THQ and Relic Entertainment has announced that their highly anticipated Strategy RTS game, Company of Heroes 2 will feature extreme and innovative dynamic weather condition simulating Technology which has never been implemented in any of the strategy games before. Thanks to the Relic Entertainment's Essence Engine 3.0 and its ColdTech that the brutal winters of World War II has been incorporated in-game which promises to maintain the sense of realism and give gamers an immersive authentic experience.

Ice will play a vital role in the game which can also be used as a weapon, affecting movement of the troops and vehicles. A crack on the glacier can cause vehicle to sink down in the freezing Russian water. 

Any historian will attest to the huge role the brutal Soviet winter played in the Eastern Front theatre of World War II and this is now realistically simulated in-game thanks to Relic Entertainment's new Essence Engine 3.0 and its ColdTech system.

ColdTech includes an 'extreme cold' mechanic which accurately encapsulates the Soviet winter which reached extremes of -40 degrees F in 1941. At those temperatures human skin will freeze in a matter of minutes, something that is portrayed in the game. On winter maps, Infantry units exposed to the bitter cold will gradually freeze to death unless the player keeps them warm by building fires and garrisoning them in buildings. Dynamic blizzards will increase the effects of extreme cold making it even more hazardous to leave infantry in the open.

The new ColdTech system also allows the Essence Engine to dynamically paint on and remove snow, meaning that not only does it accumulate on buildings and vehicles, but it can also be melted or removed from objects by the player.

Quinn Duffy, Game Director at Relic Entertainment commented, "Company of Heroes 2 is all about authenticity and no game based on the Eastern Front would be complete without extreme weather conditions. Thanks to the enhanced technology offered by the new Essence Engine we are able to accurately portray the bitter Soviet winter which crippled the German army."

Company of Heroes 2 is scheduled to be available for PC in early 2013.

Source: Company of Heroes 2 Official website