Company of Heroes Online Message Board

Oh, old man Company of Heroes, so good to see you again. Pull a comfy chair up to the fire and tell us another war story. It must hurt, having seen your younger, free to pay brother pass away so unexpectedly last year, but at least we’ve still got you. And what’s that? You’re not ready to go gently into that good night yourself yet? You have a healthy new patch laden with six extra maps and a bewildering array of balance changes? Excellent.(more…)

#pc Company of Heroes Online, whose beta began in July, will be closed down entirely on March 31. More »

This morning, we reported that THQ would "evaluate the next steps for the Company of Heroes series" after the March 31 conclusion of the Company of Heroes Online beta. We now know that whatever those next steps are, they won't include Company of Heroes Online.

The latest THQ earnings report notes that the company has "reevaluated its strategy of adapting certain Western content for free-to-play online games in Asian markets." And, as a result of that reevaluation, it has canceled Company of Heroes Online and WWE Online. COH Online was originally announced as a South Korean release in partnership with Windysoft, and WWE Online was only intended for release in Asia.

Servers to be shut down soon.

War never changes, but that doesn't mean it can last forever. THQ has announced its MMO RTS, Company of Heroes Online, will conclude its open beta on March 31, effectively shutting down until THQ can "evaluate the next steps for the Company of Heroes series." The news comes via the game's official forums.

As of today, players will find they're unable to purchase in-game currency from the website, though those who've stockpiled war funds can freely use them up until the March 31 end date. The missive also details an incentive for players who registered prior to February 1: a voucher for THQ's online store that lets users pick up Company of Heroes: Gold Edition for $4.99, $25 off its suggested retail price (according to Steam). All eligible users can hit up this link for their coupon code.

[Thanks, David]

Relic Entertainment has set up the Brian Wood Memorial Game Design Internship for students at the Vancouver Film School's Game Design Program. The internship will give one student a four-month paid stint at the developer, with the company providing three graduating students the opportunity each year.

The internship is named after Brian Wood, lead developer on Company of Heroes Online, who died last year after a tragic incident. The first internship will begin next month.

#meomorial In her darkest days, Erin Wood says she found some solace in the kindness of strangers, of gamers, of you. More »

Sure, playing as the Taliban might be taboo now, but give it about 60 years. The latest trailer for the free-to-play Company of Heroes Online (currently in open beta) slyly promotes the Nazis' Terror Division, showing that time heals all wounds when it comes to video game enemies.

A memorial trust has been set up to assist the family of Brian Wood, a developer who died under tragic circumstances last weekend. Wood had been the lead developer on Company of Heroes Online. The trust has been set up to help his pregnant wife and family during this time. For more details on how to donate, please follow this link: The Brian Wood Memorial Trust.

#rip Brian R. Wood, lead designer of Company of Heroes Online and a key player in the development of the series as a whole, was tragically killed on Friday night in an automobile accident north of Seattle. More »

Plus free in-game item package for early adopters.

If you didn't get in on the first wave of closed beta invites for THQ and Relic's Company of Heroes Online, you're guaranteed to get your chance in the coming days. A new trailer for the online strategy title sent to us by THQ included the announcement that the game's open beta testing will kick off some time this week. An exact time and date for the relaunch wasn't announced, but an update on the title's official site promises more details are coming soon.

In the mean time, check out the new trailer after the jump, and think about which of the three Doctrines your strategy will be built around. Wait, you're adopting a policy of pacifism? Yeah, that's going to work out really well for you, we think.

And old game with new ideas, all for free.

The free-to-play Company of Heroes Online won't fully replace that disc copy of Company of Heroes you have, as there's still at least one important piece of content for which you'll need the disc -- even if that piece of content is a Company of Heroes Online extra.

"We are urging people to hang onto their CD keys," producer Greg Wilson told PC Gamer. "We don't have the details yet, but we really appreciate our current retail CoH fanbase, we love them and we recognise that they helped us get where we are today with this franchise. We want to make sure they feel appreciated, so there will be something special for people who are retail owners. News of that will come." So if you were going to shatter your disc in rage about the freemium followup, keep the CD key. Just in case.

As for people who haven't yet discovered Company of Heroes, and who play other free-to-play stuff on Facebook, Wilson hopes that some of the millions of players participating in social games will "get tired of that fast food style of gameplay, and they'll want to graduate to something a bit more - whether that's a triple-A PC title or something in between."

Free-to-play RTS Game Beta available via IGN Entertainment's FilePlanet.com from 26th July,

Company of Heroes Online, Relic's freemium real-time strategy title, has opened up registration for its upcoming closed beta. To receive a code, applicants will have to make sure to check both "Receive News" and "Receive Offers" when making their account, as beta keys will be sent out using the opt-in mailing list. A post on the CoHO site states that a limited number of keys will go out in the first phase but that they'll "soon be announcing a partnership" to expand the beta.

For those uninterested in helping with the process of finding entrenched bugs, the full free-to-play title should be released this autumn.

#beta The upcoming freemium real-time simulation Company of Heroes Online kicked off an exclusive closed beta today, promising that 20,000 more access keys will be handed out on July 26 via IGN's FilePlanet. More »

Relic's popular WWII strategy game evolves.

Check out these images from the North American launch announcement.

Free-to-play-RTS game scheduled for 2010 release.

Relic's freemium real-time strategy game, Company of Heroes Online, will launch in North America this Fall, THQ has announced. The adaptation of PC exclusive Company of Heroes was previously announced for South Korea and is currently in beta in the Chinese market.

Company of Heroes Online features a persistent online world and, while being free to play, offers player customization through micro transactions. If you're unfamiliar with the franchise, you might want to check out an earlier version of the acclaimed WWII strategy title on Steam.

#impressions Company of Heroes Online isn't just a straight remake of the original, addictive real-time strategy game, it takes that experience and fixes almost everything wrong with it. More »

#pc Company of Heroes Online - the free-to-play version of the classic PC real-time strategy game that's previously only been available in Asia - is going to be released in the West, publisher THQ said today. More »