Si: Hello. Hearts of Iron created a huge fan base and a lot of people are
awaiting for its sequel. Tell us what are the biggest changes brought in the
second HoI?
Fredrik Lindgren: The two biggest changes overall is the 15 battle scenarios included in
addition to the 4 Grand Campaigns as well as cooperative multiplayer,
allowing players to share a country while playing.
Si: Graphically it doesn't seem to have changed much?
Fredrik Lindgren: The map is brand new just as the user interface which has been completely
re-worked. The idea of the interface is to reduce the number of clicks it
takes to perform a certain action. I know it's hard to detect all updates
based on our released screen shots, the player needs to experience and
actually play the game in order to appreciate the interface updates.
Si: How does the combat system works in HoI 2? Has anything been changed?
Fredrik Lindgren: The combat system is completely re-worked and introduces
"movement-is-attack", meaning that an attack starts the moment you move into
an adjacent province. In Hearts of Iron 2 you will also be able to give
missions like support attack to your units as well as more than 20 other
mission types.
Si: How would you describe economical aspects of HoI 2? Complex? Simple?
Fredrik Lindgren: The economy is pretty straightforward with the possibility of open
negotiation between countries.
Si: How historically accurate will HoI 2 be? Will we be able to ally
communists, fascists, democrats in the interest of war?
Fredrik Lindgren: The system of alliances is divided into two aspects. It will be easiest to
ally with a country of similar political viewpoint, however another way that
is likely to work is by "my enemy's enemy".
Si: What have you prepared in multiplayer realm?
Fredrik Lindgren: Multiplayer is enabled for up to 32 simultaneous players, with up to 10
people sharing the same country in cooperative multiplayer. HOI2 is a blast
in multiplayer and the introduction of battle scenarios gives extra flavour
to the game since the scenarios are optimized for a few hours of gaming.
Si: Anything left to add?
Fredrik Lindgren: With Hearts of Iron 2, we are aiming to present the World War II strategy
experience. It should be an interesting game experience to people familiar
with the first game as well as for new players.
Si: Thank you for sharing your time with us.
Fredrik Lindgren: Thank you.