You hear the distinct sound of men marching outside the window, and it is getting louder and louder. As few moments later you hear gunshots firing, and then an explosion and the aftereffects are shaking the walls. You are wondering how much longer this war will go on, and hoping that you can make it though alive. Many people were living this very scenario during the middle of World War II, as it was a very scary time, especially in many of the European countries. Even though this war destroyed many things, it has been a source of entertainment for many people, including movies, strategists, and videogames for many years now.

Paradox Interactive has developed a sequel to the Hearts of Iron game, so it is time once again to put on your thinking cap and get strategic. As this game will give you so many options that the leaders of the 1940’s had. It is up to the gamers to figure out how to win this war, and see if they can succeed or be destroyed. Are you up to the challenge?

The time to attack is now!

Since this game has so many different options that players can do, the developers are Paradox Interactive have included an in-depth tutorial mode. This allows players to gently get their feet wet and explore how many things they can do instead of just jumping in blind. The tutorial mode is really helpful as the players will understand all of the mechanics of the game, and what to do in a lot of situations.

The game offers four different major campaigns, and the great thing about this is that players will be able to choose from a myriad of different countries to see if they can shape the face of the war, and do it in their favor. Players will have access to everything that was available to the people of those years. They must research additional technologies, budget their spending, and make sure that their economic growth steadily continues. They must do this in order to survive and conquer the other nations, before they are taken over by enemy forces.

Always good to learn more about your army.

In Hearts of Iron 2, players will have the chance to play some of the most famous battle scenarios that are well known to any World War II buff, and choose which side you want to be on. Players will be able to take part of Operation Barbarossa, which was the invasion of Russia. Operation Downfall was the invasion of Japan. Then there is the most famous, D-Day, which we all know was the beginning of the Liberation of Europe from the German regime. There are many others that will guarantee players get their World War II battle cravings fulfilled. When gamers take part in these different scenarios they will be able to rewrite history or keep it the same, it is all up to the them.

One of the biggest improvements is how the combat works. When you attack an enemy there will be a movement line that shows you how long it will take for your army to get there. Once they are there a conflict will ensue. Only once the battle is won, will the victorious troops go in to the territory to occupy the land. Also players will be able to send other troops for additional aid in defense or offense. This makes the game feel more realistic and better for the strategy purists out there.

The tech tree is your best friend.

Just like in the original Hearts of Iron, the graphics are not one of the game's strong points, but that does not mean it is ugly by any means. The game is geared more towards functionality and ways to improve the strategy for the players. Gamers will be able to see the entire world in a flat “world map.” Players will be able to change the mode of the maps to see different weather, economic, terrain, and many other map-viewing modes that will help out during the course of a game. The units have better animation than in the previous game, which makes it a little more pleasing to the eye. Even though there was not as much effort to make this game “dazzle,” the graphics get the job done simply enough.

The music for this game is just as good as the first game. The game features many classic tracks that will give the feeling that you are really in that time period. The musical score will move you as you are making the tiniest decisions that will affect your country throughout this war-torn era. The sound effects from the first game were very generic, and it appears that the sequel follows in its tracks. It is not like they are really bad, but everything that you hear is repeated multiple times, and it might get a little annoying. Thankfully the soundtrack makes up for any bad points due to the uninspired sound effects.

The system requirements are:
AMD/Pentium III 800 MHz or better
128 MB of RAM
Windows 98/ME/2000/XP
DirectX 9.0
4 MB of VRAM
1 GB of Hard Drive Space
Keyboard and Mouse.

Gameplay: 8.5
Hearts of Iron 2 will take players a while to get used to, there are so many different things that they can do. Once you understand it all, you will be in for a nice ride.

Graphics: 6.0 
This game will not be used to show the graphical prowess of your PC.

Sound: 8.6
The music selection really brings you into the whole atmosphere of this time period. The sound effects on the other hand are not up to par, as they all sound very generic and uninspired.

Difficulty: Hard
Hearts of Iron 2 has a very steep learning curve. Even though the tutorials are really comprehensive, it will take a while for players to get adjusted to the amount of options available to them.

Concept: 8.6
The first game showed that there is a lot of depth that goes into war, and the sequel just expounds upon that. It is staggering to know how much you can and will do in this game. This game feels like it is real life, because everything that you do, either research, combat, or political, deeply affects you and the rest of the world.

Multiplayer: 8.5
The game offers some multiplayer via, LAN, IP, or connect to the game’s matchmaking service.

Overall: 8.7
Hearts of Iron 2 is one of the most in-depth strategy games around. There are so many different things you can do during the course of one game it is almost baffling. If you love World War II or strategy games, than you should pick up this game.