Darkest Hour: A Hearts of Iron Game

About

Darkest Hour is a grand strategy wargame focusing on World War II. Players can lead any nation involved in the conflict, managing politics, economy, and military forces. The game features a detailed combat system, diplomacy, and historical events, providing a realistic and immersive wartime experience.

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Darkest Hour: A Hearts of Iron Game screenshot

90%

Audience ScoreBased on 985 reviews

gameplay15 positive mentions

grinding6 negative mentions

Darkest Hour offers a deep and engaging grand strategy experience, allowing players to control any nation during pivotal historical events from WWI to the Cold War.
The game features a rich modding community, with popular mods like Kaiserreich and Total Realism Project that enhance gameplay and provide alternate historical scenarios.
The mechanics of the game, including the detailed tech tree and decision-making processes, create a rewarding experience for players who enjoy strategic planning and historical accuracy.

The user interface can be clunky and overwhelming for new players, making the learning curve steep and potentially frustrating.
The game may experience compatibility issues on modern systems, leading to crashes or graphical problems that detract from the overall experience.
Some players find the AI behavior inconsistent, particularly in diplomatic situations, which can lead to unrealistic outcomes in gameplay.

gameplay
64 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
23%
69%
8%
The gameplay of "Darkest Hour" is characterized by its deep and complex mechanics, offering a rich historical strategy experience that requires significant mastery and understanding. While the user interface and controls may feel dated and present a steep learning curve for newcomers, the game excels in providing immersive and unpredictable gameplay, especially when enhanced by mods. Despite some criticisms regarding certain mechanics and the need for extensive clicking, players appreciate the depth and replayability, making it a standout title for grand strategy enthusiasts.
- “As I navigated the complexities of World War II, I was drawn into its immersive historical narrative and deep gameplay mechanics.”
- “An astounding amount of depth and possibilities will keep the game fresh for many, many hours of gameplay.”
- “The gameplay is very immersive and much detail is put into battles and diplomacy.”
- “The research system requires a lot of unnecessary clicking, there are no battle plans so keeping up a decent front line is very difficult, and on top of that there aren't very many resources out there for help with the game's systems and mechanics.”
- “For someone who has never played this game before and is unfamiliar with the mechanics, the game can be quite daunting and has a steep learning curve.”
- “The ui and gameplay in itself is more text-based and needs thorough understanding and study.”
graphics
41 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
15%
78%
7%
The graphics of the game are generally considered dated, with a 2D art style that may not meet modern standards but remains functional and visually appealing in its own right. While some players appreciate the historical accuracy and vibrant colors, others note the need for UI tweaks and the presence of glitches. Overall, the graphics are not the main draw of the game, but they do not detract significantly from the deep strategic gameplay experience.
- “The art style is also timeless.”
- “Graphics in this game are very well done.”
- “Crisp and colorful as they are already, you can easily enhance them with one of the easily accessible graphics packs.”
- “The only downside is the outdated and sometimes unappealing graphics, especially of the world map.”
- “Graphics are very dated, especially sprites, but aren't core to gameplay.”
- “Drooling graphics fans will not find much here but for those interested in history and politics on a high level there is most certainly a great game here.”
replayability
28 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
46%
43%
11%
The game boasts exceptional replayability, with users highlighting its infinite possibilities through various countries, extensive mod support, and the ability to create unique narratives during playthroughs. Many players appreciate the wealth of mods available, such as Kaiserreich and Total Realism Project, which significantly enhance the gameplay experience and offer diverse scenarios. Overall, the combination of historical depth, modding capabilities, and engaging mechanics contributes to a highly replayable experience, often described as nearly limitless.
- “It's infinitely replayable and offers the option of playing as any country.”
- “The thing that keeps me playing is the story, or the story you build during your playthrough, with a great soundtrack, historical and ahistorical events you can find hours of replayability.”
- “You really feel the scale of the world wars with so many different units, tech, and ways to play; I can say this game has unlimited replayability.”
- “There is almost endless replayability value, and I have not even completed a full campaign as all of the major powers yet, even with 400+ hours invested.”
- “It makes the time go from 1914 to 1991... I can't begin to tell how much replayability that adds, especially because it's so well made that it has a bazillion of events and connects all the timelines together very historically and nicely (if you want).”
- “Mods like 'Fallout's Doomsday' and 'Kaiserreich' add tons of replay value to this game, and a breath of fresh air after playing multiple hours of standard WWII in HOI2.”
story
8 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
38%
25%
38%
The game's story aspect is characterized by emergent storytelling, allowing players to create their own narratives through gameplay, particularly enhanced by mods like the grand campaign. While some players find the built-in story elements lacking, the combination of historical and ahistorical events, along with a compelling soundtrack, provides significant replayability and engagement. However, the effectiveness of the spy system and certain gameplay mechanics can detract from the overall experience.
