Company of Heroes 3: Final Stand Review - $30 For This? IGN France's Mixed Verdict
5.0
Credit: Relic Entertainment

Company of Heroes 3: Final Stand Review - $30 For This? IGN France's Mixed Verdict

Alexandre Alexandre Jollier
Follow us on

In brief

Final Stand offers a tower defense/rogue-lite mode that's new to Company of Heroes, with solid mechanics and real tension in co-op. But at €30 for a single mode, five maps, and no new structural content, the asking price is clearly excessive — even with the 20% discount for owners of the base game.

Buy this DLC only if you're after a coop tower defense stress-reliever, and even then, wait for a sale. At full price, Final Stand asks €30 for content that could have easily passed as a free update.

For newcomers: Company of Heroes 3 is a war RTS where unit micro-management, cover and resource management take precedence over mindless rushing. This stand-alone DLC (playable without the base game) introduces a mode never before seen in the series: a tower defense/rogue-lite mix where you hold out through twelve waves of assault with a faction of your choice, without classic base building, just an HQ to defend and perks to pick between waves.

What works according to IGN

The concept has potential, the journalist tells us. Choosing between mobility and defense, relocating your troops under bombardment, managing the random arrival of bonus units after a boss: the tension builds crescendo, and the waves of events (infiltrations, paratrooper drops, goliath rushes) force you to adapt quickly. It's pure Company of Heroes in its mechanics, just reframed in an arcade format.

Coop really changes the game. With two players, testing faction combinations and aiming for the toughest difficulty tiers (eight levels in total) is visibly a lot more fun than playing solo. The permanent perk tree per faction also gives a small progression loop that makes you want to start another run.

What doesn't work

The problem is clearly the content-to-price ratio. A single mode, five maps, and that's it. No new campaign, no structural addition to the base game, which has nevertheless been running for three years without major changes on the multiplayer or coop side. The 20% discount for owners of the base game doesn't change the equation: it's still expensive for what it is.

It's also hard not to see a recurring pattern from Relic/Sega here: on CoH2 already, selling commanders at €2-3 apiece had drawn criticism before being corrected. Here, the €30 stand-alone looks like a polite way of reproducing the same scheme on a more captive audience.

Verdict

Final Stand entertains for a few hours, especially in coop, but absolutely does not justify its price tag. If your RTS budget is tight, keep an eye on the upcoming Company of Heroes: Definitive Edition instead, which promises all the content of the original plus gameplay updates. Score: 5/10 according to IGN France, for a DLC that could - and should - have been a free update...

Strengths

  • Tense, mechanically well-designed tower defense/rogue-lite mode
  • Two-player coop noticeably more fun than solo play
  • Permanent perk tree that provides a real progression loop
  • Random events (paratrooper drops, infiltrations, goliath rushes) that break up the routine

Weaknesses

  • A single mode and five maps for €30, clearly undersized content
  • No new campaign or structural addition to the base game after three years
  • The 20% discount for game owners doesn't offset the overall price
  • Monetization scheme reminiscent of the already-criticized practices on CoH2

Verdict

A fun mode in coop but far too thin to justify its €30 price tag next to the rest of the franchise.

Share this article

In your opinion, is a €30 tower defense DLC for a single mode acceptable?

Frequently asked questions

Do you need the base game to play Final Stand?
No, Final Stand is offered as a stand-alone, so it's playable without Company of Heroes 3. However, you only get access to the Final Stand mode: no campaign, no classic multiplayer, none of the other modes from the base game.
How exactly does the Final Stand mode work?
It's a tower defense/rogue-lite where you must hold out through 12 waves of assault with a faction of your choice. Between each wave, you pick two random passive or active perks to strengthen your units or buildings. There's no traditional base building, just a HQ to defend and outposts to protect.
Is Final Stand really worth €30?
Honestly, no. For a single mode across five maps, the price is disproportionate. IGN recommends waiting for a sale or looking instead at Company of Heroes: Definitive Edition, which promises far more content for your money.
Does co-op really change the experience?
Absolutely. With two players, testing faction combos and aiming for the eight difficulty tiers becomes much more fun. The permanent perk tree per faction also adds a small progression loop that makes you want to run it again.
What is IGN France's final verdict?
5/10. Final Stand is entertaining for a few hours, especially in co-op, but it absolutely does not justify its price tag. The DLC could and should have been a free update.

Key takeaways

  • The tower defense/rogue-lite concept works and forces constant tactical choices between mobility and defense.
  • Co-op adds a new dimension to the mode and makes runs far more engaging than playing solo.
  • €30 for a single mode and five maps is excessive for a DLC that could easily have been a free update.
  • Relic is repeating the controversial pattern of overpriced commanders: light content sold at a high price to a captive audience.
  • At full price, Final Stand is really only worth it if you're a hardcore fan craving more CoH3 content.

Comments

No comments yet. Be the first to react!

Leave a comment

Latest articles