14 DAY TRIAL // The team at Paradox Development Studio is continuing to introduce more details about the coming Hearts of Iron IV, this time focusing on one of the secondary powers that can play a big role in World War II, Italy.
The nation will be led by Mussolini, who is seeking to use the coming conflict in order to create an Italian Empire which will mimic the classic Roman one.
According to the developer diary, Italy will start with a spirit called Vittoria Mutilata, designed to make them more susceptible to fascist political order and make it less likely that they will move towards democracy and communism, and with King Victor Emanuel III, who increases national unity.
Paradox states, "Italy has 39 divisions in 1936, but while that looks strong, it is due to them moving to binary divisions earlier, so each of their divisions has less punching power. They also have about 300 fighters and 400 bombers in 1936, but it is not modern. The navy is rather strong with 2 battleships, 8 heavy cruisers & 80 smaller ships, but is not modern either."
The National Focus for Italy includes: Ethiopian War Logistics - focuses on industrial increases; Army Primacy - improves army research; Mare Nostrum - naval strength is the core; Light ship focus - makes destroyers and submarines more capable; Triumph in Africa - gamers can improve their diplomacy and conquest options.
Hearts of Iron IV aims to give players options
Italy starts off at war with Ethiopia, which in the previous installment in the series was often used by gamers to create a buildup of both industry and military forces that make the country a force in Europe.
The development team is not saying whether the same exploit can be used on Hearts of Iron IV, but they do mention that new transport mechanics will make it easier to move around forces to deal with the country and gain an expanded power base in Africa.
The new World War II grand strategy title is designed to give players more high-level choices when it comes to how they run their country while making it easier for them to automate tasks like production or diplomacy.
Hearts of Iron IV will be launched on the PC at some point in 2016.