- “The thing that keeps me playing is the story, or the story you build during your playthrough, with a great soundtrack, historical and ahistorical events you can find hours of replayability.”
- “Emergent storytelling that Paradox is known for.”
- “A story of the rise and fall of communist America using the grand campaign mod (highly recommend) the game is pretty much unplayable in my opinion without it because you can truly see the meat of Darkest Hour with it.”
- “The intelligence system is poorly designed; using it manually is frustrating because you have to open the intelligence tab every few minutes. Relying on the AI often leads to failure, resulting in more losses than gains.”
- “The story is essentially non-existent, leaving players to create their own narratives, which can be hit or miss depending on the gameplay.”
- “Without the grand campaign mod, the game feels nearly unplayable, as it lacks the depth and engagement needed to truly appreciate the story.”
music
8 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
38%
25%
38%
The music in the game receives high praise for its fantastic soundtrack, enhancing the overall gameplay experience and replayability. However, some users note issues with sound control, as the music volume cannot be adjusted independently, leading to frustration. Overall, while the music is a standout feature, its implementation could use improvement.
- “The thing that keeps me playing is the story, or the story you build during your playthrough, with a great soundtrack, historical and ahistorical events you can find hours of replayability.”
- “The soundtrack is fantastic and the gameplay offers a deeper experience.”
- “Music 10/10”
- “The game looks great and plays great, but the sounds are problematic. It's either too loud or too quiet, and you can't adjust the music volume independently. You can only mute the sound completely or keep it on, which is frustrating. If you want to lower the music, you'll have to adjust your entire PC's sound. I doubt anyone would play this for hours with headphones on; I usually just open a YouTube video to listen to while I play.”
- “The music in this game makes you want to invade Poland.”
- “Hoi3 has way better UI and music.”
grinding
7 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
14%
86%
Players find the grinding aspect of "Darkest Hour" to be a mixed experience; while the game effectively simulates the slow and brutal nature of WW1, it balances this with fine control over military and economic actions, preventing it from becoming overly tedious. However, some players still note that managing large armies can be cumbersome, though they appreciate the game's overall smoother mechanics compared to its predecessors.
- “War is tedious and slow.”
- “It's smooth and easy to control your nation, albeit a bit tedious when you have to deploy a lot of divisions and split armies.”
- “It may be tedious, but trust me, it's better than playing the game incompetently for several months like I did.”
humor
5 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The humor in the game is highlighted as a standout feature, with players appreciating its witty and diverse approach to historical events, allowing for absurd and unexpected scenarios, such as a communist Germany during WWII. The blend of humor with elements from various Paradox games enhances the overall experience, making it both entertaining and engaging.
- “One of the most diverse Paradox games ever, with the wit, humor, and monarchies of Victoria 2, the political system of Europa Universalis 4, and the gameplay of Hearts of Iron 4.”
- “Rewrite history in hilarious and unexpected ways - WWII communist Germany?”
- “Funny, it's the best since they didn't develop it.”
stability
4 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The game's stability has been criticized, particularly for failing to run on certain Windows 11 systems, leading to frustrating troubleshooting experiences. While the graphics are generally praised for their vibrancy, players have reported encountering various glitches and bugs that detract from the overall experience.
- “The game doesn't run on some Windows 11 systems (like mine) from the get-go, and troubleshooting is too much trouble.”
- “The game is too complex and buggy.”
- “There are some ugly glitches here and there.”
optimization
4 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
75%
50%
The optimization of Darkest Hour is a mixed bag; while it offers a solid gameplay experience reminiscent of HOI2, many users report significant lag issues that detract from the overall enjoyment. Some attribute the performance problems to compatibility with Windows 8 rather than inherent game optimization flaws. However, it is noted that the game is generally optimized for modern PCs and higher resolution displays.
- “Darkest Hour is not necessarily the best Hearts of Iron game on its own out of the box, but it has the best combination of gameplay, engine, and performance for making a Hearts of Iron experience where gameplay actually matters beyond waiting for allies to win or entering an ahistorical mess where nothing happens without you, and that's what a couple of modmakers have done.”
- “This game brings back the old HOI2 formula, redoes it into its own glory, but it's very laggy and can be irritating. I don't think it lags because of the game being unoptimized; I think it lags because of Windows 8. I've tried multiple things to fix the lag, but nothing works. It's a great game if you can get past the lag; some may be turned off because of it.”
- “All optimized for modern PCs and higher resolution monitors.”
- “Horrible performance, and I can't find a fix.”
- “This game brings back the old HOI2 formula, redoes it into its own glory, but it's very laggy and can be irritating. I don't think it lags because of the game being unoptimized; I think it lags because of Windows 8. I've tried multiple things to try to fix the lag, and nothing works. It's a great game if you can get past the lag; some may be turned off because of it.”
emotional
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Players find the game to be highly emotional, highlighting its particularly impactful and compelling ending as one of the most memorable they've experienced.
- “This was actually pretty emotional.”
- “Has one of the most emotionally compelling game endings I've ever seen.”