Tales of Valor is the second expansion for Relic Entertainment's widely successful RTS Company of Heroes. The first, Opposing Fronts, offered new factions and and two fairly meaty campaigns. Tales of Valor instead chooses to focus on small game-refinement changes and three new multiplayer modes. The game also includes a bevy of new multiplayer maps and the ability to have direct fire control over your units, of which there are several new ones to choose from. While these additions are nice, they likely won't do much for those looking for robust single-player action. What's there, though, is thrilling stuff and up to the quality standards of the original game, if presented in a slightly different format.
The gameplay in these mini-campaigns also differs from the source material in that you're focusing on small amounts of units in a more scripted game world. While that kind of combat became a hallmark for the original, it seems overly pronounced in this offering. For example, in the the three missions of the first campaign, you'll play as a single German tank crew. No base, no paratroopers, just that one bad-ass tank with its massively powerful two-second reload time. While narrowing the sight makes for a fast ride, these missions are definitely a radical departure for the series. In fact, the heightened focus on small tactics feels more similar to the gameplay found in Dawn of War II, Relic's last game, than the original Company of Heroes. Compounded with the short play-time, it's a move that veteran COH players will likely be disappointed in.
These multiplayer modes are nice as additions to the main multiplayer component of the game, but likely will be short distractions from the more traditional multiplayer modes from the original game. Luckily there are also some new maps included for those modes as well, and Company of Heroes continues to be a very popular RTS online.
Overall it's the game's $30 price tag at the time of this writing that stops me from fully recommending Tales of Valor. Considering that the original COH plus Opposing Fronts can be bought around the same price these days, I'd definitely point new recruits to those excellent titles before they look at the new expansion as a stand-alone product. For experienced players, though, Tales of Valor offers enough distractions to fill your need for something new. Just don't be surprised if you find yourself returning to the original campaign and multiplayer modes the next time you need a fix.
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