Company of Heroes 3 Dare and Destroy DLC Adds Four Battlegroups

Relic Entertainment has dropped the Dare and Destroy DLC for Company of Heroes 3. This expansion adds four new battlegroups to the WW2 RTS game and comes with a balance patch aimed at improving anti-air, infantry, and late-game mechanics. The game currently boasts a 59% positive rating based on 20,049 Steam reviews. This figure highlights the ongoing tension between the series’ ambitions and its execution.

The new battlegroups broaden players’ tactical choices across existing factions. This approach is consistent with Relic’s strategy since launch, enhancing the game’s strategic depth after release. Battlegroups act like doctrine trees, influencing how players build their units and devise tactics on the battlefield. Adding four at once marks one of the biggest content drops in a single DLC for the game.

The balance update tackles three key issues: anti-air efficiency, infantry capabilities, and late-game pacing. These aren’t just minor tweaks. Anti-air and late-game balance have been points of contention among the community since 2023. The real test for Relic is whether this patch will change player sentiment significantly.

Company of Heroes 3 debuted on February 23, 2023, priced at $59.99, and it currently has 5,516 concurrent players on Steam. That number is modest for a franchise with the legacy of the original Company of Heroes, which many consider one of the defining RTS games of the 2000s. The difference between past goodwill and current player counts shows just how much work Relic has ahead of it.

SEGA, the publisher, has shown continued support for post-launch development instead of giving up on the title. This commitment is significant, especially given the game’s reception. Whether Dare and Destroy becomes a turning point or just another small update will largely depend on how the community reacts to the new content and balance changes in the coming weeks.

By The Numbers

Steam Review Score	59% positive
Total Steam Reviews	20,049
Current Steam Players	5,516
Current Price (Steam)	$59.99
Launch Date	February 23, 2023
New Battlegroups Added	4

The community’s reaction has been skeptical. One Steam reviewer expressed this under the title “Great game ruined by bad development (Again)”: “Being a fan of OG Company of Heroes recently is just — painful. I come from the first Company of Heroes and been a fan of this dynamic RTS.” This feeling of nostalgia mixed with disappointment appears throughout the game’s reviews, indicating an audience eager for the series to thrive but unsure about its current direction.

What To Watch

• Whether the Dare and Destroy battlegroups will meaningfully impact competitive play, or if balance complaints will arise again in the next ranked season.
• The trajectory of Steam reviews over the next 30 days. A 59% score is just shy of the “Mixed” threshold, and ongoing negative feedback could lower the game’s all-time rating.
• Relic’s schedule for future DLC releases; if they launch four battlegroups together again, it might indicate a shift towards larger, less frequent content updates instead of the smaller incremental approach seen earlier in the game’s lifecycle.