Headquarters: World War II News

[p]Hi everyone - We have just released the latest Headquarters: WWII update.[/p][p][/p][p]This has a number of fixes and tweaks, but importantly, it has some more fixes and updates for the Skirmish AI, that a number of people have flagged has issues, in regards to the AI taking points and battling you.[/p][p][/p][p]This is an ongoing update to AI that we are doing on the Headquarters engine, so expect more AI improvements (mainly focused on Skirmish & MP).[/p][p][/p][p]The AI changes consist of the AI now not getting stuck behind its own units meaning it is more able to move forward on the attack, as well as now being able to use Headquarters skills (Artillery Barrage, Recon, Reinforcement, etc).[/p][p][/p][p]There are also some crashes and bugs that have been fixed.[/p][p][/p][p]Here are the fixes and changes in this latest version:[/p][p][/p][p]Version 1.04.02 - 09.06.2025[/p][p]AI Improvements:[/p][p]• Improved AI Pathfinding. The AI now ignores blocking units to provide better movement over maps.[/p][p]• AI now uses HQ skills.[/p][p][/p][p]Fixes:[/p][p]• Updated error message text to indicate what potential error could be. Notably, logging on to PBEM games[/p][p]• Change client validation to allow for special characters to be used in passwords.[/p][p]• Fixed a number of crashes on some given missions.[/p][p][/p][p]See you on the Battlefield.[/p]

Hi everyone - Version 1.04.01 update just released.

There is a new update just released for Headquarters: WWII. This includes some tweaks and fixes for the game, and also preparation for the new tournament that begins on Friday 12th May.

This fixes a crash that had been occurring due to a auto-camera issue.

Please update to this new version before starting the tournament (to avoid any issues).

Here is the changelog:

Headquarters:WWII Changelog
Version 1.04.01 - 14.05.2025

Improvements:
• All HQ skills now start on cooldown in all skirmish and multiplayer games. (No changes in campaigns). This change is aimed at avoiding the use of artillery / naval artillery / tactical bombers during both players' initial deployment, and to give players time to deploy AA units.
• Slightly changed the flags' positions on the skirmish map “The Falaise Pocket: The Breakout” to put both players in a more equal position.
• Added “Total cost” line in Skirmish and Multiplayer games final statistics.

Fixes:
• Fixed incorrect terrain data on several tiles on the map “The Battle for Hill 112”.
• Fixed tournament points calculation on maps that had more than 2 player slots. (4-player maps with 2 players)
• Fixed a crash issue that could occur on some maps. (We encountered it on “The Battle for Hill 112” and it could have been avoided by disabling the auto camera before that fix. Now, there is no need to do that.)

See you on the Battlefield!

A new Headquarters: World War II tournament is starting soon, using some of the campaign maps recently incorporated into Skirmish & Multiplayer.

We are excited to announce that a new Headquarters: World War II Leaderboard will begin with this tournament. The Leaderboard ranks tournament players in the game across upcoming tournaments. These use an ELO-rated system for placement. So if you want to be on the Leaderboard, sign up and play.

To celebrate the new Leaderboard, we are awarding prizes to the top 3 players in this tournament:

1st Place: $50 Slitherine discount coupon
2nd Place: $30 Slitherine discount coupon
3rd Place: $20 Slitherine discount coupon

These coupons can be used as discounts on both Slitherine and Matrix Games websites

The Tournament begins on 16th May, so please sign up before then.
Sign up here.

Tournament Details:
There are 4 rounds, with each round being 16 days.
Round 1 - Allied Invasion
Round 2 - Operation Aubery
Round 3 - The Falaise Pocket: The Trap
Round 4 - The Falaise Pocket: The Breakout

Victory conditions:
1) Time
Turn limit: 0/25
If none of the other win conditions is met by turn 25 - the player with the highest in-game Score wins
2) Control the flag
Victory points - 50 (80 on 4 players map with 2 closed slots - The Falaise Pocket: The Trap)
Reach the designated number of Victory points to win the game. Victory points are gained at the start of every turn based on the total number of flags under your control.
3) Conqueror
Capturing the enemy HQ (starting) flag results in immediate victory.
4) Wipe them out
Eliminating all enemy units results in immediate victory.

HQ skills available*:
Rally
Reinforcement
Air Recon
Artillery Bombardment

*In the new update HQ skills will be on cooldown at the start of a Skirmish or Multiplayer game.

The tournament will be using the next update (version 1.04.01) which will have a couple of required fixes, so an update will be required before you start any tournament games.

Good luck, and see you on the battlefield!

It’s been one year since the release of Headquarters: World War II, and to celebrate this milestone, we are excited to launch the Anniversary Update, packed with new content, improvements, and bug fixes.

New Content

• A new music track “Hero” has been added to the playlist, free for everyone.
  
• Six beloved campaign maps have been converted for use in Skirmish and Multiplayer modes, offering even more ways to enjoy tactical battles:
  
  • Allied Invasion
    
  • The Retreat to Caen
    
  • Operation Aubery
    
  • The Battle for Hill 112
    
  • The Falaise Pocket: The Trap
    
  • The Falaise Pocket: The Breakout
    

Improvements

Significant upgrades to the camera system and settings have been made:

• A Field of View (FOV) slider is now available in the Video Settings menu (previously limited to Photo Mode only)
  
• The Free Camera Mode has been reworked for easier access and smoother transitions:
  
  • Now you no longer need to hold the Middle Mouse Button (MMB or Mouse Wheel) to stay in Free Camera Mode. You can enter the Free Camera Mode by pressing the MMB, and then exit the Free Camera Mode by either pressing the MMB again, or by scrolling the Mouse wheel.
    
  • Now, when you are in the Free Camera mode, you can see a notification “Free Camera ON” below the End Turn button.
    
  • Now, when you exit the Free Camera mode, the camera moves smoothly to its Regular Camera angle (instead of an instant jump). So, you can now better understand what is going on.
    
  • Free Camera Mode is now available on all Zoom levels of the Regular Camera. (Before it was unavailable at the 4 highest Zoom levels)
    

Fixes:

• Fixed a common crash caused by eliminating a demoralized (fleeing) unit.
  
• Resolved an issue in the Ardennes DLC (Map 8 of the German campaign) where incorrect text and voice lines were triggered after a loss.
  

A huge thank you to our amazing community for your continued support over the past year!

NEW UPDATE - v1.02.02 - FIXES

Hi Commanders - there is a new update released. This includes some fixes for minor issues introduced with the last Ardennes DLC update. it also includes an additional Skirmish AI tweak.
Please check out the changelog here, and please, keep you eyes peeled for some exciting news regarding a new update next month. Information will drop soon.

Changelog v1.02.02 – 20th March 2025
Fixes:
• AI no longer prioritizes purchasing certain units in Skirmish/MP (eg. tanks with flamethrowers).
• Fixed problem with some obstacles (objects between tiles - walls, fences, etc) not showing a proper visual animation of destruction sometimes.
• Fixed issue with the End of Campaign screen in Ardennes DLC showing your score for each map as X/600, while the maximum score is 400. It is now shown correctly as X/400.
• Minor localization fixes for Ardennes DLC
• Removed a skill from all units which was mistakenly added into the game due to database error and was missing icon and localization. It was not affecting gameplay.

See you on the battlefield.