Hearts of Iron IV

Mountainous learning curve.. I'm on 20 odd hours and still playing through the tutorial.
The scope of the game even without DLC is remarkable.
I'm 65 and unsure if I'll master the game before i go to the great gaming room in the sky, but hey this makes it fun.
Get it on sale btw.

-played for the first time as italy
-took too long to figure out how to play
-lost against ethiopia
-got absolutely demolished by yugoslavia and the swiss
-started a new game as germany
-lost to poland.

Been playing this game for 2 years, now I no longer can talk to women only know how to get sino-japanese war within 4 months. Just started to understand how navy works. If you are radical socialist or fascist, I would totally recommend this game, and I am extremely racist. 10/10

I bought Hearts of Iron IV because I saw tens of thousands of people playing it on Steam and thought, “Hey, if that many people are into it, it’s gotta be good, right? Probably just Risk with better graphics.” Wrong. So very wrong. This game isn’t Risk. This is a full-blown world domination simulator built entirely out of spreadsheets, buttons, and pain. It’s like someone weaponized Excel and gave it historical trauma.
I started a game as Japan, thinking “Cool, I’ll conquer the Pacific like in the movies.” I didn’t even make it past 1938 before I’d completely derailed history. I invaded China with full confidence... and zero supply. My tanks ran out of fuel, my troops starved in the mountains, and I accidentally built more horses than actual weapons. My navy? Still stuck in port because I forgot to give them orders. Classic rookie admiral move.
Things only got worse when I tried to join multiplayer.
The chat hit me with:
“J A P rush 40w marines, meta is CAS-heavy micro, USA does AA spam, GER go 7-2s.”
I felt like I was reading secret military code. People were throwing out terms like "air meta" and "naval micro" like we were planning a real war. Someone told me to “rush AA with 40w support recon CAS” and I honestly considered uninstalling.
I asked what “7-2” meant and someone called me “Malta-tier.” I don’t know what that means, but I took it personally.
And look, I tried to get better. I even launched a naval invasion on the UK forgot convoys. My entire army just stood at the edge of France, staring across the channel like sad kids waiting for a school bus that doesn’t exist. Meanwhile, the British invaded me with paratroopers. I didn’t even know paratroopers were in the game. My capital fell before my invasion plan even got off the ground.
But then I discovered a mod. Old World Blues. And suddenly, it all clicked. Now I’m not just failing at World War II I’m thriving in the Fallout universe. I’m leading an army of radioactive ghouls through post-apocalyptic Utah. I’ve got super mutants with rocket launchers. I invaded a toaster cult and took over a robot factory. I still don’t really know how combat width works, but at least now I can wear power armor while not knowing. It’s way more intuitive, way more fun, and somehow I understand it. Probably because the game isn’t pretending to be historically accurate it’s just chaos, lasers, and lore. I’m still losing wars, but now it’s to talking bears and brain-in-a-jar dictators instead of Belgium. Huge improvement.

honestly a great game, BUT, the DLC policy can be overbearing, and it is one of the games that are very hard to master. BEWARE that it will give you gender dysphoria and either make you a hardcore fascist or communist.

Great single player game. At first it seems hard and very confusing, but if you give it chance it is great strategy, you might get addicted to.

After 200 hours in game there is still something to learn about game mechanics.

You might start to be interested in WW2 and events if you are not already.

You can perfectly play game without any DLC and still have fun. I got most of DLC, but i dont think you need them. Just buy what content you like (if you like tanks, take no step back for example).

DLC what i do NOT recomend is la resistance. It add spy mechanic but it is only really usefull only to capitulate big countries like USA or CHINA, otherwise this mechanic is just adding boring layer to game and does not worth it - it give you some bonuses, but it will also for AI so it canceling each other.

Good game, buy DLC if you want it, but can play without it as well, there is not big pressure to have them all or to buy single of them. (influecers making illusion you need all DLCs to play game as they are paid for it, but you dont).

Astonishing game. HOI4 is already spectacular on its own, but the modding scene has made it billions upon billions upon times more replayable and fun.
1100 hours and still dont know how navy works I LOVE YOU HOI4 NEVER CHANGE..