Company of Heroes 2 is a “giant, offensive stereotype”

The Company of Heroes series prides itself on its authenticity of war, but Russian, Ukrainian, and Polish critics and commentators have panned Sega’s sequel for being “a complete falsification of the history of Russia and its methods of warfare” and “ideological rubbish.”

After hitting Metacritic and pulling down the score, the critics showed their dissatisfaction of the depiction of Russian war tactics, particularly with regards to the element of Russian soldiers without any weapons and shooting one another in the back. “By the third mission I was honestly expecting to see bear cavalry,” said Sergey Galyonkin, a popular games blogger, commenting on the game’s stereotypical portrayal of Russians.

Lukasz Markiewicz, a Polish tax officer with a degree in ancient history also expressed his views, saying that the game plays on the tropes of Russians.

“The campaign is basically one giant, offensive stereotype,” said Markiewicz. “The events on the Eastern Front were likely the most grim four years in the history of mankind. There is nothing wrong with trying to recreate that. It is wrong however to essentially reduce it to the lazy stereotype of German Ubermensch Wehrmacht and SS against the Soviet Horde.

“The Eastern Front was a confrontation of two murderous, totalitarian regimes. The problem is, this brutality gets turned up to eleven and ends up being a parody,” he added.

Relic’s game director Quinn Duffy responded, explaining that the team “had to choose specific battles and incidences to deliver the breadth of the narrative” and was inspired by the writings of Vasily Grossman, a combat journalist who spent three years on the front lines and had “unparalleled access to the commanders of the various fronts.”

He added that unarmed soldiers were “entirely plausible” and that it’s “not about cruelty or incompetence, it’s about desperation and bravery.”

Duffy backs the team’s depiction of the battles and feels that the fans do too.

“We’ve had a number of tweets, Facebook and forum posts that talk very positively to the tone of the experience we’ve portrayed,” said Duffy. “One gentleman showed his grandfather, a tank driver in WW2, and he was enthralled. That’s enough for me.”