Company of Heroes 3's 'Potenza' Mission Is a Unique Strategy Challenge – IGN First
Company of Heroes 3 has set out to bring us some of the untold stories of World War II, with its focus on the Mediterranean theater and involvement of partisan forces. So while we won't be storming the beaches on D-Day or taking on waves of tanks at Kursk, we do get to see some battles that haven't been portrayed a thousand times in games and film already. And one of the most exciting flashpoints I got to check out was an epic assault on the Italian town of Potenza.
This wasn't a battle I'd even heard of before getting placed into the commander's chair. It doesn't even have its own wikipedia page. But let me set the scene for you: It's September 20, 1943. The Allied invasion of Italy is already well underway, but the Axis forces have dug in to many defensible hilltop villages across the Apennine mountains that run down the center of the peninsula. One of these, Potenza, is a natural stepping stone from the Allied landing site at Salerno for establishing a commanding strategic hold over Southern Italy.
Unlike the other assault missions I played, Potenza feels almost like a classic castle siege. The imposing, vertical sweep of it is visible from the moment you load in, and there's no easy way to sneak in. You just have to fight your way up. And the Wehrmacht has left traps and ambushes every step of the way. It's a serious challenge, and one where I never quite knew what to expect at the next choke point.
The initial approach is the one point where my Allied forces had the advantage, progressing down a gradual slope with momentum on our side to clear the bridge and set up a forward position at the base of the hill. The outer German defenses didn't put up much of a fight, but they did lay some mines along the road as a parting
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