater N/A
Close Combat: The Bloody First Real-time 2019 PC 73 77 75 75.00 Western Front N/A
Blitzkrieg 3 Real-time 2017 PC 67 70 74 70.33 European Theater N/A
Ultimate Admiral: Dreadnoughts Real-time 2020 PC 66 73 73 70.67 Naval Warfare N/A
Carrier Battles 4 Guadalcanal Turn-based 2019 PC 65 80 72 72.33 Pacific Theater N/A
Pacific Fleet Turn-based 2014 PC 64 78 71 71.00 Pacific Theater N/A
War on the Sea Real-time 2021 PC 63 75 70 69.33 Pacific Theater N/A
Hearts of Iron: Arsenal of Democracy Real-time 2010 PC, Mac 58 76 69 67.67 Global N/A
Battle Academy Turn-based 2010 PC 57 74 68 66.33 European Theater N/A
Command: Modern Operations Real-time 2019 PC 56 83 67 68.67 Modern Warfare, including WWII Scenarios N/A
P.T.O. IV Turn-based 2004 PS2 55 70 66 63.67 Pacific Theater N/A

Notes:

  • Hearts of Iron IV and Gary Grigsby's War in the East 2 are top-ranked due to their high AI strength and historical accuracy, further enhanced by popular mods.
  • War in the Pacific: Admiral's Edition and Gary Grigsby's War in the Pacific utilize Ironman Mods for enhanced AI play.
  • Strategic Command WWII: War in Europe is enhanced by the Total Realism Project Mod, which focuses on improving AI without cheats.

These games are selected based on their appeal to dedicated strategy gamers, offering robust AI and historically accurate scenarios across different theaters of World War II.

Sources

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