Is there no difference between the Factions?

[Highwayman]

Is it just me or do the factions play exactly the same? There is not a big difference between the saxony or polian units exept 2 mechs. Looks like it just a different skin. I feel a bit disappointed. In Company of heroes there was more difference in the play style of the factions (more defensive, more offensive, more infantery or more tanks)

[TheRealSparrowhawk]

From what I've seen in 10 hours of playtime (had to capture a lot of screenshots and test both factions alongside various different strategies in all four demo maps, for an article I was writing) I'd say the Saxony faction is objectively stronger, even with the mirrored unit roster.

In all matches I played as Saxony I'd curb-stomp the enemy easily (even managed to finish a "capture and hold" match by destroying their HQ), meanwhile I always had a hard time playing as Polania against Saxony in the same maps.

[Toshio]

Originally posted by Highwayman:

Is it just me or do the factions play exactly the same? There is not a big difference between the saxony or polian units exept 2 mechs. Looks like it just a different skin. I feel a bit disappointed. In Company of heroes there was more difference in the play style of the factions (more defensive, more offensive, more infantery or more tanks)

Yep. Also most guns do exact same dmg now (diffirent numbers, but same ammount of shots/ttk), so there are only 3 armored units, 3 support unit (infantry with mech dmg stats and anty inf mech) and 3 infantry units (including 2 base units). All other are just skins in most situations. So build cheapest or fastest units and you will dominate AI moron, that try to be tactycool with mgs and flame)

[Shadow[Ger]]

Originally posted by Highwayman:

Is it just me or do the factions play exactly the same? There is not a big difference between the saxony or polian units exept 2 mechs. Looks like it just a different skin. I feel a bit disappointed. In Company of heroes there was more difference in the play style of the factions (more defensive, more offensive, more infantery or more tanks)

I mean, I didn't do an indepth testing but I share this concern. The starting units are definitely just reskins of one another. The units even cost the same (150 iron for the engineers and 200 for the basic infantry). The polonia infantry is using rifles, the saxoni are using smgs but they have the same healthpool and I am pretty sure that they even deal the same amount of dps (which means that attack speed and dmg might vary but the dmg per second is the same).
The engineers and build the same buildings, bunkers have the same range, the rest of the infantry is basically also the same, only the exosuite units play a little differently but probably also are on the same powerlevel, only when it comes to the mechs I am not 100% if there aren't any major differences. But I doubt it because it's probably the same combination of armor type (light armor, medium armor, heavy armor) + dmg type with the only differences being the health, dmg and maybe the attack-style.

So yeah, I am pretty sure they play very similar and feel similar to one another. Which is why I think the pricing is ridiculous. I mean, that's 50€ for a game where at least 2 of 3 factions are practically the same thing. Even a good campaign can't justify that price.

[Enigmatic]

Mm some units are very different. The mechs seem a lot more different then the infantry.

[Arnyx]

I mean, there's things you can compare like the two Artillery mechs that are very similar. then there's the Seifmutter...

Release...
The W H E E L S

[Graufang]

Originally posted by Arnyx:

I mean, there's things you can compare like the two Artillery mechs that are very similar. then there's the Seifmutter...

Release...
The W H E E L S

It's called "Stiefmutter" (Stepmother). In german the Stiefmutter is often a negative term. ;)

[JDPUK]

Originally posted by Arnyx:

I mean, there's things you can compare like the two Artillery mechs that are very similar. then there's the Seifmutter...

Release...
The W H E E L S

LOL, hahahaha - that thing is a walking death machine.

[Imnuktam]

That is definitely my first wish, more unique feeling units for each faction would really add a lot to this title.

[Doyle]

Originally posted by Imnuktam:

That is definitely my first wish, more unique feeling units for each faction would really add a lot to this title.

But then you undergo an endless balancing war and never ends up right (aka COH).

[Der999]

Polian mechs are mostly focused on Range and high damage, big splash and when you have enough of them you win. But the infantry are pretty much the same for some reason...
They should make the Polinan infantry have a bigger range and higher damage but slow ROF.

[Sailor Moon]

Yeah the only difference iv been able to see is range, which is pretty meaningless when the maps are so tiny.

[PillBox20]

The rifle infantry of Polania (their starting squad) just has no range. As Saxony I never feel threatened by these guys and I just rush a bit and shred them to pieces. If I get overwhelmed with engineers (which the AI does often) I just rush to the nearest building and sit there until the enemy dies. You can't shoot out infantry inside a building with regular ammo. Either artillery or flamethrowers will do the trick.

But yeah, all in all they do feel the same with small differences in Saxony's favour.

[Imnuktam]

Originally posted by Inyalowda66:

Originally posted by Imnuktam:

That is definitely my first wish, more unique feeling units for each faction would really add a lot to this title.

But then you undergo an endless balancing war and never ends up right (aka COH).

I dont feel factions in games like this need perfect balancing. COH was never perfectly balanced and i didnt mind playing a weaker faction when i was good or a stronger one while i was learning. DOW didnt have perfect balance especially when playing apoc mod but i still enjoyed the U.P and O.P factions regardless.

Removing diversity from games to make balancing easier is just ZZZzzzz and will bleed a player base off faster than a hole in a carotid artery.

[JDPUK]

Originally posted by Imnuktam:

Originally posted by Inyalowda66:

But then you undergo an endless balancing war and never ends up right (aka COH).

I dont feel factions in games like this need perfect balancing. COH was never perfectly balanced and i didnt mind playing a weaker faction when i was good or a stronger one while i was learning. DOW didnt have perfect balance especially when playing apoc mod but i still enjoyed the U.P and O.P factions regardless.

Removing diversity from games to make balancing easier is just ZZZzzzz and will bleed a player base off faster than a hole in a carotid artery.

+1

[Darkfireslide]

Based on my initial gameplay, I would say that the factions are different enough where it counts. The basic units and thus Grenadiers are different in that Saxony's Stormtroopers do more damage up close, while Polanian Rifles have longer range. As such Saxony has to be aggressive early on while Polania must rely on safety in numbers. At least, these are my initial impressions and what has worked in practice.

Where the game is really different however are the mechs. Polania has two light but hard-hitting mechs, while Saxony's are slower but bulkier and better in a straight up fight. As such Polania has a mobility advantage while Saxony has a durability and direct engagement advantage.
The 4 elite mechs are also quite different from one another even though some share a role, such as the artillery mechs.
Lastly, the elite infantry for each faction are different as well.