Hearts of Iron IV: Waking the Tiger (PC) Review

By Eric Ace 25.03.2018

Review for Hearts of Iron IV: Waking the Tiger on PC

Following developer Paradox Interactive's method of releasing massive amounts of DLC, Cubed3 has been reviewing a series of expansions for Hearts of Iron IV, so far looking at Together for Victory and Death or Dishonor. Many people have openly criticised this method of endless paid DLC the team has put out to expand what 'should' have been in the base game and, unfortunately, this criticism has merit as there has been a history of DLC that was severely lacking. Cubed3 checks out the latest release, Waking the Tiger to see if it follows a similar pattern or not.

Paradox Interactive's DLC is always hit or miss, and as a company it runs a very dangerous risk of putting off its fan-base. Even for Hearts of Iron IV, there has been some decent and not so decent updates. This one is actually one of the good DLC releases, but there is caveat to that. Waking the Tiger expands the countries to play, including all the East Asian countries, most notably including China.

Gameplay-wise, nothing majorly new is introduced; it is more of the same, except with new countries. That being said, many of the countries have a pretty expansive national focus tree, which makes them feel fairly unique. These can be which direction to take the country, such as allying with Japan or the Western countries.

Screenshot for Hearts of Iron IV: Waking the Tiger on PC

Like many of the previous DLC packages, Waking the Tiger is not quite as big as it appears. Sure, you can play up to 25 countries, but considering most people can't even name the five major countries in WWII, 25 is overkill. Unfortunately, this has a direct bearing on the game as only in the 1936 mode are these countries remotely viable to play, and some of them are so hamstrung it is dishonest to say you can even 'play' them.

One interesting aspect present in this expansion is more of a 'civil war' feeling of the various Chinese factions fighting it out. There is no way any of these countries are going to take over the world, and simply fighting for their own little slice of China is an interesting feeling for a WWII experience. This comes with a negative, though, of simply being mostly a pawn to the larger events unfolding around the world.

Expansions like this are not going to convert anyone who did not like the original base. Many of the issues are still very present, such as too slow in the pace stakes, and all this did was give players a new 'character' to play as, so to speak. For those who deeply enjoy the title, they will like it certainly, but those who are wondering if this will make the base more interesting than before, the answer is no.

Screenshot for Hearts of Iron IV: Waking the Tiger on PC

Cubed3 Rating

6/10

Good

On paper it sounds more interesting than it truly is As far as DLC goes, Hearts of Iron IV: Waking the Tiger is merely sufficient as it gives a variety of Asian countries to play. Like previous DLC, many of these countries are practically unplayable from a balance perspective, but ones like China provide a unique take. This expansion will do little for those who did not like the base game, but those in love with the game will like this.